Basketball | 02/22/25 04:00 pm -0500
Free Throws Lead Dukes to the Senior-Day Shutdown, 78-73
Harrisonburg, Va. – James Madison men’s basketball went 26-for-33 (.788) from the line to lock-in the senior day shutdown over Georgia Southern, 78-73.
JMU moves to 19-10 (12-4 SBC) with its ninth straight Sun Belt victory while GASO now sits at 14-15 (6-10 SBC). The Dukes are now 1-1 tied at half on the season.
The Dukes’ offense was led by redshirt freshman Bryce Lindsay with 18 points and two assists. Senior Elijah Hutchins-Everett followed close behind with 16 points, two blocks, and a steal. Redshirt senior Mark Freeman scored 13 points with three assists, while junior Xavier Brown scored 11 and recorded his eighth game with three or more steals.
How it happened
FIRST HALF - JAMES MADISON 37, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 37
- JMU jumped out 7-2 to start the match.
- Georgia Southern scored five unanswered to start a five-minute back-and-forth stretch keeping the score within three.
- A pair of free throws from sophomore Eddie Ricks III put the Dukes out five, 18-15, with 10:55 to play.
- The Dukes pushed for a 10-3 run making it 26-16, before the Eagles fought to get the score tied at 37 going into halftime.
SECOND HALF - JAMES MADISON 78, GEORGIA SOUTHERN 73
- The Dukes started the half with a 7-0 run, 44-37
- The Eagles went 1:28 with an 8-0 run tying the game at 47.
- JMU went on a 1:29, 5-0 run, pushing back ahead 59-54.
- A three from Freeman makes it 67-56 for the largest lead of the game (11)
- 2:37 drought broken by a three from Georgia Southern
- Georgia Southern fought back to get within three with less than 30 seconds to play, but James Madison held strong to lock in the win.
Game Notes
- JMU has taken the last four against GASU, with the all-time record sitting at 5-1.
- Freeman registered his 100th career start and scored his 1,700 career point.
- Today marks the highest attendance of the season with 6,428.
- James Madison had 20 or more free throws made for the second time this season with 26.
- JMU currently tops the Sun Belt standings with only two games left in the regular season.
Up Next
James Madison (19-10, 12-4 SBC) heads on the road to wrap up the regular season. First stop, Monroe, La. to face ULM (7-22, 3-13 SBC) on Tuesday, Feb. 25. The game is set to start at 7:30 p.m. EST (6:30 p.m. CT) and will be streamed on ESPN+.