Men's Hoops Moves to 4-0 With Win Over George Mason

Friday, November 19

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

4-0,0-0CAA

George Mason

4-1,0-0Atlantic 10

George Mason

James Madison

11/19/2021 10:53:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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HARRISONBURG, Va. - Junior guard Vado Morse hit a go-ahead three-pointer with 29.7 seconds on the clock to lift James Madison to a hard-fought win over the Dukes' oldest rivals on Friday night, taking down George Mason in a 67-64 non-conference men's basketball victory at the Atlantic Union Bank Center.

The Dukes, who moved to 4-0 with the win, battled through cold stretches with their defense, holding Mason (4-1) to a 37.9% clip from the field on the evening, including a 10-of-29 (34.5%) opening half. In all, JMU forced 21 turnovers from the Patriots, their most since the 2019-20 season.

Graduate student Takal Molson led the way on offense, racking up 19 points in his best scoring performance since arriving at JMU, while adding five boards and four steals to go with a pair of assists. Morse capped his night with 14 points, icing things with five in the final 30 seconds to secure the win.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The Dukes never trailed in the first period, opening with a trey from Molson and pushing the lead to as many as eight on two occasions. After another Molson three made it 34-26 with 3:05 left in the period, the Patriots responded with one of their own to cut it to 34-29, but both teams went silent for the final 2:28 of the half.

Second Half
Both teams struggled out of the break, with the schools combining to miss their first 13 shots of the period, but things soon settled in as Mason took its first lead at 42-40 on a three-pointer with 12:46 left. JMU would push the lead back to as many as six, but the Patriots again stormed back.

After Mason took a 61-60 lead with 41 seconds left, Morse stepped the left wing and buried a shot from distance to give the Dukes the advantage for good at 63-61. JMU would force a turnover on the ensuing possession, with Morse and Molson hitting all four free throws in the final 13 seconds to put things out of reach for Mason's long three at the horn.

QUICK HITS
- With another close victory, JMU has won three straight games by five or fewer points for the first time since March 2-10, 2013.
- Head Coach Mark Byington is now 3-0 against George Mason in his head coaching career.
- The Dukes have opened with wins over their first three Division I opponents for the first time since the 1999-2000 season.
- JMU is now 14-3 under Coach Byington when going into halftime with the lead.

UP NEXT
The Dukes hit the road for a four-game swing through Florida, starting with next week's Naples Invitational. JMU opens a stretch of three games in three days on Monday, Nov. 22, when they take on Kent State at noon.

The entire event will be streamed live on FloHoops.com.