The Breeze Basketball Special Section 11.3.22

FRESH

JMU men’s basketball

history over

faces the Cavaliers again this year. Breeze file photo

Men’s schedule

November

Nov. 7: JMU vs. Valley Forge @ 4 p.m. Nov. 9: JMU vs. Hampton @ 7 p.m. Nov. 12: JMU at Buffalo @ 1 p.m. Nov. 15: JMU at Howard @ 7 p.m. Nov. 20: JMU at North Carolina @ noon Nov. 25: JMU at Coastal Georgia @ 11 a.m. Nov. 26: JMU vs. South Dakota State (Savannah, Ga.) @ noon Nov. 27: JMU vs. Valparaiso (Savannah, Ga.) @ noon

December

Dec. 2: JMU vs. Eastern Kentucky @ 7 p.m. Dec. 6: JMU at U.Va. @ 8 p.m.

Dec. 10: JMU vs. Gallaudet @ 7 p.m. Dec. 18: JMU vs. Long Island @ 4 p.m. Dec. 21: JMU at Coppin State @ 7 p.m.

Dec. 29: JMU at Georgia State @ 7 p.m. Dec. 31: JMU at Marshall @ 2 p.m.

by Shirin Zia Faqiri / The Breeze

January

Jan. 5: JMU vs. Texas State @ 7 p.m.

Jan. 7: JMU vs. App State @ 4 p.m.

Jan. 12: JMU at South Alabama @ 6 p.m.

Jan. 14: JMU vs. Georgia Southern @ 7 p.m.

Jan.

Jan.

Feb.

Jan. 19: JMU

before facing Sun Belt foes

Women’s schedule

November

Nov. 7: JMU vs. Maine @ 7 p.m. Nov. 9: JMU vs. Millersville @ 6 p.m.

Nov. 13: JMU vs. Queens @ 2 p.m. Nov. 17: JMU vs. Longwood @ 7 p.m. Nov. 20: JMU vs. North Carolina @ 2 p.m. Nov. 23: JMU vs. Liberty @ 1 p.m.

December

Dec. 1: JMU vs. VCU @ 6 p.m.

Dec. 4: JMU vs. Maryland Eastern Shore @ 2 p.m. Dec. 11: JMU vs. William & Mary @ 1 p.m. Dec. 17: JMU vs. Hampton @ 4 p.m. Dec. 29: JMU vs. Coastal Carolina @ 3 p.m. Dec. 31: JMU vs. Old Dominion @ 2 p.m.

January

Jan. 5: JMU vs. Marshall @ 6 p.m.

Jan. 7: JMU vs. Southern Miss @ 3 p.m.

Jan. 12: JMU vs. App State @ 7 p.m.

Jan. 14: JMU vs. Georgia State @ 4 p.m.

Jan. 19: JMU vs. Georgia Southern @ 7 p.m.

Jan. 21: JMU vs. Troy @ 4 p.m.

Jan. 26: JMU vs. Coastal Carolina @ 6 p.m.

Jan. 28: JMU vs. Georgia State @ 2 p.m.

February

Feb. 2: JMU vs. South Alabama @ 8 p.m.

Feb. 4: JMU vs. Georgia Southern @ 2 p.m.

Feb. 9: JMU vs. Louisiana @ 7 p.m.

Feb. 11: JMU vs. Arkansas State @ 4 p.m. Feb. 16: JMU vs. Texas State @ 8 p.m. Feb. 18: JMU vs. Old Dominion @ 2 p.m.

Feb. 22: JMU vs. App State @ 6:30 p.m.

Feb. 24: JMU vs. Marshall @ 5 p.m.

Feb. 28 - March 6: 2023

Sun Belt Women’s Basketball Championship

Back to their roots

Byington, Sule return to Sun Belt Conference

By JACKSON HEPHNER The Breeze

After men’s basketball head coach Mark Byington told his team that JMU was moving to the Sun Belt Conference in November 2021, he made a point to find Alonzo Sule. The graduate forward’s response to the news, combined with the smile on his face, Byington recalled, told the story.

