The Breeze Basketball Preview 2025

JMU BASKETBALL PREVIEW

O rd e r t o d a y a n d e n j o y !

JMU women’s basketball went into Sun Belt play last season with four losses — it didn’t lose another regular-season game. Head coach Sean O’Regan led the Dukes to an 18-0 conference record.

While O’Regan and JMU notched a historic regular season, they didn’t finish the job. The Dukes lost an overtime thriller to Arkansas State in the Sun Belt Conference Championship. JMU had a chance to redeem itself in the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT) but fell from the tournament after being dominated by Belmont, 90-45.

O’Regan isn’t the only one looking to claim a Sun Belt Championship — redshirt senior guard Peyton McDaniel is in her last season as a Duke and wants nothing more than to win on the biggest stage before her collegiate career ends.

When asked about her biggest goal going into her final season, McDaniel kept her answer short and sweet: “Win a championship.”

The Lady Dukes were picked to win the Sun Belt in the preseason poll.

The good news for JMU women’s hoops is that, aside

from returning McDaniel, it has three of its six leading scorers from last season.

Much like the women’s team, JMU men’s basketball was also picked to finish atop the Sun Belt. Head coach Preston Spradlin returns for his second season at the helm. During his first season, JMU received a bye straight to the conference semifinals, but it was walloped by Troy in a 19-point loss.

While women’s hoops kept its core together, the men’s team didn’t have the same luck. All five of JMU’s men’s leading scorers either transferred or graduated.

The only two returners are junior forward Eddie Ricks III and senior forward Justin Taylor. Both teams return to the paint this week with the expectation they’ll sit atop the Sun Belt at the end of the season. Check out players and opponents to look out for and much more in The Breeze’s 2025 Basketball Special Section: Return to the paint.

Sincerely,

Preston Comer Gavin Avella Sports Editors

WHAT’S INSIDE

MEN’S NAMES TO KNOW

Bradley Douglas | Fifth-year | G

• Preseason First Team All-Sun Belt.

• Spent last season at Georgia Southern, averaging 12.6 points per game in 33 appearances.

• Scored 30-plus points twice with the Eagles last season.

Eddie Ricks III | Junior | F

• Appeared in all 32 games for the Dukes last season, starting in 26.

• Played two seasons under JMU head coach Preston Spradlin at Morehead State, making four starts in 28 games.

• Shot 45.5% from the field with JMU last season. 10

Cliff Davis | Fifth-year | G

• Has appeared in 110 career games, scoring 1,165 total points.

• JMU is his fourth collegiate team, previously playing for UT Rio Grande Valley, Northwestern State and Chipola College.

• Has made 292 3-pointers in his career, hitting 38.5% of his shots from behind the arc.

21

Justin McBride | Junior | F

• Spent his freshman year at Oklahoma State before transferring to Nevada last season.

• Averaged 7.8 points per game with Nevada, scoring double digits 11 times.

• Earned a four-star rating from 247Sports and Rivals coming out of high school.

13

Preston Fowler | Freshman | F

• Committed to JMU as a four-star before 247Sports dropped him to a three-star, making him the highest ranked recruit in program history.

• Earned All-Conference honors at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire.

• Listed at 6-foot-8, 227-pounds going into his freshman season.

33

Gabe Newhof | Senior | F

• Spent three seasons at Spring Arbor in the NAIA, starting all 88 games he played in.

• Averages 21.7 points and eight rebounds throughout his career, along with blocking 80 shots and shooting 61.1 % from the field.

• Scored in double figures in all 31 games last season.

WOMEN’S NAMES TO KNOW

Peyton McDaniel | R-Senior| G

• Reigning Sun Belt Player of the Year, also picked as the Preseason Player of the Year going into this season.

• Averaged career-highs in points and rebounds per game last season, with 16 and 8.2, respectively.

• Averaged 24.5 points per game on 55.6% from the field during last season’s conference tournament. 10

Angela Williams | Sophomore | G/F

• Played in 32 games for the Dukes last season.

• Averaged three points and three rebounds in 8.8 minutes per game as a freshman.

• Scored a career-high 14 points against Loyola-Maryland. 5

21

Zakiya Stephenson | Junior | G

• Played in all 36 games for JMU last year, starting in 35.

• Averaged 4.5 points, three assists and 2.8 rebounds per game as a sophomore.

