Introduction
James Madison Dukes are an up-and-coming team in College Football and Basketball. They are a balanced team who is solid on both ends of the floor, and elite by mid-major standards. Despite their elite play and phenomenal record, they are on the outside looking in.
Strengths
Interior shooting
James Madison has a top ten scoring offense in Division 1 and shooting is part of the reason. They shoot over forty-seven percent from the field, which leads the Sun Belt Conference closely followed by Appalachian State. The Dukes are in the top ten in field goals made in all of Division I and third in field goal attempts due in large part to another aspect of their game.
Rebounding
James Madison is third in the Sun Belt and within the top thirty in all of Division I with over forty total rebounds per game. They are fourth in the Sun Belt in both offensive and defensive rebounds per game, thus showing that the Dukes are strong rebounding team on both sides of the floor, thus maximizing their scoring opportunities.
Shot Defense
James Madison’s shot defense is just as impressive as they ability to score. They are second in the Sun Belt in both field goal and three-point defense, including being in the top fifteen in all of D1 in the latter. This team also allows under six three-point shots made per game, which is top thirty in all of D-1, which is impressive considering opponents shoot over twenty three-pointers against them per night.
Weaknesses
Blocking
While the lack of blocks is not as much of an issue of their ethereal shot defense, they are not a blocking team, averaging under three and half shot blocks per game, ranking in the bottom half of the Sun Belt. This might seem dire but this is mitigated by their strong defense.
Lack of competition
Outside of their big upset win at Michigan State, their schedule is one of the easiest schedule in College Basketball, even by mid-major standards. They have the 315th ranked strength of schedule in Division I and 301st in nonconference SOS, both second lowest in the Sun Belt. This is why they are on the outside looking in. They do have an average difficulty of opponents the rest of the season to prove themselves.
Free Throw
The Dukes free throw shooting is mediocre at best. They are shooting seventy percent from the charity stripe, which is in the bottom half of in the Sun Belt. This is below average in Division I, and considering that they will be an underdog if they make it into March Madness, they need to improve from the free throw line if they want to play in March Madness and make a run in the tourney.
James Madison’s ceiling
The Dukes are a strong balanced team on paper, but their lack of quality opponents and difficulty of their schedule leaves a lot to be desired. I do believe they could make the Sweet 16 based on their talent alone, maybe Elite Eight if they prove themselves against stronger opposition.
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