“We’re going back, huh?”

Sule’s choice of words was particular. For most of the team, moving to the Sun Belt means entering a new conference. But for Byington and Sule, it means returning to a previous one and playing their previous teams.

Byington will face Georgia Southern, the program that gave him his first full job as a head coach in 2013. In his seven seasons with the Eagles, he helped rebuild a program with just one winning season in the seven years prior to his tenure. Byington oversaw six winning campaigns, finishing his tenure with a 111-84 record, the best record of any Georgia Southern coach in the modern era.

Sule will return to face Texas State, where he played from 2017-21. Sule redshirted his freshman year there before playing in 88 games for the Bobcats — averaging 17.2 minutes, 7.4 points and 4.1 rebounds on 54.8% shooting and starting in his final 25 games. He capped off his time as a Bobcat helping lead Texas State to the best record in the

Sun Belt West Division at 18-7 (12-3 Sun Belt).

Byington said he reflected on his winning history in the familiar conference in preparation for this season. Despite conference play not starting until the end of December, Byington said he’s started to think about the challenges the league brings and how JMU can adjust, specifically citing the athleticism of Sun Belt foes and longer travel.

“I looked back at my Sun Belt days and said, ‘What did I learn that could help me in the league [now]?’” Byington said.

Of course, returning to the Sun Belt doesn’t just mean rekindling old rivalries — it also means facing former teams. Byington’s used to it.

During conference play in the CAA last season, JMU played against both Byington’s alma mater, UNCW, and his former employer of nine years — College of Charleston. This year, the Dukes will travel to U.Va., which they beat 52-49 last year, and where Byington coached as a graduate assistant from 1999 to 2001.

“You know, as you get older in coaching you kind of run into a lot of different things,” Byington said. “You see them on the schedule and you’re like, ‘Oh, there’s that game.’ And, you know, it always has something a little bit more.”

Byington also expressed anticipation over redshirt sophomore guard Terell Strickland playing against his brother Tai, a senior guard at Georgia Southern. Terell is also looking forward to the

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Sule will play his former team,

State, on Jan. 5. Breeze file photo

from RETURN, page 6

“I tell him everything we talked about every other day,” Terell said with a laugh June 28, “and I asked him, I’m like, ‘What’s your team looking like? What’s your team looking like? You know you got to come here first’ … I’m always trying to get one up on him when we’re back home together. He’d hit me with a punch, and I’d hit him back twice.”

Terell also said the team notices Byington is carrying “a different swagger” now that he’s returning to the conference.

For Sule, returning to the Sun Belt brings a new level of anticipation.

“I’m really excited,” Sule said. “The chances of me going back to the Sun Belt and coach [Byington], it [was] very unlikely. You don’t really see that often.”

When it comes to Sule facing Texas State, Byington described that matchup as “almost like playing your brother.”

“You wanna beat him worse,” Byington said.

For now, though, Sule is ready to remind the Sun Belt of what he and Byington can do.

In particular, he’s eager to face his former team.

“I still have friends there for sure,” Sule said. “You know I was there for a while, but it’s definitely going to feel good to be competing against them.”

And when Sule plays his old teammates, Byington knows what he’ll get from him.

“He’ll be juiced for that game,” Byington said, “and they’re one of the best teams in the league, and that makes it a fun challenge.”

As both anticipate their return to the Sun Belt, their shared history in the conference has helped create a player-coach bond.

“I know there’s some things he knows about me or that I know about him just from our experience back from being in the Sun Belt,” Sule said. “So, yeah, we definitely got a connection right there.”

CONTACT Jackson Hephner at hephnejt@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more men’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

“You know I was there for a while, but it’s definitely going to feel good to be competing against them.”

Alonzo Sule

JMU’s Sule excited to face familiar foes ‘He’ll be juiced’

JMU head coach Mark Byington coached at Georgia Southern from 2013-20. Breeze file photo

By RYAN MCGOWAN The Breeze

When the final whistle sounded to officially end JMU women’s basketball’s 2021-22 season, the disappointment was palpable.

