GAME NOTES: The James Madison Dukes try to even their road record tonight as they take on the Tribe of William & Mary in Colonial Athletic Association action at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg. On Saturday, the Dukes dipped to 3-4 in true road games this season when they lost to the Hofstra Pride in league action, 66-60. The loss was the second in the last three games and continued a trend that has seen JMU alternate wins and losses over the last six contests. As for the Tribe, they may be just 5-8 this year, but the team appears to have lifted some weight off its shoulders with its first-ever win at the Ted Constant Center in Norfolk and its first victory in the city since 1998 when it topped Old Dominion by a score of 70-61 over the weekend. Just like the Dukes, W&M has been alternating wins and losses for quite some time now, a stretch of eight games to be exact. With respect to the all-time series between these two schools, the Dukes enter the contest holding a 39-30 edge over William & Mary, but the Tribe has come out and taken nine of the last 11 encounters. William & Mary has won six in a row in fact, defeating JMU at home a year ago by a score of 65-62.

Tied at the break with Hofstra over the weekend, the Dukes went in the tank on just 26.7 percent shooting from the field in the second half. Even worse, the team made a miserable 1-of-15 chances behind the three-point line over the last 20 minutes of action. The only player to score in double figures for JMU, Terrance Carter dropped in 13 points for the squad. One of only two players to have started every game thus far, Carter accounts for a team-high 15.3 ppg and is also first on the glass with just over eight rebounds per game. Obviously Carter's strengths lie on the inside and not beyond the arc where he has converted just 3-of-16 shots. Abdulai Jalloh, currently shooting better behind the three-point line (.423) than he is the field overall (.407), checks in with 15.2 ppg and is good for almost five and a half rebounds per outing. The Dukes are currently averaging a lofty 79.1 ppg, but most of that comes from the 210 combined points posted against Siena and Seton Hall early on.

The Tribe made just 10 field goals in both the first and second halves over the weekend versus Old Dominion, but thanks to 17-of-25 at the free-throw line after the break, the squad made its way into the win column in Norfolk. David Schneider accounted for a career-high 24 points as he made not only 4-of-6 behind the three-point line but also 10-of-12 at the charity stripe. Laimis Kisielius came up rather lame from the field (4-of-12), yet still finished with 14 points, while Danny Sumner tallied 11 in the victory. Even after having such a successful scoring game, Schneider is still averaging just 12.5 ppg for the Tribe, yet it is enough to lead the program after 13 games. A mere 34.8 percent shooter from the field, Schneider is also first on the team with 4.8 rpg, 49 assists and 23 steals. Kisielius is the only other double-digit scorer for the group with his 10.8 ppg. W&M may be scoring only 65.7 ppg this year, but at least the defense is giving up just 64.6 ppg and allowing opponents 29.3 percent shooting behind the three-point line.

The high of picking up such a rare win on the road versus ODU may be too much for the Tribe to get out of their heads, but you can be sure the squad will remain competitive at home tonight.