Men's Basketball 2025-26 Roster Reload: James Madison

Head Coach Preston Spradlin will be heading into his second season at James Madison with the Dukes.

In Spradlin’s first year at the helm, they went 20-12. Spradlin has had big shoes to fill since he was hired to replace Mark Byington, who in 2023 led JMU to their most wins in school history.

Since their move to the Sun Belt back in 2022, JMU has a record of 74-27. JMU will look to have another good season in 2025-26, and the chances of doing that are very high with some of the additions that were made to the roster, despite some of the losses.

Departures

Senior Mark Freeman was the best player for James Madison last season, leading them in points and assists. Freeman had nine games over 20 points, and three of those went for 30+. Freeman will be playing overseas.

Bryce Lindsay was the Sun Belt Sixth Man of the Year. The sophomore was instant offense coming off the bench. Lindsay was the second leading scorer for JMU last year and sank over 40% of his threes on nearly seven attempts per game. Lindsay transferred to Villanova.

After spending his first three years at JMU, guard Xavier Brown transferred to UCF. As a freshman, Brown started as a reserve who didn’t get much playing time. As a junior, he was a 10-point-per-game scorer whose leadership and defense will be missed.

AJ Smith started all 32 games for JMU, leading them in rebounds with six per game, and averaged seven points per game. Smith will spend his Senior year at Bradley.

Redd Thompson only played 10 games at JMU in his freshman year. The rising sophomore will look for a bigger role with the Longwood Lancers. Will Lovings-Watts only played 13 games during his lone season at JMU and transferred to Union University.

JMU lost its five leading scorers from last year due to the transfer portal and graduation, so it will be interesting to see how the team makes up for the loss of scoring.

Additions

JMU made several moves in the transfer portal for this upcoming season.

Bradley Douglas, a 6-1 guard, showed tremendous scoring ability in his 33 games with the Georgia Southern Eagles last year. Douglas scored in double-digits 22 times, scored 20+ six times, and had multiple 30-point games. Douglas averaged 12.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.5 steals per game last year. “He can score in a variety of ways and will fit well within our two-point guard system,” Spradlin said.

Cliff Davis has shown himself to be a reliable shooter throughout his collegiate career. In 61 career games at Northwestern and UT Rio Grande Valley, Davis knocked down 191 three-pointers at a 38.3% clip. In a game against the College of Biblical Studies last season, Davis scored 42 points and drilled 14 three-pointers. The 14 threes were the most by an NCAA Division I player the past six years. Spradlin states that his shooting ability, toughness, and experience will make an immediate impact on their team this upcoming season.

Ike Cornish only played nine games last year at Nicholls State due to injury, but showed flashes in performances against South Alabama and New Mexico. Cornish is heading to his fourth school and will look to have an injury-free season to show what he can really do.

Justin McBride will be coming to JMU after two years spent at Oklahoma State and Nevada. The Junior forward averaged 7.8 points and 4.1 rebounds last year at Nevada, with 11 games with double-digit scoring, including a career high 19 points vs Fresno State.

Gabe Newhof starred on the NAIA level. In his three seasons at Spring Arbor, Newhof averaged 21.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. He was named NAIA Third Team All-American last year, averaging 21.5 points and 7.2 rebounds. D1 is a higher level of competition, so it will be interesting to see how Newhof’s game will translate to this level.

Paul Jones III spent his freshman season with Winthrop. The 6-4 guard averaged 7.6 points per game and was named to the Big South All-Freshman team. During his lone year at Winthrop, Jones had multiple performances that should have JMU fans excited. In a game against the Averett Cougars, Jones scored 25 points and knocked down 6-8 three pointers. Against the Longwood Lancers, Jones scored 24 points on 9-of-14 from the field and 6-of-11 from three. While Jones’ shooting consistency can certainly improve, he showed plenty of promise last season.

Eli Wilborn didn’t get as much playing time last year with Duquesne as he did the previous year with Saint Francis. In the 2023-24 season with Saint Francis, Wilborn averaged 10.8 points and 7.4 rebounds. Wilborn will bring a much-needed level of size and toughness to this JMU team.

Paul Lewis spent the first two years of his collegiate career at Vanderbilt. Last year at UTSA, Lewis only played two games before being a medical redshirt.

Not transfers, but freshmen Preston Fowler and Christian Brown are two players who can certainly make an impact on the team this upcoming season. Fowler was the 154th-ranked player in the nation, ranking as the highest recruit in JMU history. Brown was the No. 1 player in the state of Tennessee.

Spradlin expressed excitement over all the additions to JMU’s program this upcoming season.

JMU will tip off their season in Akron against the Akron Zips on Nov. 3.