The Dukes triumphed in the final game, defeating a Delaware team that went on to win the CAA postseason tournament and qualify for the NCAA tournament, but JMU’s overall performance for the season didn’t live up to expectations or potential. The Dukes couldn’t compete in the CAA conference tournament entering the season, meaning an NCAA tournament bid was likely out of grasp, but they still finished 14-15 (10-8 CAA).

JMU hopes to turn the shortcomings of last season into motivation as it enters the 2022-23 season. Last year’s trials are in the past — the mantra repeated by players and head coach Sean O’Regan is that this season represents a “fresh start”.

“With failure, there is always something that you can get out of it,” senior forward Kiki Jefferson said. “A loss isn’t always a loss. Sometimes you run out of time. It’s a lesson learned, it pushes us to go harder. Something coach [O’Regan] always brings up is 14-15 — we don’t ever want to go 1415, so push harder, do an extra rep … Push

your teammates, and be the best version of you every day.”

The Dukes now have an influx of new talent to propel them in a fresh start, with experienced transfers entering the program, skilled freshman signing on and key pieces of the team returning from injuries that severely limited them last season. These new additions are set to improve team culture and chemistry, something JMU players and coaches are both focusing on.

“As those newcomers have come in, they’ve asked, ‘What was it? Why didn’t it work?’” O’Regan said “It’s no secret, I didn’t like our chemistry at the end of [last] year … [But this year] we’re really going in the right direction.”

Junior guard/forward Kobe King-Hawea and graduate guard Caroline Germond, both added this year, can improve team chemistry by offering leadership, assuming the roles of mentors for some of the younger players. Both players have had unique paths to JMU: King-Hawea hailed from New Zealand before playing last season at the University of Texas. Germond was born in France and transferred to JMU following two seasons at TCU.

“Me being a senior, I think I bring a lot of knowledge,” King-Hawea said. “I think I can bring that maturity and that

knowledge to them. I can be a great leader, I can be a scorer on the floor, whenever [O’Regan] needs me to get a basket, I’ll get a basket, whenever he needs me to talk, I’ll talk. I’m there to be underneath [O’Regan] on the court and help these girls out as much as I can.”

Despite the abundance of new faces in the program, many players who were integral to last season’s squad are returning for this season. Jefferson carried much of the scoring load for the Dukes last season, leading the team with 18.8 points per game. She accumulated myriad achievements last season, including eclipsing the 1,000 point mark and being named to the CAA All-Conference Second Team. Jefferson still projects to be the team’s focal point, but O’Regan hopes other players can take on greater offensive roles as well.

“As much as I would love to say Kiki is going to average 26 a game, she better not,” O’Regan said. “She felt at times that everyone was just giving her the ball and looking at her last year. She doesn’t want that, she wants a more efficient 16-18 a game, that’s how she’s going to accomplish her dreams. I hope that we’re not asking her to score 30 a night, but I do hope that she has some games where she gets hot and can give you a 30.”

Hazell’s improvement as a scorer could relieve some of the pressure on Jefferson. Hazell came off the bench for parts of last season but looks to be an essential part of the team in 2022-23 as a leader on and off the court.

“Our team chemistry is way better this year,” Hazell said. “The coaching staff, the players, we’re all locked in. We’re all focused on one goal: to win the Sun Belt. It’s just a new, fresh start … For me, being a junior, because I came here during Covid, then having the [CAA ban] last year… This is just an exciting year because there are no setbacks”.

With eyes forward and last season’s setbacks out of the way, the Dukes prepare to compete in the Sun Belt Conference for the first time with the hope that improved chemistry and new additions can help propel them to a conference tournament victory.

“We’ve got a lot of versatility, we have a lot of different things we can throw at you,”O’Regan said. “If we’re fully healthy, I think this is a team that can win a [Sun Belt] championship.”

