Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
James Madison
Bucknell Women's Basketball Falls in Home Opener, 73-53, to James Madison
11/13/2007 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Nov. 13, 2007
LEWISBURG, Pa. - James Madison's Tamera Young and Kisha Stokes both registered double-doubles and the Dukes outrebounded Bucknell 55-37 as the Bison lost their home opener to James Madison 73-53 Tuesday evening at Sojka Pavilion. Lauren Schober (Chicago, Ill./Regina Dominican) paced Bucknell with 13 points and has now tallied double figures in four consecutive games dating back to last year.
The Bison, who fell to 0-2 on the young season, hung tough with the athletic Dukes until late in the first half, but James Madison finished the half on a 17-2 run as Bucknell tallied just one field goal in the final six minutes of the stanza. Young recorded nine of her game-high 23 points during that stretch.
In the second half, the Bison climbed to within 14 points on two occasions, but could draw no closer. The final 20-point margin equaled the largest of the game for the Dukes, who improved to 2-0 and have won their two games by an average of 18.0 points per contest.
Early on Bucknell impressed against James Madison, which went 27-6 last year and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Bison were up 9-7 just over two minutes into the fast-paced contest and trailed by no more than eight points until more than 15 minutes had elapsed.
Bucknell did struggle taking care of the ball as it totaled 28 turnovers, its highest figure in a regulation contest since turning the ball over 32 times at Saint Francis (Pa.) on Nov. 26, 2004. Every Bison player who played more than one minute had at least one miscue.
Hope Foster (Washington, D.C./Dunbar) joined Schober in double figures with 11 points and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. However, that was not enough as James Madison recorded 55 rebounds, including 33 on the offensive end. Young grabbed a team-high 14 boards, including seven on the offensive side of the floor, while Stokes recorded 12 total, and seven offensive, to go along with her 13 points. Thanks to the large rebounding discrepancy, the Dukes attempted 30 more shots than Bucknell.
The Bison shot well from the free throw line, converting 17 of 18 attempts (94.4 percent). Schober led the way with a 6-for-6 showing, while Andrea Wright (Bowie, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) was 4-for-4. Wright made her first career start and totaled seven points, three rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 24 minutes.
Bucknell did outshoot James Madison as it converted 17 of 49 field goals (34.7 percent), compared to 26 of 79 (32.9 percent) for the Dukes. Young was just 8 of 25 from the floor, but did make 6 of 8 from the free throw line.
For the second consecutive game, Bucknell head coach Kathy Fedorjaka turned to her bench with regularity. The Bison bench totaled nine points and six rebounds in 46 minutes of playing time.
Bucknell will return to the road this weekend when it travels to Hampton, Va., for a 6 p.m. game against Hampton on Saturday. The Pirates are 2-0 this season with wins over Georgetown and St. Louis.
