Dukes to Meet Jaguars in Sun Belt Opener

James Madison Dukes (6-5) at South Alabama Jaguars (7-4)
Dec. 21, 2024 – 2 p.m. ET (1 p.m. CT)
Mobile, Ala. - Mitchell Arena

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JMU TO OPEN SUN BELT PLAY AT SOUTH ALABAMA

Following a 75-58 loss at ACC foe Wake Forest, James Madison remains on the road for a tilt with South Alabama to open Sun Belt Conference play. Tipoff inside the Mitchell Center is slated for 2 p.m. ET (1 p.m. CT).
The game will stream on ESPN+ and can be heard on the radio on WSVA 92.1 FM | 550 AM and also on the Varsity Network App with Dave Riggert, with coverage beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET.
Following the game against South Alabama, JMU will play one final non-conference game against NAIA Midway University (Ky.) on Dec. 29 before hosting Southern Miss (Jan. 2) and Arkansas State (Jan. 4) at home to fully begin conference play.
The Jaguars enter this game with a 7-4 record, most recently falling 58-49 at TCU on Dec. 16. South Alabama is led by Richie Riley, who is in his seventh year with the Jaguars.

LAST TIME OUT

Wake Forest guard Hunter Sallis notched game-highs in points (27) and rebounds (12) to lead the Demon Deacons past James Madison, 75-58, on Tuesday evening inside LJVM Coliseum in non-conference men's basketball action.
Despite trailing JMU (6-5) by as many as eight in the first half, Wake Forest (9-3) retook a lead early in the second half and pulled away from the Dukes with a 13-0 run, finishing 53.1 percent from the floor in the second stanza.
The Demon Deacons outrebounded the Dukes 41-28 and corralled 15 offensive rebounds, leading to 17 second-chance points.
Mark Freeman scored 14 points to lead all Dukes, while Luke Anderson tallied a season-high 11 points – all in the second half. Elijah Hutchins-Everett scored 10 points despite playing just 20 minutes.

ABOUT SOUTH ALABAMA

South Alabama enters this game with a 7-4 record and fell to TCU, 58-49, in their last game.
The Jaguars are led by Head Coach Richie Riley, who is in his seventh season in Mobile. The native of London, Kentucky, owns a 117-87 (.574) record in his time at South Alabama, including a 16-16 record last season.
The teams met just once last season, a 89-55 JMU victory over South Alabama in Harrisonburg. Noah Freidel tied a season-high 26 points while Terrence Edwards Jr. (14) and Julien Wooden (13) joined Friedel in double figures, and while T.J. Bickerstaff corralled a team leading 10 rebounds.
As Sun Belt Conference foes, South Alabama owns a 2-1 record over JMU. In the all-time series, the Dukes hold a 4-3 advantage.
South Alabama was picked 11th in the preseason Sun Belt coaches poll. Similar to the Dukes, the Jaguars welcomed eight transfers to the 2024-25 roster: Cantia Rahming (Saint Leo), Jayden Cooper (Faulkner), Dylan Fasoyiro (Daemen), JJ Wheat (Freed Hardeman), Myles Corey (Jessup), Barry Dunning Jr. (UAB), Caleb Kizer (Culver Stockton), and Randy Brady (Chattanooga).
Leading the returners for South Alabama is Julian Margrave, who finished eighth in the Sun Belt in three-pointers (51) in 2023-24. Elijah Ormiston also enters his senior year with the Jags after making 16 starts and 29 appearances last season, scoring 6.2 points per contest.
Graduate forward Judah Brown returns for one last ride after appearing in 21 games with 21.3 minutes per game last year.
Through six weeks of the season, Myles Corey leads South Alabama in scoring (18.4 ppg) and assists (4.4 apg)ohn Broom leads the Jags in rebounding, averaging 6.2 boards per contest.
This matchup features two of the top three teams in the Sun Belt in made threes: JMU sits in second with 106 made while South Alabama has made 103.

70 POINTS: THE X-FACTOR

JMU is 6-0 when scoring 70 points or more this season and 0-5 when scoring less than 70. Against Wake Forest, the Dukes had season-lows in points (58) and field goals made (22).
Defensively, JMU is 4-2 when holding opponents under 70 points, with losses coming to Towson and George Mason.

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Players Mentioned

Luke Anderson

T.J. Bickerstaff

Terrence Edwards Jr.

Mark Freeman

Noah Freidel

Elijah Hutchins-Everett

Julien Wooden

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Calendar

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Miami (Ohio) on November 2, 2026 at TBA

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Kentucky on November 6, 2026 at TBA

Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball at Mid-American Conference on February 6, 2027 at TBA

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