CONTACT Ryan McGowan at mcgow3sr@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more men’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

With new players and stronger team chemistry, JMU women’s basketball sets its sights high for Sun Belt debut

‘Fresh Start’

Guard Kiki Jefferson is currently JMU women’s basketball’s highest scoring player. Breeze file photo

Slam dunk

JMU men’s basketball adds height with stand-out freshman

By ZACH MENDENHALL The Breeze

DeMatha Catholic High School in Hyattsville, Maryland, has produced over 20 NBA players in school history. Over the summer, JMU snagged 6-foot-9 forward Jerrell Roberson.

“Jerrell’s an athletic big with good hands,” JMU men’s basketball coach Mark Byington said. “One of the adjustments for freshmen coming into college is that the game moves so fast … and what I’ve noticed the last two weeks is that he’s getting better and better.”

Roberson, a computer information sciences (CIS) major, hails in the footsteps of other DeMatha graduates such as NBA stars Victor Oladipo and Markelle Fultz. He helped lead DeMatha to the 2020 WCAC championship and an undefeated 2021 season on 66% shooting from the field.

Roberson comes in as one of the tallest players the team — taller than anyone last season — as 6-foot-8 forward Julien Wooden was the tallest player the Dukes could put on the floor.

Now, his height is coming in to prioritize his role above all else.

“I’m looking to contribute in any way that I can,” Roberson said. “I know I’ve got a lot to prove as a freshman, but I’m looking to learn and get better every day.”

Byington said he has no plans to set expectations or limits on Roberson this season. As the freshman continues to show improvement, Byington said, it’ll be exciting to see the level he’s on come December.

Fellow teammate and CIS major graduate forward Alonzo Sule feels Roberson is beginning to pick up on things from listening to not only his coach, but the older players as well.

“If he continues to play hard and run and just listen to what coach is saying,” Sule said, “it’s gonna be exciting for his future here at JMU.”

Sule recognizes Roberson tries to learn and improve more every day, he said. He said he’s taught Roberson that “hustle negates mistakes” and believes that if he continues to grow and improve on the level he is as a freshman, he’ll be exceptional this season.

But even now, the head coach is already noticing a trait that freshmen don’t always bring.

“He picks up on things really quickly,” Byington said. “One of the best things he has is just his IQ of being able to make a mistake and learn from it and go on to be able to process it and not make the mistake again.”

Byington said Roberson comes in with natural ability, too.

“If he just keeps growing day to day,” Byington said, “I know he’s going to be a great player in his career, but I think he’s going to help us this year.”

Roberson said he understands Byington’s coaching style is more intense and defenseoriented than his high school’s, but he’s slowly overcoming the challenges of change and adjustment required to be the best he can.

Graphics by Shirin

Roberson said watching film and taking time to talk to Byington allows him to slowly overcome the challenges of a new team. The greatest help so far has been “having coach in my ear 24/7.”

Having to wait two years behind the upperclassmen to play in high school has made Roberson resilient, he said, and he wants to apply this to his game by staying patient and trying to outwork everyone on the court.

Roberson also feels he’s able to come into the team adding a new sense of versatility, especially as a tall presence near the basket.

“He’s long,” Sule said. “He can add some shot blocking in the mix, he’s running, and for his size he can run pretty good, so he’s definitely bringing some of those intangibles to the team.”

Roberson has been forced to increase the physicality of his play, going against teammates who “try to bully him” and challenge him in practice every day, Byington said. Roberson’s learning to not back down in those battles against the likes of Sule and redshirt sophomore forward Justin Amadi during practice, Byington said.

At the same time as “bullying” him, the team members have done their best to make Roberson feel like a member of the family early on and help him understand they’re all connected and at JMU to win, which means pushing him to be the best player he can be in practice — “we want the best for him,” Sule said.

Roberson said he’s not worried about a jam-packed Atlantic Bank Union Center throwing him off this season. Once his head’s in the game, he doesn’t pay attention to what’s around him.

