It was an all white event when the Lady Dukes went against the Lady Monarchs at the Chartway Arena today at 2 pm. The Dukes and Monarchs came out explosive and energetic initially, but it was a low-scoring game, with both teams missing open jumpers, layups, and fouling early. Although Hama'ya Fielder's 4th quarter three-pointers gave hope. James Madison defeated the Old Dominion Monarchs in the TowneBank Royal Rivalry Challenge. The final score was 85-62. Listen to the full play-by-play here for ODU vs. JMU.

Ashanti Barnes led the Dukes in scoring with 24 points. Barnes played aggressively and quickly down in the post and at the free-throw line. Peyton McDaniel led the Dukes in rebounds, finishing with 13 rebounds. Bree Robinson led the Dukes with 7 assists.

Fielder scored 16 points, 14 of which came in the fourth quarter, with the help of her teammates. She also made four out of four free throws. Buford scored 13 points, five rebounds, and four assists.

In the first quarter, no points were scored until the eight-minute and 53-second mark. Kseniia Kozlova went to the free-throw line and made both free throws. Later in the first quarter, Simaru Fields put three points on the scoreboard for the Lady Monarchs. Peyton McDaniel scored a layup that was assisted by Zakiya Stephenson late in the first quarter. The Dukes had an 11-point lead at the end of the first quarter.

JMU outscored ODU in three quarters. In the second quarter, the Dukes shot 80 percent from three-point range. Bree Robinson, in the third quarter, shot and swished a long three-point jumper to end the quarter. JMU shot and made plenty of uncontested shots. Barnes was the hot hand. She was set up at the free-throw line, calling for the ball. Then, she worked her way to the block and used her length to float the ball off the backboard and score. In the post-game interview, DeLisha Milton-Jones said, "You cannot allow a team as good as James Madison to have their way beyond the arc, mid-range, and around the basket. For some reason, we can't guard without fouling." ODU tallied 21 personal fouls.  

James Madison finished the game shooting 50 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from the three-point line. The Dukes positioned themselves correctly for open shots and uncontested layups and tallied 20 assists. ODU tallied eight assists. JMU remains undefeated in the Sun Belt Conference.

The Monarchs' overall record is 14-9, and their conference record is 6-5. The Dukes' overall record is 19-4, and their conference record is 11-0. The Monarchs' next game will be a conference game against the Troy Trojans on February 5th at 7 p.m. at the Trojan Arena in Troy, Alabama.