Box Score

BOSTON—Despite Jewel Tunstull's league-leading 13th double-double of the season, the Northeastern women's basketball team (12-17, 6-10 CAA) dropped its final regular-season contest, 49-86, to first-ranked James Madison (25-5, 15-1 CAA) on Wednesday night at Cabot Center.

Prior to tip-off, the Huskies honored Tunstull in a Senior Day presentation for her final game at Cabot Center. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native has been an instrumental force for the squad squad over the past four years and will leave Huntington Avenue having etched her name in the Northeastern record books.

Tunstull is just the 17th player in program history to record 1,000-career points. Through 117 games, the senior has logged 1,313 points to rank ninth on NU's all-time scorers list. The 6-3 center also ranks among the top five all-time in multiple career categories, including first in field goal percentage, third in career rebounds and third in career blocks.

This season, the Tunstull currently leads the CAA in rebounds, free-throws made, and double-doubles, and for the third consecutive year, she leads the conference in field-goal percentage. Through 29 games, Jewel owns a 53.9 field-goal percentage to rank 37th in the NCAA. She has set career-highs in four categories and set a career scoring mark three separate times this year, most recently with 29 points against College of Charleston on February 9.

Tunstull led the Huskies with 18 points and 10 rebounds, including 11 free throws, three blocks and a steal. Junior guard A'lece Mark joined in double-figures with 12 points and added two blocks and just as many steals.  Amencie Mercier tallied seven points for NU, Tiffany Montagne and Samantha DeFreese contributed five apiece, and Tanisha Hopewell added two points.

CAA Preseason Player of the Year Kirby Burkholder set the pace for James Madison and led all scorers with 30 points, including a career-best eight 3-point field goals. Jazmon Gwathmey had 13 points, while Toia Giggetts and Precious Hall added 11 and 10 points, respectively. James Madison claimed the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament next weekend after a 70-62 win over Delaware on Feb. 20.

Mark opened the first half with a layup in the paint before Burkholder drained a 3-pointer on the following drive. Mercier matched the shot with a trey of her own, but James Madison connected on its second shot of the night to take its final lead of the contest. The teams showcased strong defensive efforts, as both squads were held scoreless over the next three minutes.

Burkholder, who claimed the first 14 points for the Dukes, broke the dry spell with consecutive 3-pointers to push a seven-point advantage for James Madison, 14-7. NU came within five on three more occasions, but that is the closest the Huskies would get for the remainder of the game.

With 8:01 left in the first frame, the Dukes used a 6-0 run for their first double-digit lead of the contest, 26-15. Tunstull and Mark teamed up for four points to come within 10, but a 9-0 surge sent the Dukes into halftime with a 40-21 advantage.

The teams exchanged buckets in the opening minutes of the second stanza before James Madison took a 24-point lead with back-to-back layups. DeFreese prevented a further run with a shot from beyond the arc and the Huskies held the Dukes without a basket for the next two minutes.

With 10:20 left in regulation, JMU used a 9-0 run to go up, 63-29. Northeastern attempted to chip away at the deficit with five points from Tunstull, but NU could not slow down a red-hot James Madison offense. Despite last minute attempts from Mark and Mercier, the Dukes sealed the deal with an 86-49 victory.

For the game, Northeastern shot 30 percent (15-50) from the field, 20 percent (4-20) from beyond the arc, and 79 percent (15-19) from the charity stripe. James Madison connected on 48 percent (31-65) of its shots, including 50 percent (11-22) from 3-point range, and 72 percent (13-18) from the free-throw line. JMU won the rebounding battle, 42-31.

The Huskies earned the No. 7 seed and a first-round bye as they head to Upper Marlboro, Md., for the 2014 CAA Women's Basketball Tournament next week. Northeastern will take on No. 2 Delaware in the quarterfinals on Friday, March 5, at 5 p.m. For more information about the tournament, please visit CAASports.com.

Game Notes
• Senior Jewel Tunstull recorded her league-leading 13th double-double of the season after posting 18 points and 10 rebounds on the night to lead all NU scorers.
• Tunstull led NU in scoring for the 11th time this season and led the squad in rebounds for the 16th time this season.
• Junior A'lece Mark scored in double-digits for the 17th time this season after with 12 points.
• The Huskies shot 79 percent (15-19) from the free throw line, preserving their No. 1 rank in the CAA in free-throw percentage. In 12 of the last 14 games, NU has shot over 70 percent from the charity stripe.
• Northeastern finished its regular season with an overall record of 12-17 and is 6-10 in CAA play.
• After meeting for the 14th time in program history, the Huskies now trail 1-13 in the all-time series with James Madison.

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