Thursday, January 2
Harrisonburg, VA
6 PM
Southern Miss
6-8,1-1Sun Belt
72
at
83
James Madison
8-6,1-1Sun Belt
1
2
F
Southern Miss.
31
41
72
James Madison
33
50
83
Men's Basketball Falls Short at James Madison
1/2/2025 10:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison (8-6, 1-1 Sun Belt) picked up its first Sun Belt win on Thursday night as it topped Southern Miss (6-8, 1-1 Sun Belt), 83-72, at Atlantic Union Bank Arena. The loss was the Golden Eagles' seventh-straight away from Reed Green Coliseum.
Andre Curbelo led the offensive charge with a season-high 24 points, which was one shy of tying his career high. The Golden Eagles also got 11 points from Christian Watson as Lanham, Md. native made his return to the east coast.
James Madison held the lead for over 31 minutes, but the two teams traded leads 10 times in the game. The Dukes, though, never relinquished the lead following a buzzer beater to end the half.
The loss was Southern Miss' first conference blemish of the season after opening with a 68-66 win over Marshall on Dec. 21. The Golden Eagles also got a career-high six points from freshman Brewer Carruth. The McComb native drilled a pair of three-pointers at crucial times for Southern Miss.
How it Happened
James Madison raced to a 10-4 lead after Southern Miss missed its first four shots out of the gate. The Golden Eagles finally got their offense going on a Cobie Montgomery jumper after the Dukes opened the game with back-to-back three-pointers.
Southern Miss was 3-for-11 shooting from the floor at the under-12 media timeout. The shooting woes went away after that timeout as Curbelo started a 10-0 run for the Golden Eagles that culminated in a Montgomery triple and Southern Miss lead. The three-pointer forced the Dukes to burn a timeout.
Following the timeout, Southern Miss and James Madison swapped leads 10 times. Both schools went on mini runs and the Golden Eagles built a four-point lead when Carruth drilled a corner three-pointer in front the James Madison bench. The Dukes answered that trey with one of their own and then chaos ensued over the final six seconds of the half.
Curbelo scored with six seconds left to give Southern Miss a one-point advantage. James Madison quickly in-bounded the ball and answered with a Xavier Brown three-pointer from the top of the key as time expired. The bucket not only flipped it to a 33-31 lead in favor of James Madison, but it also turned the momentum back to the home team.
Denijay Harris, who was battling an illness leading into the game, scored his first points of the game on a three-pointer to make it a one-point game 90 seconds into the second half. The Golden Eagles wouldn't get another crack at a chance to take the lead.
James Madison managed to fend off a couple more Southern Miss runs midway through the second half. Curbelo scored six-straight points for the Golden Eagles to make it a four-point game, then Jose Benitez countered a James Madison basket to make it 49-46 with 12:52 left in the game. That was as close as Southern Miss would get.
The Dukes made three three-pointers in a three-minute span that put Southern Miss' backs against the wall. The Golden Eagles continued to stick around, but Mark Freeman kept finding a way to score. Freeman finished with 30 points and had 11 points over the final seven minutes of the game.
AJ Smith made a three-pointer to give the Dukes their largest lead of the game at 14 with 2:05 to play. DeAntoni Gordon and Montgomery combined for a 5-0 run to cut it to a nine-point game, but it was too late as James Madison held on for the win.
Deep Dive into the Numbers
- Southern Miss shot above 40 percent for the fourth-straight game, it's longest such streak of the season
- The Golden Eagles shot 45.2 percent from the floor in the second half on 14-for-31 shooting
- James Madison went nearly five minutes without a point in the first half as Southern Miss went on a 10-0 run to take a 17-16 lead
- Southern Miss outrebounded the Dukes 36-35 and 14 offensive rebounds
- Southern Miss' 10 turnovers were the second fewest in a game this season
- The Golden Eagles shot 92.9 percent from the free throw line, and it tied for the second-best free throw percentage under Jay Ladner
Nuggets and Notes
- Southern Miss' seven three-pointers was its most in a game since making eight at Tulane on Dec. 10
- The Golden Eagles shot a season-high 92.9 percent from the free throw line. It was their first time over 90 percent at the line since shooting 90 percent at Coastal Carolina on Jan. 27, 2024
- Southern Miss' 10 turnovers was its second fewest in a game this season, trailing the nine turnovers against Marshall on Dec. 21
- Cobie Montgomery has made at least two three-pointers in eight games this season
- Brewer Carruth scored a career-high six points, besting his two-time previous high of five. He also made a career-high two three-pointers
- Andre Curbelo had a season-high 24 points, topping his previous high of 16 in the season opener against Bowling Green
- Curbelo finished with the sixth double-double of his career and first this season after recording 24 points and 10 rebounds
Andre Curbelo led the offensive charge with a season-high 24 points, which was one shy of tying his career high. The Golden Eagles also got 11 points from Christian Watson as Lanham, Md. native made his return to the east coast.
