Dukes comeback falls short vs. ODU

Lady Monarchs' inside game troubles JMU

DAVE KIM / staff photographer Junior Nadine Morgan drives along the baseline in JMU's 68-51 loss to Old Dominion University.

A year ago, the Dukes shocked Old Dominion University at the Convocation Center, ending the Lady Monarchs 113-game conference winning streak. Sunday, JMU tried to defeat No. 25 ODU once again, but a large first-half deficit proved to be too much despite a late comeback. The Lady Monarchs prevailed, winning 68-51.

The Dukes started strong, forcing ODU to turn the ball over its first three trips down the court. Two steals by junior guard Jess Cichowicz led to a 4-0 JMU lead in the first two minutes. The Lady Monarchs responded by going inside.

ODU outscored the Dukes 22-2 over the next eight minutes, including 9 points from senior Lucienne Berthieu. During that run, senior center Hollee Franklin picked up two quick fouls and was forced to sit on the bench. With Franklin out, the Lady Monarchs increased their lead to as many as 18 points before JMU cut the lead to 33-18 on a layup by junior forward Shanna Price before halftime.

"I thought Hollee got off to a horrible start with the two fouls on the made baskets," Childers said. "That really hurt us right off the bat. Hollee has been playing so well for us … If I could change one thing in the ball game, it would be those two fouls."

JMU and ODU matched each other offensively at the start of the second half, but the Lady Monarchs slowly extended their lead to as many as 22 with the duo of Berthieu and sophomore Monique Coker in the paint. The Dukes dwindled the lead down to 15 points when freshman center Krystal Brooks' shot made the score 50-35 with 10:40 to play.

After 5 consecutive points by Berthieu pushed the lead back to 20, senior guard Allyson Keener nailed a 3-pointer to spark the crowd. Franklin then sank back-to-back baskets to decrease the ODU advantage to 13 points.

After an ODU free throw, Price hit a 3 to pull the Dukes to within 56-45 with 5:56 left in the second half. As the Lady Monarchs made their way back up the court, Cichowicz made her sixth steal of the game and passed to Price for the layup, cutting the lead to 9 points.

A foul by Coker sent junior forward Nadine Morgan to the line, where she sank the second of two free throws to make the score 56-48. However, that 8-point deficit was as close as the Dukes would come to the Lady Monarchs. ODU's Sharron Francis scored 4 straight points — her only 4 points of the game — on a jump shot and a drive to the basket to push the lead back to 12.

"I think that drive was certainly the play that stopped our comeback," Childers said.

In the end, ODU increased the lead back to 17 to remain unbeaten in the CAA.

"We didn't finish the game very well," Childers said. "We got it back down to 8 (points) and then we had a defensive breakdown."

Price said, "We did try to make a run, but it's kind of hard if you're making a run and you're having turnovers and not stopping them on defense — it makes it difficult to comeback."

Berthieu, an All-American candidate who missed last season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, finished with a career-high 32 points, along with 13 boards. Coker added a season-high 17 points.
"Obviously, the difference in the ball game was our inability to stop Berthieu," Childers said. "She was a warrior out there. We just weren't quick enough in the low post to defend her.

"I've never seen her that aggressive in a game yet this year … In the other games that she's played, she almost seemed like a role player. But [Sunday] was certainly no role player — she was the player."

Price led JMU with 15 points before fouling out in the final minutes. Morgan added 12 points, 8 of which came from the foul line. Cichowicz finished with 5 points and six assists.

The Lady Monarchs shot almost 54 percent from the field, while the Dukes struggled, shooting only 33 percent.

"I don't think our team was as emotionally ready to play this game as they were," Childers said.

"They were emotionally ready to play and with that, they were physically a little bit better ready to play."

Keener said, "ODU is always a really emotional game, especially in the last two years it's really built because we have been one of the few teams in the conference that's been able to compete with them."

The two teams have set up a strong rivalry in recent years. In addition to last year's battle at the Convo, the two also played for the CAA Tournament title, with ODU winning and receiving the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

The Dukes will look to rebound from the loss to ODU when they travel to Drexel University Feb. 1 in Philadelphia, Pa.