No. 22 James Madison Routs DIII Keystone 130-59. 7 Dukes In Double Figures – News18

HARRISONBURG, Va.: Michael Green III had 21 points and four assists to lead seven James Madison players in double-digit scoring as the unbeaten, No. 22 Dukes ran past Division III Keystone College 130-59 on Sunday.

TJ Bickerstaff had 12 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals in 16 minutes for JMU (8-0), which had 15 players score. Terrence Edwards Jr. and freshman big man Jaylen Carey scored 16 apiece. DaShaun Johnson led Keystone (1-7) with 12 points.

James Madison was coming off a 15-point victory against Buffalo earlier in the week, and coach Mark Byington thought this one was a better showing.

“I’m much happier today, nothing to do with the opponent, just that we played the right way,” Byington said. “We were ready to play. I thought we had great energy. I did not feel that way on Wednesday. I think we would have played well no matter who the opponent was.”

The Dukes had a 21-point lead midway through the first half and the game quickly turned into a series of highlight-reel plays before Byington emptied his bench in the second half. Green hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give him 14 first-half points and make it a 63-30 halftime lead.

James Madison had 25 assists on 53 baskets.

“We did the right things,” Byington said. “This team has been a good passing team. Michael Green and the guys I brought in are all good passers. It’s great when your center (Bickerstaff) has five assists and zero turnovers.”

JMU increased the lead to 45 points in the first seven minutes of the second half and cruised from there, with walk-ons closing the game out for the Dukes.

“All things considered, you look at the box score and see JMU scored 130 points,” Keystone coach Andrew Kettel said. “Look again, and they’re No. 22 in the country. All things considered I thought we played pretty well. Defensively at times I thought we did some good things. We got good looks, we challenged shots. They’re just better.”

THE BIG PICTURE

James Madison matched its best start in school history. The only other time the Dukes opened a season 8-0 since moving to Division I was 1981-82. Those Dukes beat Ohio State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before losing 52-50 to eventual champion North Carolina and Michael Jordan in the second round.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Dukes stayed at No. 22, their highest ranking in school history, following a pair of victories in the Cancun Challenge. This week they’ve added victories against a struggling Buffalo team and the Division III Giants. That, combined with losses from other ranked teams, should keep the Dukes in the AP Top 25.

UP NEXT

Keystone: Returns home to face Valley Forge.

James Madison: Travels to face in-state and conference rival Old Dominion in a nonconference game Saturday that won’t count in the Sun Belt Conference standings.

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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – Associated Press)