Bryant falls to JMU in non-conference finale

HARRISONBURG, Va. –  Bryant University women's basketball forced 23 turnovers but fell to the James Madison University Dukes, 67-36, at the JMU Convocation Center in Harrisonburg on Thursday afternoon.

GAME INFORMATION

James Madison 67, Bryant 36

Records: Bryant 1-10, James Madison 4-7
Location: JMU Convocation Center (Harrisonburg, Va.)
Attendance: 1,961

COACH BURKE'S COMMENTS

"Going into the second half, we felt like we were executing our game plan. We were doing a good job in the zone because we could not afford them getting into gaps and getting to the front of the rim. The zone was really, I thought, active pressuring them in the first half. But when a team is at home and with their athleticism and their ability to make shots, there was a fear that they were going to get comfortable."

KEY MOMENTS

• Up six, JMU's Logan Reynolds hit a 3-pointer 2:42 into the third quarter to give the Dukes a nine-point lead and swing the momentum in James Madison's favor. Prior to Reynolds' long-range bucket, Bryant was on a 5-1 to open the second half.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Bryant trailed the Dukes by just five points after the first quarter, 14-9. Sophomore Sydney Holloway (Morgantown, W. Va.) scored all nine points for the Bulldogs in the opening frame on 3-of-6 shooting from the floor (3-of-4 from the free-throw line).
• JMU outscored the Bulldogs in the second quarter, 11-7. The Black and Gold defense forced the James Madison to just 1-of-10 from beyond the arc.
• The Dukes jumped out in the third outscored the Bulldogs, 22-13 in the third quarter. JMU's Kamiah Smalls scored seven of her game-high 23 points in the quarter.
• The Bulldogs had five steals in the final frame, but JMU outscored Bryant 20-7 in the last frame.

STATS

• Holloway scored a team-high 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting and was a rebound short of her fifth double-double of the season. The sophomore also had a season-best four blocks and three steals.
• Redshirt junior Naomi Ashley (Hamilton, Ont.) had a team-high four assists in 29 minutes for Bryant. She also had three steals, her sixth game of the season with at least three thefts.

GAME NOTES

• The listed attendance of 1,961 was the highest in a game for the Bulldogs this season. The previous high was 1,137 when the team traveled to Maine on Nov. 14.
• The 23 caused turnovers by Bryant was the team's second-most this season. The Bulldogs forced 31 turnovers against Rhode Island in the Ocean State Tip-Off Tournament.

UP NEXT

The Black and Gold enter conference play on Dec. 29 when the team hosts Wagner for a Noon tipoff. Tickets for the game start at just $3 as a part of Bryant Athletics Holiday ticket specials and can be purchased here.