Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Richmond (Exh.) on October 25, 2025 at TBD
MBB
TBD
James Madison
at Richmond (Exh.)
James Madison University | Official Athletics Site
Saturday, March 4
Pensacola, Fla.
3 p.m. ET (2 p.m. CT)
James Madison University
22-10,12-6Sun Belt
75
vs
72
Troy
20-13,11-7Sun Belt
1
2
F
Troy
35
37
72
James Madison
40
35
75
Edwards Powers Men's Hoops Past Troy into SBC Semis
3/4/2023 7:43:00 PM | Men's Basketball
PENSACOLA, Fla. - Sophomore guard Terrence Edwards erupted for 27 points and James Madison held off a hard-charging Troy team on its way to a 75-72 win in the Sun Belt Men's Basketball Quarterfinals at Pensacola Bay Center on Saturday afternoon.
The Dukes (22-10) saw a double-digit second-half lead trimmed to as few as one in the frantic final minute, but held off the push and limited Troy (20-13) to just 38.7% (24-62) shooting on the afternoon, including a 5-26 mark (19.2%) from the three-point line.
All told, Edwards racked up 27 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and a steal, his best game in a JMU uniform. The performance was tied for the sixth-most points ever scored by a JMU player in a conference tournament game and was the highest-scoring double-double in JMU conference tournament history.
Graduate Takal Molson also stuffed the stat sheet, tallying 15 points, eight boards and four assists, while graduate Alonzo Sule and junior Noah Freidel each had 10 points.
The Dukes led for nearly 33 minutes, including the entire second half, but a 10-2 run from Troy in the final three minutes cut the JMU lead to just one before Freidel ripped down his only rebound of the game and hit a pair of free throws with 6.5 seconds left.
JMU fouled the Trojans on the ensuing possession and, after a miss on the first free throw, got a crucial rebound from Molson to seal the win. The victory marks the Dukes' first conference tournament victory since 2019 and gives JMU its first semifinal berth since winning the Colonial Athletic Association in 2013.
Troy guard Christyon Eugene led the way for the Trojans with 26 points, while Nelson Phillips racked up 20 points and nine rebounds on the afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The two teams traded runs early, with the Dukes using an early push to take leads of 22-14 and 24-16, their biggest advantages of the opening half.
Troy responded immediately with six points, but JMU again steadily carved out a lead. All told, the Dukes shot 51.7% (15-29) in the opening half and needed just three three-pointers to go into the half with a 40-35 lead after a pressured three-pointer from the right wing fell for the Trojans at the horn.
Second Half
The Dukes came out of the break on a tear, scoring the first seven points to build their biggest lead of the game at 47-35 and force a Trojan time out.
From there, Troy steadily chipped away, closing the gap to 64-62 with 4:55 to play. JMU got its own run, ripping off seven straight to push the gap back to nine with 2:49 to play, but the Trojans struck back.
After breaking the press with a Sule dunk to halt a Troy run and make it 73-69 with 18 seconds left, the Dukes got last-second heroics from Freidel and Sule to close out the win.
QUICK HITS
- Edwards' performance was his third double-double of the season, most on the team.
- JMU pulled down 46 rebounds, its most against any Sun Belt opponent this season.
- Head Coach Mark Byington has now beaten Troy eight consecutive times.
- The Dukes had four double-digit scorers for the 23rd time this season, going 19-4 in those instances.
- JMU tied its season high with five blocks as a team, the seventh straight game the Dukes have had at least three.
- After entering the game fourth in the country in bench points per game (32.81), the Dukes' bench outscored Troy's 42-5.
UP NEXT
The Dukes will continue in the Sun Belt Men's Basketball Championship in Sunday evening's semifinals, facing off against eighth-seeded South Alabama at 6 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. CT.
The Jaguars reached the semis by upsetting top-seeded Southern Miss in a 78-61 blowout to open Saturday's action, improving to 18-15 on the season and giving them seven wins in their last eight games and 10 in their last 12.
JMU dropped a heartbreaking 63-62 decision to the Jaguars on the final possession on Jan. 12 in Mobile.
The Dukes (22-10) saw a double-digit second-half lead trimmed to as few as one in the frantic final minute, but held off the push and limited Troy (20-13) to just 38.7% (24-62) shooting on the afternoon, including a 5-26 mark (19.2%) from the three-point line.
All told, Edwards racked up 27 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and a steal, his best game in a JMU uniform. The performance was tied for the sixth-most points ever scored by a JMU player in a conference tournament game and was the highest-scoring double-double in JMU conference tournament history.
Graduate Takal Molson also stuffed the stat sheet, tallying 15 points, eight boards and four assists, while graduate Alonzo Sule and junior Noah Freidel each had 10 points.
The Dukes led for nearly 33 minutes, including the entire second half, but a 10-2 run from Troy in the final three minutes cut the JMU lead to just one before Freidel ripped down his only rebound of the game and hit a pair of free throws with 6.5 seconds left.
JMU fouled the Trojans on the ensuing possession and, after a miss on the first free throw, got a crucial rebound from Molson to seal the win. The victory marks the Dukes' first conference tournament victory since 2019 and gives JMU its first semifinal berth since winning the Colonial Athletic Association in 2013.
Troy guard Christyon Eugene led the way for the Trojans with 26 points, while Nelson Phillips racked up 20 points and nine rebounds on the afternoon.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The two teams traded runs early, with the Dukes using an early push to take leads of 22-14 and 24-16, their biggest advantages of the opening half.
Troy responded immediately with six points, but JMU again steadily carved out a lead. All told, the Dukes shot 51.7% (15-29) in the opening half and needed just three three-pointers to go into the half with a 40-35 lead after a pressured three-pointer from the right wing fell for the Trojans at the horn.
Second Half
The Dukes came out of the break on a tear, scoring the first seven points to build their biggest lead of the game at 47-35 and force a Trojan time out.
From there, Troy steadily chipped away, closing the gap to 64-62 with 4:55 to play. JMU got its own run, ripping off seven straight to push the gap back to nine with 2:49 to play, but the Trojans struck back.
After breaking the press with a Sule dunk to halt a Troy run and make it 73-69 with 18 seconds left, the Dukes got last-second heroics from Freidel and Sule to close out the win.
QUICK HITS
- Edwards' performance was his third double-double of the season, most on the team.
- JMU pulled down 46 rebounds, its most against any Sun Belt opponent this season.
- Head Coach Mark Byington has now beaten Troy eight consecutive times.
- The Dukes had four double-digit scorers for the 23rd time this season, going 19-4 in those instances.
- JMU tied its season high with five blocks as a team, the seventh straight game the Dukes have had at least three.
- After entering the game fourth in the country in bench points per game (32.81), the Dukes' bench outscored Troy's 42-5.
UP NEXT
The Dukes will continue in the Sun Belt Men's Basketball Championship in Sunday evening's semifinals, facing off against eighth-seeded South Alabama at 6 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. CT.
The Jaguars reached the semis by upsetting top-seeded Southern Miss in a 78-61 blowout to open Saturday's action, improving to 18-15 on the season and giving them seven wins in their last eight games and 10 in their last 12.
JMU dropped a heartbreaking 63-62 decision to the Jaguars on the final possession on Jan. 12 in Mobile.
Team Stats
TROY
JMU
FG%
.387
.453
3FG%
.192
.286
FT%
.704
.611
RB
35
46
TO
10
16
STL
10
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
27
FGM
11
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
10
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G/F
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