Ashanti Barnes | Graduate | F

• Named to the 2025 All-Sun Belt Third Team and All-Sun Belt Tournament Team.

• Started in 34 of 35 games played last year, averaging 10.3 points and 7.9 rebounds.

• Tallied six double-doubles last season.

11

Bree Robinson | Junior | F

• Played in all 36 games for the Dukes last season, averaging 24.1 minutes per game off the bench.

• Averaged five points and 2.3 rebounds per game last season.

• One-of-five bench players in the country to record 50 steals and 50 assists last year.

• Scored a career-high 13 points twice, once against Marshall and once against Gardner-Webb. 22

Grace McDonough | Freshman | F

• Helped Landsdale Catholic to a 4A title game as a senior.

• Averaged 10.2 points and nine rebounds during her last season in high school.

• Tallied two double-doubles during the PIAA playoffs.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL RETURNERS LEAD BOTH ON AND OFF THE COURT

By LIBBY MERCER The Breeze

With six newcomers joining JMU women’s basketball, the same as last season — three transfers and three freshmen — the Dukes are in a similar position to use their strong leaders to acclimate the team to success.

Head coach Sean O’Regan said returners redshirt-senior guard Peyton McDaniel, junior guard Bree Robinson and graduate forward Ashanti Barnes all play “huge roles” for the Dukes, which helps the newcomers adjust.

Of the transfers joining the team, redshirt-junior forward Brianna McLeod and junior guard Kylie Marshall both hail from SMU. O’Regan said the pair brings “toughness and athleticism.”

All-Sun Belt players like McDaniel and Barnes lead the team as known role models, especially to the freshmen.

“The freshmen know who [McDaniel] is,” Robinson said. “They know what she can do, so they’re so willing to listen to her and let her coach them.”

For Barnes, stepping into a bigger leadership role didn’t come naturally, and she’s had to work to become a bigger voice for the Dukes.

“[O’Regan] tells me about being a better leader and leading the team,” Barnes said. “It’s a big role, but I’m taking ahold of it,

and I’m learning day by day through Peyton and Bree on how to be a better leader.”

Barnes and McDaniel both said they’ve been impressed by freshman forward Grace McDonough and foresee her having a big role this season.

“I’ve really seen her just grow in confidence,” McDaniel said. “We always knew that she’s a great defender and great scorer, and we see her grow into being more comfortable in a starting role.”

JMU’s schedule hosts plenty of in-state match-ups such as games against VCU, George Mason and Liberty. The Dukes will also face Virginia Tech at home for the first time since meeting in the third round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament in 2019.

“It’s fun to play in state teams,” McDaniel said. “I think everyone’s pretty excited for Virginia Tech. Nobody [currently on the team] has been able to play against them, so that’s pretty cool.”

O’Regan said he “wants to play every school in Virginia every year,” because it “just makes sense.” When putting together the Dukes’ schedule, he focused on a tough non-conference slate to prepare them for Sun-Belt play.

see PREVIEW, page 8

from PREVIEW, page 6

This season, the Dukes will rematch against top seeds such as Notre Dame, Villanova and Texas — all of which they faced last season.

“I think we face so many tough moments in our non-conference, whether it’s playing in overtime or against a team that just went to the Elite Eight, those moments [help us] when we get to conference so we’re familiar, and we know what to do in those moments,” Robinson said. “I think our tough nonconference will always give us an advantage in conference play.”

JMU will start its season with a five-game homestand — the opposite of last season, during which the Dukes went back and forth between travel and home for the first few games.

“I think we’re so lucky that we get to be here,” Robinson said. “We practice on this court every single day, so we know how it feels. We have the best fans, best everything. I’m really excited to start here and get to stay here for a long time.”

Coming off a 30-6 overall season and an 18-0 Sun Belt record, JMU is the preseason favorite to win the conference. Familiar Sun Belt foe Arkansas State, which took the conference title last season in a 79-86 overtime win against the Dukes, came in second in the poll with three first-place votes.

However, the Dukes know not to take these rankings to heart.

“We just approach every game the same,” Barnes said. “We’re going out there to do what we got to do.”

CONTACT Libby Mercer at mercerlm@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more women’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on X and Instagram @TheBreezeSports

WOMEN’S HOOPS FACES TOUGH NONCONFERENCE SLATE

By MADI PERINI & PRESTON COMER The Breeze

After going undefeated in Sun Belt play a season ago, JMU women’s basketball is back on the court. But before conference play begins, the Dukes look to face a stacked out-of-conference schedule.