In the months the team has spent together, Roberson has already made a new home.

“Everyone’s really close, and it shows; it’s like a family here,” Roberson said.

CONTACT Zach Mendenhall at mendenzl@ dukes.jmu.edu. For more men’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

Roberson is now the second tallest player on JMU at 6-foot-9. Courtesy of JMU Athletics

No small feat

Former women’s basketball player Kamiah Smalls finds professional success abroad

By JACKSON HEPHNER The Breeze

As recently as early 2020, when the Dukes were still playing in the Convocation Center and the coronavirus was yet to become a pandemic, Kamiah Smalls was the star guard for JMU women’s basketball.

The former Duke stood out during her time at JMU from 2016-20 as CAA Rookie of the Year in 2017, Preseason CAA Player of year in 2019 and 2020 and finishing her career as the CAA Player of the Year in 2020 while leading her team in points (18.6) and assists per game (3.6).

Her collegiate production got her drafted by the Indiana Fever in the 2020 WNBA Draft. She said the two years since have been “as close to perfect as possible.”

“I think that everything that has happened in the past two years has set me up for the next thing,” Smalls said. “I think [these past two years have] been teaching me a lot of things … I think I’ve grown a lot since I graduated from JMU with a lot of lessons I’ve learned there and after the fact.”

After college, Smalls played basketball both in the WNBA and overseas in Poland and Italy. In between her stints playing professionally, she spent time with the Founding Fathers, a co-ed team made up of JMU alumni. She first joined the team in 2021 for its first season in The Basketball Tournament (TBT), a 64-team open-application basketball tournament held every summer.

Joseph Kuykendall, general manager for the Founding Fathers, said when first putting together the team with Kevin Albright, assistant general manager and head coach, they knew from the beginning they wanted a women’s player from JMU.

“You can’t say the gender-neutral phrase ‘JMU basketball’ without including JMU women’s basketball,” Kuykendall said. “It was on our mind and on our docket to add a women’s player to the roster.”

With help from assistant coach Nikki Newman, another JMU women’s basketball alumna, the team got in contact with Smalls, who said she’d agree to join the roster “without question.”

Smalls, just one year removed from college,

was much younger than the rest of the roster. Despite this, she knew of everyone on the team already because JMU basketball is “a real tight family,” she said. Once she got to know the team better, Kuykendall said she fit right in.

“For those who were able to watch our game [on July 24, 2022] and even our game last year, you’ll notice Kamiah standing the whole game and she’s hyping everyone up,” Kuykendall said. “She was an incredible bench presence for us this year … That’s one thing I really admire and respect about her. Even though we couldn’t get her in the game this year, she still contributed in ways not always seen on the court.”

The Founding Fathers’ time in the tournament ended in the first round in July. Now, in the offseason, Smalls plays professionally in France. She’s focusing not just on her next endeavor on the court but making

an impact in other areas as well. She plans to start a women’s basketball camp somewhere in Virginia in hopes of showing young women’s players who may not have many opportunities to play that if they work hard, it can happen.

“It’s important to let people know that it’s possible,” Smalls said. “It’s possible to accomplish these things. It’s possible to get there and keep gaining opportunities … I love the game of basketball, I love what it has done for me, and I feel like I’m going to love even more what I’m going to give to other people.”

Smalls wants all female basketball players on all levels to have the opportunity to play. Her dream is to add another WNBA franchise to the league so fewer women have to go overseas to play. As of now, there are only 12 WNBA franchises with 12 roster spots each, equating to far fewer roster spots than in the 32-team NBA.

“A lot of women’s players have to go overseas,” Smalls said. “We don’t have a choice … I’ve seen a lot of people walk away from the game because overseas is just too much for some. They deserve to be [playing in the U.S.], but there’s just not enough room.”

Guard Kiki Jefferson played with Smalls as a freshman. Now as a senior, she’s taken over Smalls’ spot as JMU’s top scorer, notching 545 points last year as a junior with an average of 18.8 per game. With 1,216 points, Jefferson is 672 points away from passing her former teammate with a year left.

