James Madison visits the Texas State Bobcats after Mark Freeman scored 27 points in the Dukes' 85-79 victory against the UL Monroe Warhawks. Friday's meeting is the first this season

Mark Freeman scored 27 points and James Madison beat UL Monroe 85-79 on Tuesday night to clinch a share of Sun Belt regular-season crown. The Dukes (20-10, 13-4) have won 10 straight game to reach 20 wins overall in Preston Spradlin’s first season.

If the Dukes win one of their final two games, they clinch a top-two seed in the Sun Belt Conference tournament, meaning JMU gets a bye to the conference tournament semifinals. If JMU can win their final two road games at ULM and Texas State, the Dukes wins the Sun Belt Conference regular season championship.

Judah Brown led six players in double figures with 18 points as the Jaguars picked up their 20th victory of the season with the six-point win at Reed Green Coliseum in Hattiesburg. South Alabama remains alive for the No. 1 seed in the Sun Belt Conference tournament heading into Friday’s regular-season finale at home vs. Louisiana.

Texas A&M has made a significant move to bolster its defense with the hiring of Lyle Hemphill, the former defensive coordinator at James Madison University (JMU).