“We feel confident that we’re going to go out there and do what we’ve got to do,” graduate forward Ashanti Barnes said about JMU’s confidence against out-ofconference opponents.

For the season's first month and a half, JMU has slated teams such as Villanova, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Texas as well as in-state foes George Mason, Liberty, Virginia Tech and VCU. Head coach Sean O’Regan said putting an emphasis on scheduling instate opponents is something the Dukes “always do,” they just don’t always get a yes.

“I want to play every school in Virginia every year,” O’Regan said. “It just makes sense. With Sun Belt travel we’re on a plane so much, even the east side … I don’t want to get on a plane [for] non conference if we don’t have to.”

Putting together a gauntlet of tough opponents isn’t a new idea for the Dukes, as most of the schedule looks similar to last season.

“I thought it exposed us a little bit when we got beat, but at the same time, it strengthened us in the same sense,” O’Regan said about the benefits of JMU’s schedule.

O’Regan said that assembling a tough schedule is one of the most difficult things to do because “so many coaches don’t want to get fired,” so they schedule easier nonconference teams.

“There’s coaches out there that want to schedule as easy as possible, I’ve never believed in that,” O’Regan said. “The first game I ever scheduled was Tennessee at home, that’s just who I am.”

see WOMEN’S SCHEDULE, page 12

WOMEN’S KEY OPPONENTS

Nov. 16

• Finished 21-15 overall last season with an 11-7 Big East record.

• Picked to finish fourth in the Big East preseason poll.

• Four consecutive 20-win seasons.

• Returned sophomore guard Jasmine Bascoe, who led the Wildcats with 16.2 points per game last season.

Nov. 23

• Finished 19-13 overall last season, finishing with a 9-9 in ACC play.

• Picked to finish 10th in the ACC preseason poll.

• Beat North Carolina A&T and Texas Tech in the WBIT last season.

• Last season was first season with under 20 wins since 2020.

Nov. 19

• Finished 35-4 overall last season and 15-1 in the SEC.

• Lost SEC Championship to South Carolina last year.

• Picked to finish second in SEC preseason poll behind only South Carolina.

• Ranked No. 4 in the Preseason AP poll.

NOTABLE NON-CONFERENCE GAMES

Dec.

7

• Finished 12-19 last season with a 6-12 Atlantic 10 record.

• Picked to finish seventh in the A10 preseason poll.

• Senior guard Mary-Anna Asare was picked to the Preseason A10 First Team. Asare averaged 16 points on 42.1% shooting from the field.

• Lost to La Salle in the first round of the conference championship last season.

Nov. 29

• Finished 13-17 overall last season, with a 4-14 Big 10 record.

• Picked to finish No. 12 overall in the Big 10 preseason poll.

• Lost its first conference tournament game to Iowa.

• Lost its top two scorers in Serah Williams and Carter Mccray, who averaged 19.2 and 10.6 points per game last season, respectively.

Dec. 14

• Finished 28-6 last season with a 16-2 ACC record.

• Fell to Duke during the second round of the conference tournament last season.

• Picked to finish fourth in the ACC preseason poll.

• Ranked No. 15 in the Preseason AP poll.

O’Regan also said he hopes the rest of the Sun Belt will start scheduling tough non-conference slates to help boost the league as a whole and possibly get multiple teams into the NCAA Tournament.

“You’ve got to play well in non-conference [games] to put yourself in position to have a good Sun Belt year,” O’Regan said. “It’d be great to have two more teams that just don’t lose non conference, and we just beat each other up a little bit in the league.”

During the 2024-25 season, JMU dropped only six games, all being out of the Sun Belt — including Texas and Notre Dame, who it’ll face again in November and December. However, the Dukes took wins against Villanova and Florida on the road.

“The Texas game exposed a couple things we had to fix,” O’Regan said. “You’re just much more confident because you’ve been through that. And so that’s the idea again.”

Junior guard Bree Robinson also said it is crucial for the Dukes to face adversity against non-Sun Belt opponents.

“I think we face so many tough moments in our non conference, whether that’s playing in overtime or playing against a team who just went to the Elite Eight,” Robinson said, “those moments that when we get to conference, we’re familiar [and] we know we can get out of that — I think our tough non conference always will give us an advantage in conference.”

