JMU DEFEATS NORTHEASTERN FOR 16TH-STRAIGHT WOMEN'S BASKETBALL VICTORY

Sunday, February 18

Boston, Mass.

1 p.m.

James Madison University

24-2, 15-0CAA

Northeastern

4-22, 3-12CAA

James Madison

Northeastern

JMU DEFEATS NORTHEASTERN FOR 16TH-STRAIGHT WOMEN'S BASKETBALL VICTORY

2/18/2007 5:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

BOSTON, Mass., Feb. 18, 2007 ? Senior center Meredith Alexis (Hanover Township, Pa./Bishop Hoban) had game highs of 25 points and 13 rebounds, and senior guard Lesley Dickinson (Queens Village, N.Y./Christ the King) had 15 points, all on three-point field goals, to lead James Madison to a 71-57 victory at Northeastern in women's Colonial Athletic Association basketball Sunday.

JMU took a 40-22 halftime lead and stayed in control the rest of the way in winning its 16th straight game and raising its overall record to 24-2 and its CAA mark to 15-0. The 25th-ranked Dukes tied a program record by winning their 11th road game of the season.

Northeastern fell to 4-22 overall and to 3-12 in the CAA.

Alexis hit on 11 of 20 shots from the field, and 17 of her points came after halftime. She also blocked a shot and had a steal in 30 minutes, and her scoring-rebounding "double-double" was her JMU-season-record 18th of 2006-07 and the 59th of her career.

Dickinson hit on her first five three-point attempts of the game, including four during the opening half. She took only six shots overall in 29 minutes and also had five rebounds.

JMU had a 50-27 rebounding advantage and shot 47 percent from the field (30-64) to Northeastern's 36 percent (21-58).

The Dukes went in front to stay at 7-6 on a field goal at 13:47 of the opening half by junior forward Jennifer Brown (Brooklyn, N.Y./Martin Luther King), the first of six-straight JMU points the frontcourt reserve contributed during an 11-1 burst by her team.

Dickinson capped the 11-1 run with a three-pointer with 9:52 left in the half for a 16-6 Dukes lead, and JMU outscored the Huskies 18-4 during the final 5:25 of the period with Dickinson adding another pair of three-pointers.

JMU raised its lead to 44-22 less than three minutes into the final half and to 54-31 with 11:57 to play.

Junior guard Tamera Young (Wilmington, N.C./Laney) added 10 points and nine rebounds for JMU, and the Dukes got six points and nine assists from senior guard Andrea Benvenuto (Ancaster, Ontario/St. Mary's). Young had four steals and Benvenuto three.

Brown finished with six points and seven rebounds.

JMU is on the road for two CAA games during the coming week, playing at Delaware at 7 p.m. Thursday (Feb. 22) and at Old Dominion next Sunday (Feb. 25) in a regionally televised noon game.