James Madison held the lead for over 31 minutes, but the two teams traded leads 10 times in the game. The Dukes, though, never relinquished the lead following a buzzer beater to end the half.
The loss was Southern Miss' first conference blemish of the season after opening with a 68-66 win over Marshall on Dec. 21. The Golden Eagles also got a career-high six points from freshman Brewer Carruth. The McComb native drilled a pair of three-pointers at crucial times for Southern Miss.
How it Happened
James Madison raced to a 10-4 lead after Southern Miss missed its first four shots out of the gate. The Golden Eagles finally got their offense going on a Cobie Montgomery jumper after the Dukes opened the game with back-to-back three-pointers.
Southern Miss was 3-for-11 shooting from the floor at the under-12 media timeout. The shooting woes went away after that timeout as Curbelo started a 10-0 run for the Golden Eagles that culminated in a Montgomery triple and Southern Miss lead. The three-pointer forced the Dukes to burn a timeout.
Following the timeout, Southern Miss and James Madison swapped leads 10 times. Both schools went on mini runs and the Golden Eagles built a four-point lead when Carruth drilled a corner three-pointer in front the James Madison bench. The Dukes answered that trey with one of their own and then chaos ensued over the final six seconds of the half.
Curbelo scored with six seconds left to give Southern Miss a one-point advantage. James Madison quickly in-bounded the ball and answered with a Xavier Brown three-pointer from the top of the key as time expired. The bucket not only flipped it to a 33-31 lead in favor of James Madison, but it also turned the momentum back to the home team.
Denijay Harris, who was battling an illness leading into the game, scored his first points of the game on a three-pointer to make it a one-point game 90 seconds into the second half. The Golden Eagles wouldn't get another crack at a chance to take the lead.
James Madison managed to fend off a couple more Southern Miss runs midway through the second half. Curbelo scored six-straight points for the Golden Eagles to make it a four-point game, then Jose Benitez countered a James Madison basket to make it 49-46 with 12:52 left in the game. That was as close as Southern Miss would get.
The Dukes made three three-pointers in a three-minute span that put Southern Miss' backs against the wall. The Golden Eagles continued to stick around, but Mark Freeman kept finding a way to score. Freeman finished with 30 points and had 11 points over the final seven minutes of the game.
AJ Smith made a three-pointer to give the Dukes their largest lead of the game at 14 with 2:05 to play. DeAntoni Gordon and Montgomery combined for a 5-0 run to cut it to a nine-point game, but it was too late as James Madison held on for the win.
Deep Dive into the Numbers
- Southern Miss shot above 40 percent for the fourth-straight game, it's longest such streak of the season
- The Golden Eagles shot 45.2 percent from the floor in the second half on 14-for-31 shooting
- James Madison went nearly five minutes without a point in the first half as Southern Miss went on a 10-0 run to take a 17-16 lead
- Southern Miss outrebounded the Dukes 36-35 and 14 offensive rebounds
- Southern Miss' 10 turnovers were the second fewest in a game this season
- The Golden Eagles shot 92.9 percent from the free throw line, and it tied for the second-best free throw percentage under Jay Ladner
Nuggets and Notes
- Southern Miss' seven three-pointers was its most in a game since making eight at Tulane on Dec. 10
- The Golden Eagles shot a season-high 92.9 percent from the free throw line. It was their first time over 90 percent at the line since shooting 90 percent at Coastal Carolina on Jan. 27, 2024
- Southern Miss' 10 turnovers was its second fewest in a game this season, trailing the nine turnovers against Marshall on Dec. 21
- Cobie Montgomery has made at least two three-pointers in eight games this season
- Brewer Carruth scored a career-high six points, besting his two-time previous high of five. He also made a career-high two three-pointers
- Andre Curbelo had a season-high 24 points, topping his previous high of 16 in the season opener against Bowling Green
- Curbelo finished with the sixth double-double of his career and first this season after recording 24 points and 10 rebounds
Team Stats
USM
JMU
FG%
.400
.473
3FG%
.304
.370
FT%
.929
.750
RB
36
35
TO
10
8
STL
3
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
24
FGM
10
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
G
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