Looking back, she describes Smalls as someone she could always look up to.

“She was like a big sister,” Jefferson said. “When things weren’t going right [because], like, I was new, she was my outlet. When things were going good, she kept me motivated and pushing … I always told her she’s paving the path for me to keep walking through.”

Now, as she prepares to enter her final season at JMU, Jefferson still talks to Smalls and played one on one with her frequently when Smalls’ was in Harrisonburg this summer.

Smalls’ time in women’s basketball is only beginning — she herself said she hopes that is in fact the case. For now, she’s currently in Villeneuve - d’Ascq, France, where she’s the starting shooting guard for Villeneuve - d’Ascq ESB Lille Métropole.

Smalls could find herself with a stable roster spot in the WNBA in just a few years, but when it comes to her ultimate goal, she wants to be remembered as a player and as a person.

“The end goal is for people to remember me as more than a basketball player,” Smalls said. “[The goal is] to know that my passion and love for this game has never gone unseen, and that I gave 110% every time I stepped between those lines, and I gave 135% when I stepped off of those lines.”

CONTACT Jackson Hephner at hephnejt@dukes.jmu.edu. For more men’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

Kamiah Smalls was drafted by the Indiana Fever in the 2020 WNBA draft. Breeze file photo

professional team Villeneuve - d’Ascq ESB Lille Métropole. Breeze file photo

ne more tally

JMU women’s freshman forward brings extra spark in rebounding

By KAIDEN BRIDGES The Breeze

Assyrian blue. That was the answer JMU freshman forward Cheyenne Rowe gave JMU head coach Sean O’Regan when he asked her what her favorite color was during her recruiting process. Aside from her performance on the court, responses like these are what made O’Regan realize that Rowe was just the addition the Dukes’ women’s basketball team needed this year.

From representing Canada to Harrisonburg, Rowe joined the team just in time for its inaugural season in the Sun Belt Conference.

Rowe has shined on a big stage already in her basketball career. She represented Team Ontario in Canada from 201719, and earlier this year, Rowe played on the U18 Canadian National Team and competed in the 2022 FIBA Women’s Americas Championship in Argentina. Standing at 6-foot2-inches, she averages about 12 points and 12 rebounds per game and shoots 75% from the free throw line.

Rowe said her experience playing in Canada wasn’t much different from playing at JMU. Being an international student, she said, college is dubbed as a big adjustment, but her first few months at JMU have been easily adaptable with her new support system on campus and on the court.

“It’s been easier than most people would think,” Rowe said. “I’m very lucky to be on such a great team, and everyone is very supportive. Whenever I needed anything, my teammates would help me out and that was just the best I could’ve asked for.”

Rowe found JMU during her Amateur Athletic Union season after a former teammate who’d also been looking at the school spoke highly of it. O’Regan said when he saw Rowe play at a tournament in Chicago, he knew that he wanted her on the team.

“I saw her and was like, ‘That’s exactly what I want in a post,’” O’Regan said. “The rebounding, pretty athletic, dirty work type of kid. We got her and her mom down for a visit, and she loved it. It wasn’t far after that when she said the words.”

O’Regan said Rowe is a hard worker who brings personality and effort to the team.

“Her favorite color isn’t just purple. That’s just who she is,” O’Regan said. “It’s a little bit extra, a little bit collectic. But she’s full of joy, always smiling.”

While on the court, O’Regan said Rowe’s rebounding skills set her apart. He said that quickly into practice this season, Rowe understood that if she rebounded, she’d get her chance to play.

JMU emphasizes rebounding in practice through competition: Whoever has the most rebounds at the end of practice gets to run one less sprint, and it’s kept track of on a whiteboard. Junior forward Claire Neff said Rowe’s competitiveness and energy sets her aside; every day, Rowe works to be the top rebounder on the team.

