Record shooting performance by Peyton McDaniel leads JMU to NCAA tourney
Peyton McDaniel is going dancing.
The Twin Valley grad matched an NCAA record with her 3-point shooting performance as she led James Madison University to an 81-51 win over Texas State to clinch the program’s first Sun Belt championship.
The 6-foot junior guard went 7-for-7 on 3-pointers to match an NCAA record and tied her career high with 30 points.
McDaniel became the 48th player in Division I women’s basketball history to shoot 100 percent from 3-point range with at least seven attempts, and the third this season.
McDaniel, who also had nine rebounds in the championship game, was named to the all-tournament team.
The trip to the NCAA Tournament will be the 13th in program history and first since 2016 when the Dukes topped Drexel to win the Colonial Athletic Tournament.
The Dukes (26-7) will find out their NCAA destination on the NCAA Women’s Selection Show, scheduled to air at 8 Sunday on ESPN.
McDaniel’s seven 3-pointers were one shy of tying the tournament record. Western Kentucky’s Leslie Logsdon drilled eight against Middle Tennessee in 2003.
Teammate Kiki Jefferson, a Lancaster Catholic grad, scored 21 points in the championship game and was named the Sun Belt Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
McDaniel was injured and did not play last season.
As a freshman McDaniel played in 16 games, starting 12 and averaging 27.7 minutes a game. She averaged 12.2 points a game, second on the team, 4.8 rebounds and led the team in steals.
McDaniel scored 2,102 points at Twin Valley, was Berks Player of the Year as a junior and senior and led the league in scoring twice.
She was a three-time All-Berks pick and a three-time All-State selection, earning first-team honors as a senior.