31-3; 15-3, second and Sun Belt Conference tournament champions
If you’re going by numeric patterns, James Madison was always destined to go Dancing this winter. The Dukes have only been to the NCAA Tournament three times in the past four decades. At the end of the 1982-83 season, they made it; then in 1993-94, and again in 2012-13. So, logically…
The Dukes aren’t just that team which went into the Breslin Center and famously knocked off Michigan State. They have a strong, high major-type starting lineup, and the group is headed by two strong, high major-type stars.
Terrence ‘Fatt’ Edwards is playing his fourth season in Harrisonburg, and it’s around him that head coach Mark Byington has assembled this year’s crew. Two years ago the Sun Belt 6th Man of the Year, this year, Edwards has taken his role as top scorer to a whole new level
His breakout last year came in part because Edwards became a reliable outside shooter, and the veteran wing has now become truly dangerous. Though never a large volume shooter from downtown, Edwards has knocked down 39.1% of his 202 triple tries since the start of last year. It also came because Edwards doesn’t just have the skill to get to the spots he likes – he’s also become adept at getting to the foul line. Edwards does his best work close to the rim, and though he didn’t convert with his usual high efficiency this year, Edwards is undaunted. He drove frequently and threateningly enough to lead the Sun Belt in both free throw attempts and makes, hitting a strong 82.4%. Long capable of setting up his friends, Edwards has also taken his playmaking to a new level this year, playing smoothly off of newly-arrived point guard Michael Green III. Edwards plays with confidence, and his teammates emulate that belief in their abilities.
As a scoring facilitator with two productive forwards around him to share the scoring burden, Edwards fits perfectly as the main attraction in Byington’s fast-paced, shot-making offense. The Dukes have ranked in the top 40 of the country’s teams in scoring average and free throw attempts in two of his three seasons as coach, and this year, JMU appears poised to do even better than that.
Given full opportunity and with a comfortable, established offense around him, TJ Bickerstaff has flourished as a Duke. The former BC transfer is JMU’s #2 scorer and has become a featured piece. His 21 points and 14 rebounds were key at the Izzone, and Bickerstaff offers both the size and athleticism up front to provide Byington with mismatch options. Bickerstaff has scored 14 or more points in five of the Dukes’ first six games, and it’s clear that he’s going to be a major part of this group’s continued success. Thus far, Bickerstaff has been focusing his efforts in the paint as much as possible, showing his experience with patience and power as necessary. Not only does he shoot it quite well inside of about 12 feet, but Bickerstaff earns lots of trips to the charity stripe in his own right – though Byington would love to see him make a higher percentage. A stretch big who has become a dangerous deep threat, Julien Wooden scores efficiently both inside and out. Over his first few years, Wooden established that he could offer a genuine floor-stretching shooter. He tied Green for second on the team this year in made triples, and Green led the team by splashing them at a 40.9% clip. Though Wooden is not a monster on the glass, his length helps defensively, and with Bickerstaff, gives JMU a stout duo.
As much as he helps from distance, Green has made his best contributions from mid-range, skillfully crafting looks off the bounce. The former Northeast Conference Rookie of the Year is a solid defender, makes his free throws, and provides the steady hand which keeps the Dukes’ talented scorers well-fed. Having debuted with JMU as a starter, Green shifted to a featured reserve role as this season went on. Now the coordinator of adjustments when he enters the game and still a smooth orchestrator of the offense, Green has adapted well to the role. Over the Dukes’ last 10 games, he’s knocked down 48.4% of his triples, and Green has handed out a steady 114 assists against just 48 turnovers. Noah Freidel, whose role has grown steadily, has proven to be a solid secondary scorer who teams have to guard. A former three-year starter and primary threat at South Dakota State, Freidel has settled into an artillerist’s role for JMU. Like Wooden, Friedel is spending his final season of eligibility with the Dukes, and he’s an even more accomplished deep threat than his veteran buddies. Not only did Freidel rank third in the conference in made triples: he ripped off 52 points (including nine treys) across JMU’s three league tournament victories, earning MVP honors. He’s also a smart player who makes the correct reads and gets to the right places defensively, and Freidel is another reliable decision-maker.
Guard Xavier Brown has skills which can help him get to the hoops, make jumpers and set up his teammates – but he most enjoys locking people up. “A lot of guys have different roles, and people take on their roles, and I just enjoy mine. I love stopping people. I love to see the frustration on somebody’s face because they can’t get to where they want to get to. In practice I love guarding Fatt because he’s going to push me,” Brown told the Harrisonburg Daily News-Record. Brown is earning a greater share of the minutes this year after filling in as a reserve last year, and the sophomore has made some standout plays already in limiting good shots chances and creating turnovers.
As an energetic, veteran frontcourt player who will fight for rebounds and come up with buckets by virtue of his hustle, former Charleston transfer Raekwon Horton fits the Dukes. He will get out and go in transition, plays tough defense, and while Horton is a guy who knows how to finish around the rim, he can also knock down a triple. An athletic player who can guard a larger range of players than most of JMU’s players, Horton has seen a consistent role because he fits into nearly any lineup. His late and-1 slam in a comeback win over Georgia Southern was a big moment this year. Jalen Carey is only a freshman, but he’s already shown the aptitude, attitude, and physicality to hang in the paint despite his youth. An effective rim protector, Carey offers the largest frame on this team, and does good work on the glass.
“We’ve got a whole bunch of high-level dudes,” Horton has said. “I think that’s what made this team special. Any night anyone could go off. I think that makes us hard to scout, because you never know who you have to stop that night.”
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