Patriots Fall to JMU, Lose Third Straight to the Dukes 54-64 in CAA Quarterfinals

The Patriots came as close as 4 points aginst the JMU Dukes on Friday in the quarterfinals of the CAA tournament, but just could not come up with the right stuff to finish. JMU would win the game 64-54 to advance to the semifinals of the CAA tournament against Drexel.

Mason would be defensively shutdown by JMU's defenders Tarik Hislop and Nikki Newman who forced a combined 9 steals on the night. The Patriot's would go into halftime with a 4 point lead though, but would be unable to handle the strategy the Dukes would throw at them in the second half.


In the second half, JMU would switch back and forth between a one-on-one defense and a zone. This defensive strategy by the Dukes helped hold the Patriots to 33.3% shooting in the second half, which would lead to Mason losing the rebounding battle 18 to 24 in the half. The JMU defense would contain Taleia Moton to 4 of 13 shooting from the field in the second half, as well as holding Amber Easter to 1 of 4 shooting in  the half. The defensive statistics as well as points off of turnovers, 5 to 14 in favor of JMU, is what helped fuel JMU to the victory. Overall JMU would be more aggressive down low and driving in the lane, which lead to the high differential of free-throw attempts 15 to 37 in favor of JMU. Overall the aggressiveness of JMU's forward Nikki Newman on the boards and forcing fouls down low really put the nail in the coffin for the Patriots.

Mason finishes the season with 15 wins and 16 losses overall, but once again improving on the previous year's record. Watching the Patriots this year should give Mason fans a lot of hope for next season, as the trio of  Amber Easter, Janaa Pickard, and Rahneeka Saunders return and will be the big time play-makers in the CAA as they average 12, 8.5, and 7.5 points per game. The achievements of seniors Taleia Moton, Evelyn Lewis, and Amber Epps cannot be stressed enough in helping this George Mason program achieve its first tournament win in six years.

The positive legacy that these seniors leave behind will leave a lasting impact for years to come on this program. Best of luck to them in the the future. Thank you for your hard work.