James Madison sneaks past Coastal Carolina on the road

James Madison traveled to Conway and snuck out with a 67-65 victory, extending its winning streak to four games.

The Dukes improved to 15-13 overall and 7-8 in Sun Belt play, moving up to 10th in the conference standings. The Chanticleers fell to 16-12 (8-7 Sun Belt) despite a 31-point performance from Josh Beadle.

That’s four. #GoDukes pic.twitter.com/VYjE1z1Ql8

— JMU Men’s Basketball (@JMUMBasketball) February 19, 2026

Coastal Carolina quickly fell behind 11-6 but clawed back throughout the first half. The Chants regained the lead at 19-18 but were never able to extend it beyond three points. JMU built a five-point lead late in the half, but Coastal once again battled back, tying the game at 32 heading into halftime.

Beadle led the Chanticleers with 12 first-half points on seven shots. RaSheed Jones added seven, while fellow guard AJ Dancler struggled, going 2-for-7 from the field. The starting bigs were strong on the glass, as Nadjrick Peat pulled down five rebounds and Reggie Hill grabbed seven.

For the Dukes, Cliff Davis scored 11 points, while Bradley Douglas added seven. Leading scorer Justin McBride struggled in the first half, scoring just two points on six shots.

Coastal came out firing in the second half, jumping to a 39-34 lead less than two minutes in. James Madison responded with a 6-0 run to take a one-point lead by the first media timeout.

At the next media timeout, it looked like the Dukes were starting to pull away with a 50-42 lead, but Hill’s 3-pointer to cut it to five before the break proved to be big. Coastal followed with a 13-0 run to take a 55-50 lead.

Beadle took over offensively, scoring in a variety of ways, but the Dukes continued to answer. After McBride made two free throws with 49 seconds remaining, James Madison led 66-63. Beadle quickly responded by drawing a foul and making both free throws to cut the lead to one.

On the next possession, McBride was blocked by Peat, giving Coastal a chance to take the lead. Dancler got the switch he wanted but missed a 3-pointer with 11 seconds remaining. While many questioned the shot, head coach Justin Gray was comfortable with the decision.

“I’m not the one to call a timeout in that situation,” Gray said. “We had a good matchup. I told him we are living with the results of that shot.”

Kose Egbule was fouled with eight seconds left but made just one of two free throws. Beadle then drove and drew a foul with 0.4 seconds remaining. He was 9-for-9 from the line to that point and appeared ready to force overtime, but the first free throw rimmed out. After intentionally missing the second attempt, James Madison secured the 67-65 win. Gray did not place blame on the missed free throws.

“Those free throws were not the reason we lost,” Gray said. “There are so many plays within the game where we have breakdowns that lead to that.”

Although Beadle wished he had made the free throws, he was confident in the moment and appreciated the trust from his coach.

“He tells us that we always live with the result because of the work we put in,” Beadle said. “If I can, I’d have the ball in my hands every play, but I trust my other guys as well.”

Beadle finished with 31 points, the second-most of his career, trailing only his 32-point performance against Texas State. Jones and Dancler struggled, combining for 18 points on 7-for-26 shooting. Dancler, Jones and Hill, statistically the team’s top 3-point shooters, combined to go 3-for-21 from beyond the arc.

Davis led James Madison with 22 points and was the only Duke to score in double figures. McBride and Eddie Ricks III each added eight, while Douglas and Gabe Newhof chipped in nine apiece.

Fifth 20-point game of the season for No. 10.

JMU leads 64-63 with 56.8 seconds left. https://t.co/M74IyYiZKP pic.twitter.com/dNRKIsBK4K

— JMU Men’s Basketball (@JMUMBasketball) February 19, 2026

Coastal will return home for Senior Day on Feb. 21 to host Marshall in a key game for the top half of the conference standings. James Madison will travel to Atlanta to face Georgia State the same day, looking to extend its winning streak.