2024–25 James Madison Dukes men's basketball team

2024–25 James Madison Dukes men's basketball
ConferenceSun Belt Conference
Record10–9 (3–4 Sun Belt)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Scott Combs
  • Dominic Lombardi
  • Cason Burk
  • Dionte Ferguson
Home arenaAtlantic Union Bank Center
Seasons
2024–25 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
South Alabama 6 – 1   .857 14 – 5   .737
Arkansas State 5 – 2   .714 14 – 5   .737
Appalachian State 5 – 2   .714 11 – 7   .611
Troy 4 – 3   .571 11 – 7   .611
Texas State 4 – 3   .571 11 – 8   .579
Marshall 4 – 3   .571 11 – 9   .550
Old Dominion 4 – 3   .571 8 – 11   .421
Louisiana 4 – 3   .571 6 – 13   .316
Georgia Southern 3 – 4   .429 10 – 9   .526
James Madison 3 – 4   .429 10 – 9   .526
Southern Miss 3 – 4   .429 8 – 11   .421
Georgia State 3 – 4   .429 7 – 12   .368
Coastal Carolina 1 – 6   .143 8 – 11   .421
Louisiana–Monroe 0 – 7   .000 4 – 16   .200
† 2025 Sun Belt tournament winner
As of January 18, 2025

The 2024–25 James Madison Dukes men's basketball team represents James Madison University in the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Dukes are led by first-year head coach Preston Spradlin and play their home games at the Atlantic Union Bank Center in Harrisonburg, Virginia as members of the Sun Belt Conference.

Previous season

The Dukes' 2023–24 season was the most successful year in school history, beginning the season with upsetting then-ranked No. 4 Michigan State, their first win over a ranked team since defeating California in 1992.[1] This season also marked their first appearance as a ranked team in the AP poll in school history.[2] The Dukes finished the 2023–24 season with a record of 28–3, 15–3 in Sun Belt play, to finish in second place.[3] They defeated Marshall, Texas State and Arkansas State in the Sun Belt tournament to win the tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 12 seed in South region, marking the team's first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2013. They upset No. 5-seeded Wisconsin in the first round to advance on to the second round for the first time since 1983.[4] There they lost to Duke in the second round, ending the season with a 32–4 overall record.

On March 25, 2024, head coach Mark Byington left the school to become the head coach at Vanderbilt.[5]

Preseason

Preseason Sun Belt Conference poll

The Dukes were picked to finish in second place in the conference's preseason poll.[6] Redshirt senior guard Mark Freeman was named to the preseason All-SBC First Team.[6] Junior guard Xavier Brown was named to the conference preseason third team.[6]

Coaches poll
Predicted finish Team (1st-place votes)
1 Arkansas State – 193 (12)
2 James Madison – 170 (1)
3 Troy – 155 (1)
4 Louisiana – 144
5 Southern Miss – 133
6 App State – 122
7 Texas State – 89
T8 Georgia Southern – 85
T8 Old Dominion – 85
10 Marshall – 79
11 South Alabama – 78
12 Georgia State – 75
13 Coastal Carolina – 34
14 ULM – 28

Roster

2024–25 James Madison Dukes men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Mark Freeman 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS Sr Morehead State Memphis, TN
G 1 Xavier Brown 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 183 lb (83 kg) Jr Jamestown HS Williamsburg, VA
G 2 Bryce Lindsay 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 194 lb (88 kg) RS Fr Texas A&M Baltimore, MD
F 3 Eddie III Ricks 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 217 lb (98 kg) So Morehead State Clarksville, TN
C 4 Elijah Hutchins-Everett 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Sr Seton Hall Orange, NJ
G 5 Justin Taylor 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 221 lb (100 kg) Jr Syracuse Charlottesville, VA
F 7 Matt Hain 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Fr Morehead State Perth, Australia
G 8 Will Lovings-Watts 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Northern Illinois Jeffersonville, IN
F 10 Ebenezer Dowuona 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 238 lb (108 kg) Sr Georgia Tech Accra, Ghana
G 13 Noah Williams 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 203 lb (92 kg) RS Sr Washington Seattle, WA
G 20 Jarrell Pope 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Princess Anne HS Virginia Beach, VA
G/F 21 AJ Smith 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Southern Indiana Edwardsville, IL
G 24 Redd Thompson 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 183 lb (83 kg) Fr John Marshall HS Richmond, VA
G 30 Aidan Mckeon 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Freeman HS Henrico, VA
F 33 Jerrell Roberson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Jr DeMatha HS Upper Marlboro, MD
F 35 Shane Feden 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Sr Woodbridge HS Woodbridge, VA
F 44 Luke Anderson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 232 lb (105 kg) RS Sr Florida Southern Lakeland, FL
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: November 26, 2024