O’Regan said the slate helps the Dukes find their weaknesses early on during the season so they don’t run into issues during conference play.

“We’re going to strengthen, we’re going to find our weaknesses, we’re going to figure out what this person needs to work on, that person needs to work on, what we need to work on as a team as fast as possible,” O’Regan said. “You can only tell so much from playing in practice and against your own team.”

CONTACT Madi Perini at perinimr@dukes.jmu.edu and Preston Comer and breezesports@gmail.com. For more football coverage, follow the sports desk on X and Instagram @TheBreezeSports.

DOMINO’S EAT DOMINO’S DUKES DUKES

GABE NEWHOF SEEKS GREATER CHALLENGE WITH THE DUKES

By TOMMY GURGANOUS

The Breeze

Senior forward Gabe Newhof comes to JMU men’s basketball with one goal: to take on a greater challenge. So far, he says he hasn’t been disappointed.

“I would say it’s a challenge every day, playing against really solid players, really athletic, good-sized guys that make me have to get the most out of my skill set,” Newhof said. “Also, the coaches are holding us to a really high standard of excellence on the court with the details, so the mental and physical components of the game have really been elevated.”

Newhof — a 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward — began his collegiate career at Spring Arbor College of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), a school he saw himself graduating from, at first.

Newhof spent three seasons at Spring Arbor University and announced himself as a proficient scorer early on. He led the team in scoring as a freshman in 2022 with 19.3 points per game.

Newhof brought up that average to a careerbest 24.3 points per game as a sophomore and 21.5 points per game as a junior in 202425, earning NAIA Third-Team All-American honors. He also shot above 60% from the field in each of his three seasons.

After his junior year, Newhof decided to pursue a different school to play basketball

— a decision he said came with “a lot of tough emotions.”

“I had people in my ear encouraging me to explore options or look around,” Newhof said, “and with how the college basketball landscape changed so much from when I entered college to where it is now, it became more attractive to make the jump.”

When JMU made its pitch to Newhof, the Dukes had graduated two centers in Elijah Hutchins-Everett and Ebenezer Dowuona.

Newhof talked to JMU men’s basketball head coach Preston Spradlin and determined the factors of the coaching staff that made the Dukes stand out.

“He’s [Spradlin] very player-focused in terms of scheme, and they aren’t very rigid in what they do in terms of offense, defense and game play,” Newhof said. “Our team this year will play differently than the team last year and the team after that.”

Newhof added that Spradlin would get the most out of his skill set, which he described as being physical, “crashing the glass hard” and “setting great screens.” As well as Newhof, Spradlin and his staff could orient the game plan around the other players, too.

see NEWHOF, page 15

from NEWHOF, page 14

Newhof has described practices as “physically and mentally challenging,” but he has garnered respect from another veteran of college basketball — JMU fifth-year transfer guard Bradley Douglas.

I think Gabe’s had a great summer; he’s elite,” Douglas said. “His finishing around the basket is elite; he has a good touch, stuff like that.”

Douglas added that he expects the Dukes to get the ball to Newhof early on, where he can showcase those abilities.

Newhof has been recognized as an athlete with success in the classroom. He was a firstteam NAIA Academic All-American in 202425 and was on the second team the prior year. For Spradlin, it goes beyond just intelligence.

“He’s probably the most professional, mature player that I’ve had in 17 years of coaching college basketball,” Spradlin said. “He’s extremely intentional about what he does every single day, takes care of his body, takes care of his academics and makes sure that he’s rested and fueled the right way, and he’s very regimented as to what he comes in and does.”

Spradlin also noted that Newhof won’t be the biggest or strongest player on the court

during the season, as he might’ve been playing in NAIA. But like Douglas, Spradlin thinks Newhof’s feel for the game can help him even things out at the Division I level.

Newhof is regimented in religion as well and has shared that with the team. He’s brought along freshmen forwards Preston Fowler and Christian Brown to join him at Sunday church services.

“I think the role of a senior on any team is really important, especially for developing culture and identity with younger guys that are coming from high school or different programs,” Newhof said. “I’ve just been trying to be a great teammate to them, and one big thing in this team is being a servant and a servant leader.”

It’s yet to be seen how Newhof’s role will be at JMU compared to the 20-point-per-game standard he had during his time at Spring Arbor. Although the preseason coaches’ poll picked JMU to finish first in the Sun Belt Conference, Newhof remains unaffected by any external conversations.

