Jan. 10, 2010

Box Score
Watch Coach Porter's Postgame Comments

HARRISONBURG, Va. - Junior Brittany Poindexter and freshman Amber Easter scored in double figures for the ninth time each, but the George Mason women's basketball team's first-half offensive struggles led James Madison to a 62-50 victory in Colonial Athletic Association action on Sunday afternoon before 2,298 at the JMU Convocation Center.

Poindexter led Mason (7-7, 0-3 CAA) with a game-high 18 points on 8-for-12 field goal shooting (75 percent) while Easter contributed 12 points. Leading the way for the Dukes (12-2, 2-1) was Dawn Evans who had 16, one of three JMU players to reach double-figure scoring. Poindexter also had a team-high eight rebounds, a category in which the Dukes held a 59-to-38 advantage.

JMU opened on a 9-0 run and the first Patriot field goal came nearly four minutes into the game as Poindexter connected on a jumper. Her layup at the 15:37 mark made it 9-4, but seven straight Dukes points pushed the deficit into double figures. Mason would add just one more field goal to its ledger in the next eight minutes as the JMU advantage grew to 23-8. That gap grew as large as 21, as JMU ended the half on a 10-2 run to take a 35-14 halftime lead.

Mason was successful in shutting down the nation's leading scorer, as Evans was limited to eight points, her second lowest first-half output of the season. However, the Dukes out-shot the Patriots 41.0-to-23.1 percent from the field, held a 32-to-16 rebounding advantage. 18 of JMU's points came in the paint and 14 were on second chance opportunities, compared to six and zero in the two categories, respectively, for the Green and Gold.

Jimenez led all scorers with 10 points in the first half while Poindexter accounted for eight Patriot points.

Mason came out shooting well in the second half, making all three of its first field goal attempts. That pulled the Patriots to within 17 points, and midway through the second half, the Patriots put together a 10-2 run that closed the deficit to 49-34. Mason would eventually move as close as 12 as the Dukes notched their 10th-straight victory over the Patriots.

The Patriots continue their road trip through the Commonwealth when they visit Old Dominion for a Thursday night matchup. Tip time from Norfolk is set for 7 p.m.