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 4, 2024*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Ohio
MAC–SBC Challenge 		W 88–78  1–0
  23 – Brown   8 – Hutchins-Everett   4 – Freeman  Atlantic Union Bank Center (5,973)
Harrisonburg, VA
November 9, 2024*
6:00 p.m. 		at Norfolk State L 69–83  1–1
  21 – Lindsay   10 – Smith   4 – Brown  Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall (3,170)
Norfolk, VA
November 12, 2024*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Mary Baldwin W 100–52  2–1
  21 – Hutchins-Everett   12 – Hutchins-Everett   7 – Freeman  Atlantic Union Bank Center (4,516)
Harrisonburg, VA
November 16, 2024*
8:00 p.m., FloHoops 		at Towson L 63–67  2–2
  21 – Edwards   8 – Bickerstaff   5 – Green III  TU Arena (3,036)
Towson, MD
November 21, 2024*
11:00 a.m., BallerTV 		vs. UIC
Boardwalk Battle quarterfinals 		W 99–81  3–2
  28 – Lindsay   5 – tied   7 – Freeman  Ocean Center (386)
Daytona Beach, FL
November 22, 2024*
3:30 p.m., BallerTV 		vs. UC San Diego
Boardwalk Battle semifinals 		L 67–73  3–3
  17 – Lindsay   9 – Smith   4 – Brown  Ocean Center 
Daytona Beach, FL
November 23, 2024*
3:30 p.m., BallerTV 		vs. Jacksonville State
Boardwalk Battle 3rd-place game 		W 71–65  4–3
  18 – Brown   9 – Smith   4 – Brown  Ocean Center 
Daytona Beach, FL
November 29, 2024*
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		George Mason L 61–66  4–4
  19 – Lindsay   10 – Smith   4 – Freeman  Atlantic Union Bank Center (4,611)
Harrisonburg, VA
December 3, 2024*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		East Tennessee State W 71–61  5–4
  16 – tied   6 – tied   5 – Brown  Atlantic Union Bank Center (3,364)
Harrisonburg, VA
December 7, 2024
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Utah Valley W 78–61  6–4
  18 – Lindsay   7 – Smith   7 – Brown  Atlantic Union Bank Center (3,726)
Harrisonburg, VA
December 17, 2024*
7:00 p.m., ACCN 		at Wake Forest L 58–75  6–5
  14 – Freeman   4 – tied   4 – Lindsay  LJVM Coliseum (7,463)
Winston-Salem, NC
December 21, 2024
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at South Alabama L 49–77  6–6
(0–1) 		 12 – Lindsay   6 – Ricks III   4 – Freeman  Mitchell Center (1,574)
Mobile, AL
December 29, 2024*
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Midway W 96–64  7–6
  13 – tied   8 – tied   5 – Brown  Atlantic Union Bank Center (3,396)
Harrisonburg, VA
January 2, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Southern Miss W 83–72  8–6
(1–1) 		 30 – Freeman   7 – tied   4 – tied  Atlantic Union Bank Center (4,460)
Harrisonburg, VA
January 4, 2025
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Arkansas State W 67–62  9–6
(2–1) 		 18 – Brown   9 – tied   2 – tied  Atlantic Union Bank Center (5,079)
Harrisonburg, VA
January 9, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Marshall L 78–80  9–7
(2–2) 		 31 – Freeman   7 – tied   2 – tied  Cam Henderson Center (4,009)
Huntington, WV
January 11, 2025
1:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Appalachian State L 66–86  9–8
(2–3) 		 19 – Hutchins-Everett   9 – Hutchins-Everett   3 – Brown  Holmes Center (2,405)
Boone, NC
January 16, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Marshall W 67–64  10–8
(3–3) 		 13 – Brown   7 – tied   4 – Freeman  Atlantic Union Bank Center (3,335)
Harrisonburg, VA
January 18, 2025
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Appalachian State L 50–58  10–9
(3–4) 		 13 – Lindsay   10 – Smith   4 – Freeman  Atlantic Union Bank Center (4,685)
Harrisonburg, VA
January 22, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Old Dominion
Royal Rivalry 		      Chartway Arena 
Norfolk, VA
January 25, 2025
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Georgia State       GSU Convocation Center 
Atlanta, GA
January 30, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Coastal Carolina       Atlantic Union Bank Center 
Harrisonburg, VA
February 1, 2025
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Old Dominion
Royal Rivalry 		      Atlantic Union Bank Center 
Harrisonburg, VA
February 5, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Troy       Atlantic Union Bank Center 
Harrisonburg, VA
February 8, 2025*
TBA 		TBA
MAC–SBC Challenge 		      TBA 
 
February 13, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Georgia Southern       Hill Convocation Center 
Statesboro, GA
February 15, 2025
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Coastal Carolina       HTC Center 
Conway, SC
February 20, 2025
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Georgia State       Atlantic Union Bank Center 
Harrisonburg, VA
February 22, 2025
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Georgia Southern       Atlantic Union Bank Center 
Harrisonburg, VA
February 25, 2025
7:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Louisiana-Monroe       Fant–Ewing Coliseum 
Monroe, LA
February 28, 2025
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Texas State       Strahan Arena 
San Marcos, TX
Sun Belt tournament
March 4–9, 2025
TBA, ESPN+ 		vs. TBA       Pensacola Bay Center 
Pensacola, FL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
S=South.
All times are in Eastern.

Source:[7]

References

  1. ^ "James Madison surprises No. 4 Michigan State 79-76 in OT, earning program's 2nd Top 25 win". ESPN. Associated Press. November 6, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  2. ^ "Dukes Ranked in AP Poll For First Time in Program History". jmusports.com. November 13, 2023. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  3. ^ "JMU Men's Basketball Claims No. 2 Seed for Sun Belt Conference Championship". James Madison University Athletics. March 2, 2024. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  4. ^ "No. 12 James Madison Controls No. 5 Wisconsin 72-61 in NCAA First Round". James Madison University Athletics. March 23, 2024. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  5. ^ Norlander, Matt (March 26, 2024). "Vanderbilt hires Mark Byington: James Madison coach led Dukes to 32-4 record in 2023-24 season". CBSSports.com. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Arkansas State Tops 2024-25 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Preseason Poll". sunbeltsports.org. October 14, 2024. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
  7. ^ "2024-25 Men's Basketball Schedule". James Madison University Athletics. Retrieved January 14, 2025.