The Villanova women's basketball team will travel to Harrisonburg, Va., on Thursday evening to take on the James Madison Dukes in a non conference game. Villanova enters play with a 3-5 overall record, while James Madison is also 3-5 on the year. Tip-off at the Atlantic Union Bank Center is set for 7 p.m.
 
Villanova is coming off a 72-58 road loss at Creighton on Sunday, Dec. 5. Creighton led 40-31 at halftime and took control of the game by outscoring Villanova, 20-8, in the third quarter to open-up a 60-39 advantage. Villanova was led in the loss by freshman Zanai Jones who had a career-high 13 points. Brooke Mullin and Lior Garzon added 11 points each. Lauren Jensen led the Bluejays with 23 points, while Emma Ronsiek tallied 12 points. For the game, Villanova was 21-of-50 from the field (42.0%), 7-of-21 from three-point range (33.3%) and 9-of-11 from the foul line (81.8%), while Creighton shot 48.1 percent from the floor (26-of-54), 34.6 percent from long distance (9-of-26) and 64.7 percent from the charity stripe (11-of-17). Creighton owned a 34-24 advantage on the backboards.       
 
Thursday's game between Villanova and James Madison will be just the fourth all-time meeting between the schools. The Wildcats currently hold a 2-1 advantage in the series. Villanova's two wins over the Dukes came in the third round of the 2017 WNIT (69-67 win at JMU) and a 60-57 victory in the first round of the Vermont Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 24, 2017. James Madison's lone win over the Wildcats came on Nov. 9, 2019, when the Dukes registered a 56-52 win in a game played at Villanova.
 
Villanova will conclude a three-game road stretch with Thursday night's game at James Madison. Following the loss at Providence last Friday (66-47), the Wildcats fell at Creighton on Sunday by a score of 72-58. Villanova is scheduled to return home on Sunday, Dec. 12, and play host to No. 23 Oregon State. Villanova is 2-3 in road contests this season.
 
With top scoring threat Maddy Siegrist sidelined with an injury, sophomore forward Lior Garzon has emerged as the team's top scorer. Entering play at James Madison on Thursday night, Garzon is Villanova's leading scorer at 14.6 points per game. She also leads the Wildcats in three-point field goals made with 17. She has had six double figure scoring games in the first eight games of the year, including three contests of 20 points or more.
 
The Wildcats have been outstanding at the free throw line this season. After eight games, Villanova is 69-of-86 from the stripe for 80.2 percent. Villanova currently has six players shooting 80.0 percent or better from the line led by Brianna Herlihy at 84.2 percent (16-of-19).