JMU earns first NCAA bid since 2013
Ex-Jamestown star scores career-high 21 to spark Dukes
PENSACOLA, Fla. — Former Jamestown High star Xavier Brown scored a careerhigh 21 points to go with 10 rebounds, and No. 2 seed James Madison eased by No. 4 seed Arkansas State 91-71 Monday night at Pensacola Bay Center to claim the Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship and earn its first NCAA Tournament bid since 2013.
JMU (31-3), which outlasted Texas State in the semifinals to notch its first 30-win season in program history, extended its winning streak to 13 games. The Dukes began the season on a 14-game winning streak, starting with an overtime victory at then-No. 4 Michigan State.
Arkansas State (18-16), in its first Sun Belt championship game since 2007, was seeking its first NCAA Tournament berth since 1999.
Brown, a sophomore averaging 6.1 points per game, scored 19 in the opening 14 minutes, including 13 straight JMU points to help build a 30-23 lead. He made his first seven shots before missing a 3-pointer with 5:22 left. Brown finished the half with 21, topping his previous best scoring total of 17 at Hampton on Dec. 16. Monday was his first collegiate double-double.
Brown starred at Jamestown High as a sophomore, then spent a year at Oak Hill Academy before returning to Jamestown as a senior to play for his dad, Eagles coach Chris Brown. They helped Jamestown reach the state tournament for the first time in five years, and the younger Brown was a firstteam All-Class 4 and All-Tidewater selection after averaging 28.6 points, 6.7 assists and 6.6 rebounds.
Brown’s career-high with JMU on Monday included five 3-pointers.
Noah Freidel made two 3-pointers in the opening three minutes of the second half, including a four-point play, and Terrence Edwards added another 3, following an offensive rebound, to make it 54-39 with 16:09 left.
Edwards, the Sun Belt Player of the Year, finished with 19 points for JMU. Jaylen Carey scored 13 and Freidel, named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, had 12. The Dukes finished 11 of 19 from distance.
Freddy Hicks, who made a game-winning shot in the semifinals against top-seeded Appalachian State, scored 24 points for Arkansas State. Izaiyah Nelson had 12 points and 12 rebounds. Caleb Fields and Taryn Todd each had 10 points and five assists.