“That’s how she’s going to make her mark,” O’Regan said. “Defensively, she’ll grow, she’s a pretty good defender. On offense she’s done a really good job just finishing. That’s all I’ve really asked her to do is to not stray too far out of who you are offensively, and just rebound, and you’ll get your offensive chances.”

Neff said Rowe “is busting her butt” in every drill with a smile on her face the whole time. She said “determined” is the best word to describe Rowe.

DUKES WIN e Breeze

Rowe has also gotten plenty of coaching from JMU assistant coach Kayla Cooper Williams, who played at JMU from 2015-20. Williams, who’s fourth all time at JMU in rebounding with 866 rebounds in her collegiate career, has been a source of advice for Rowe — she can’t wait to be able to play like Williams, Rowe said.

“I’m just trying to be coachable,” Rowe said. “I want to act like a sponge and just take everything in.”

O’Regan said he’s looking forward to seeing Rowe’s growth this year, both on and off the court. Her smarts show in the game, he said, and Rowe and the other freshmen are already confident players.

“She just has to grow and mature,” O’Regan said. “Not that she’s immature, but just to mature as a player. I’ve already seen some, but I think by the end of the season, there will be drastic changes.”

CONTACT Kaiden Bridges at Bridg4ke@dukes.jmu.edu. For more women’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

Graphics by Shirin Zia Faqiri

Best of the best

By MADISON HRICIK & GRANT JOHNSON The Breeze

Senior guards Vado Morse and Kiki Jefferson are the men’s and women’s basketball leaders at JMU, respectively, and it’s no secret.

But there’s more to the basketball roster than just the stars.

The Breeze sports editors Grant Johnson and Madison Hricik share their picks on some of the biggest players to watch for both the men’s and women’s teams this season, including players who finished their season strong, some new faces with strong resumes and other returning from season-ending injuries.

Men’s hoops experience shines

For the first time in JMU head coach Mark Byington’s tenure, he has a familiar core to work with.

Men’s hoops enters its 2022-23 season with players who’ve been in Byington’s system for three years now, while only one consistent starter from the year prior, former graduate transfer guard Charles Falden, has left the team. Here are three players who’ll be key

contributors this winter — both seasoned veterans and newcomers to the Friendly City.

Julien Wooden redshirt junior forward

Multiple players told The Breeze that Wooden is a different player this season. He’s smarter on the court, graduate forward Alonzo Sule said he recalled Byington saying in a practice, which gives Sule confidence in the redshirt junior.

Last season, Wooden played primarily on the wing despite being listed as the tallest player on the roster at 6-foot-8. He put up 7.3 points per game on 42.4% shooting and started in 23 of the Dukes’ 28 games.

Redshirt junior guard Vado Morse said Wooden was “the laziest person on the team” in 2020-21. Now, for Wooden, playing under Byington for three years — and the development of his new teammates — is giving him hope for the season.

“We’re coming along real good,” Wooden said, “so I think we’re having a really good chemistry this year, and I look forward to winning.”

Terrence Edwards redshirt sophomore guard/forward

Edwards ended 2021-22 on a high, despite JMU’s 36-point loss to Towson. He scored 27 points to cap off a season in which he averaged 9.1 points per game and 4.2 rebounds, playing a similar role on the wing as Wooden but taking on more ball-handling responsibilities in spurts last year.

Now, like Wooden, Edwards has been in Byington’s program for three years and has taken a noticeable step, especially as a leader, Morse said. There have been times where Morse said he’s been sluggish, and Edwards called him out for it.

Edwards said much of that urgency has come from the lost seasons resulting from the pandemic.

“You can’t take these days for granted,” Edwards said. “You never know when you’re gonna go down — like, it’s basketball, so injuries come with it. You just never know you’re gonna go down, so every day we learned to come in every day and take advantage of us just practicing.”

Noah Friedel graduate transfer guard

One of JMU’s new players has seen his fair share of college basketball.

