Second-seeded JMU overcame a difficult shooting performance and picked up a 59-48 victory over #7 Towson in the quarterfinals of the CAA Women’s Basketball Championship, presented by Jani-King, on Friday evening at The Show Place Arena.
JMU (22-9) advanced to the CAA semifinals for the ninth year in a row and will face Drexel, a 65-31 quarterfinal winner over William & Mary, on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. Towson had its three-game winning streak snapped and ended its season with a 12-18 record.
Freshman Precious Hall led JMU with 16 points, eight of which came in the first 5:25 of the second half as the Dukes took control of the game by expanding a nine-point halftime lead to 17. Senior guard Tarik Hislop added 13 points and junior Kirby Burkholder had 10 points. Redshirt freshman Jazmon Gwathmey grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds and blocked three shots.
Towson got a game-high 27 points from junior guard Tanisha McTiller. She was 7-of-16 from the floor, including 5-of-9 from three-point range. Senior forward Michelle Peebles contributed 13 points and eight rebounds and forward Nyree Williams snared 14 boards.
Leading 24-15 at intermission, JMU opened the second half on a 12-4 run. Hall hit a layup and drained two three-pointers during the stretch, with the last one putting the Dukes up 36-19 with 14:35 to go. Towson never got closer than 11 points the rest of the way.
Both teams struggled with their shooting. JMU made just 27.8% of its field goal attempts, including 4-of-16 from three-point range, while Towson hit only 25%, including 5-of-20 from beyond the arc. The difference in the game was turnovers as the Tigers committed 17 and the Dukes had only eight.
JMU jumped out to a 13-2 lead on a Hislop jumper with 13:48 left in the first half and had its nine-point halftime advantage despite shooting just 19% (8-42) from the floor. Towson, which made only 17.2% (5-29) of its first-half field goal attempts, got as close as six, 15-9, on a McTiller three-pointer with 4:53 remaining.
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