CONTACT Tommy Gurganous at gurgantr@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more men’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on X and Instagram @TheBreezeSports.

PREVIEW | JMU MEN'S BASKETBALL SITS AT TOP OF PRESEASON RANKINGS

By WILL STUNTZ contributing writer

For the second year in a row JMU men’s basketball team faces roster turnover going into the season. The Dukes only have two returners, despite being voted the preseason favorites in the Sun Belt coaches’ poll.

JMU head coach Preston Spradlin is confident in the team’s abilities going into his second year with the program, and he said he likes where the Dukes are.

“I like where we’re at on both sides of the ball, even defensively,” Spradlin said. ”The things we’re able to do that are a little more diverse [than last year’s team].”

Spradlin also emphasized the versatility of JMU’s defense, even with a lack of size in the front court compared to last year’s roster.

“Our big guys, although they’re not popping off the page at 6 [feet] 11 [inches], they’re finding ways to have their fingerprints all over the defense with their versatility,” Spradlin said.

The two returning players from last year’s team are junior forward Eddie Ricks III and senior forward Justin Taylor. This year will be both players’ second year at JMU after transferring last year. Ricks came to JMU last year from Morehead State with Spradlin and made an immediate impact with 26 starts.

Ricks averaged 6.7 points per game and hauled in 4.7

rebounds per game during his first year as a Duke. Ricks wasn’t a key volume scorer for the team last year but displayed very promising efficiency, shooting 45.5% from the field and 31.6% from 3-point range.

Taylor played a more limited role last year, starting in five games and playing an average of 10.2 minutes per game. Transferring to JMU from Syracuse, Taylor averaged 1.8 points per game and 1.7 rebounds per game in his first season as a Duke.

The rest of this year’s roster is made up of mostly transfer players and two highly ranked freshman recruits, along with one former club basketball All-American.

Many of the players who transferred into the program this year are expected to be key contributors on the floor this season. Junior forward Justin McBride has already started showing what he can contribute this year by leading the team in scoring with 14 points in JMU’s preseason exhibition matchup against Richmond. McBride was a four-star recruit when he committed to Oklahoma State out of high school, where he spent one year before transferring to Nevada.

Another promising transfer is senior forward Gabe Newhof, who transferred out of Spring Arbor University. Newhof was an NAIA Third Team All-American in his junior season after averaging 21.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.

Newhof has proven to be an elite scorer at the NAIA level and

has been efficient over his career with a field goal percentage of 61.1% throughout his three years at Spring Arbor.

Newhof stands at 6-foot-9 inches and weighs 236 pounds, with a combination of his height, size and scoring ability, he adds value to the Dukes down low.

Also joining the program this year is senior guard Chance Lundy. Last year, Lundy played for the JMU Club Basketball team, where he was selected as an All-American by the National Club Basketball Association. Lundy also helped lead the Club Basketball team to a national title in 2024.

Another bright spot for the Dukes is the two highly ranked three-star freshman recruits — Preston Fowler and Christian Brown.

Brown comes from Franklin High School and was the No. 1-ranked player out of Tennessee.

“[Brown’s] a great rim running forward that can block shots, rebound and also shoot,” McBride said.

Fowler is the highest-ranked freshman prospect in JMU men’s basketball history. The 6-foot-8 forward played at Brewster Academy, where ranked as the 154th best high school basketball player in the nation after his senior season.

CONTACT Will Stuntz at stocklma@dukes.jmu.edu. For more men's basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on X and Instagram @TheBreezeSports.

HOOP HIGHLIGHTS

The

SUNDAY - THURSDAY 11:00 AM TO 9:00 PM

FRIDAY & SATURDAY 11:00 AM TO 10:00 PM

Banking Fit For Dukes!

CommonWealth One is James Madison University’s trusted, full-service financial institution. We’re conveniently located on campus and offer everything you might need financially as a student. What we don’t have? Excessive and unnecessary fees.

4.00% Cash Back with Kasasa Eats® Checking — Feed your stomach and your wallet.1 Our Student Accounts Come With:

Duke Dog Credit Card with no annual fee and a low, variable rate — Build credit wisely.2

2.00% APY* with Kasasa Saver® — Make your money work harder.1

Online and Mobile Banking — Access to your money 24/7.

Duke Dog Debit Card with access to 80,000 free ATMs — Swipe with pride.

On-Campus Branch and ATMs — Convenience is steps away, no car required.