Friedel comes to JMU from the transfer portal via South Dakota State, where he played for three seasons, averaging 14.2 points on 39.6% from 3-point range in 17 games last season for a 30-win Jackrabbits team that made the NCAA Tournament.

Friedel might fit into this year’s roster similarly to Falden, who frequently spotted up from the corner from 3. Morse said he likes the comfortability of having someone in the backcourt who can take pressure off him from deep.

“Catch and shoot, Noah may have me — I don’t know,” Morse said. “Playing along [with] him, I think it’s gonna be great spacing the floor out because if I have the ball, you can’t leave Noah. He can shoot the basketball, so that’s just gonna free up more space for me.”

Edwards ended last season averaging 9.1 points per game. Breeze file photo

Breakout ballers

Analysis | Who to watch for this season

THe womens' fresh start

On the women’s basketball roster, head coach Sean O’Regan spent the majority of the offseason working on two things: getting depth in his roster and finding a new identity for the team. Last season, O’Regan said he felt like the team didn’t have the chemistry and fearlessness he wanted, and he hopes this season will feel like a complete reset.

The women’s basketball head coach said he’s gotten some of that depth back, particularly with the return of junior forward Claire Neff and junior guard Peyton McDaniel, but is still waiting to see what the team’s identity will look like.

But that doesn’t mean he has any less faith in what his team can do.

“That’s my headliner, it’s a totally fresh start,” O’Regan said. “It’s refreshing, eyes are forward type of thing, and so we’re working hard.”

Peyton McDaniel junior guard

McDaniel has long awaited her return to the court for JMU. The junior guard suffered an injury just before the start of the 202122 season and never played. But before the injury, she'd been named the 2020-21 CAA Rookie of the Year and was the third-ever freshman to score 30 points in a game, doing so against George Mason in December 2020.

It’s been a long time coming for McDaniel to get her shot again, and she said it’s felt even longer than she would’ve imagined. O’Regan said McDaniel is someone who “lives and breathes” basketball, so her anticipation to play again makes it a bigger deal for the Dukes.

“It definitely feels like basketball season again for me,” McDaniel said. “We’re all just super excited for the season and it just feels refreshed.”

Caroline Germond graduate guard

Graduate transfer guard Caroline Germond was one player O’Regan said hopes to give a

little more leadership and maturity to the roster. Germond is coming back from an injury and is in her fifth year of eligibility, after playing two seasons at South Plains College and another two seasons at Texas Christian University.

“She’s on a mission,” O’Regan said. “And she’s coming here, and she’s fearless … but that’s kind of who she is. She’s here to run the show.”

At TCU, Germond was averaging over 17 minutes and 2.6 points per game, and for South Plains College, she was averaging over 10 points per game. Her big selling point, however, is her off-ball mobility. She averaged over 100 steals at South Plains College, and it’s something O’Regan said he wants to take advantage of this season.

Steph Ouderkirk junior forward

When the Dukes needed help from the three last season, junior forward Steph Ouderkirk delivered. Ouderkirk played in all 29 games last season and had her first career doubledouble against Hampton in November 2021.

O’Regan relied on the junior forward throughout the second half of the season as the team began dealing with injuries, and Ouderkirk showed off her skill set — especially the longshots.

After struggling to play a full 40 minutes last season, the women’s basketball team wants to rebound from its first losing season in nearly a decade. And with a new set of assistant coaches, some fresh faces and some rested ones, too, O’Regan said he believes the team can get there.

“I really believe we’re kind of through that,” O’Regan said. “As far as what we’ve looked back on [and] what we’ve reflected on, to me it’s eyes forward because that’s in the past.”

CONTACT Madison Hricik and Grant Johnson at breezesports@gmail.com. For more men’s basketball coverage, follow the sports desk on Twitter @TheBreezeSports.

from BEST OF THE BEST, page 17

Basketball is back

A look back at some of the best moments from the 2021-22 season

Breeze file photo

Abi Middleton / The Breeze

Breeze file photo

Breeze file photo

Valerie Chenault / The Breeze

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