SAN MARCOS, Texas – The last game of 2023 and the Sun Belt Conference opener sees Texas State (6-6) travel to take on No. 20/21 James Madison (12-0) Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT from the Atlantic Union Bank Center.
 
Fans can catch the action on ESPN+ and on the Varsity Sports Network with Gabe Genovesi on the call. Live stats will also be available to follow.
 
About Texas State
Last time out, the Bobcats fell to No. 3 Houston back on the 21st. TXST has won its last two conference road openers and look to make it three straight for the first time since 1965-67. Saturday's game will be the 11th Sun Belt opener for Texas State that has seen the team drop the last three with the last win coming against Georgia Southern (73-70) on Jan. 3, 2019.
 
Jordan Mason paces the team at 15.5 points per game while making 47.0% of his shots and a team best 75.0% at the free throw line. He is tied for the team lead with 13 steals while doing so in just six contests.
 
Brandon Love comes in netting 11.6 ppg while grabbing a team-high 5.8 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game. His block average is tied for the fifth highest in the nation. Also with a double-digit scoring mark is Dylan Dawson (10.0) while making a team-high 21 three-pointers.
 
Dishing out a team best 4.2 assists per contest is Kaden Gumbs and Mason. Both Joshua O'Garro (5.6) and Christian Turner (5.5) are retrieving over five boards a game.
 
About James Madison
The Dukes are one of the last three remaining undefeated teams in the country along with Houston and Ole Miss. They are 5-0 at home with victories over Buffalo, Coppin State, Howard, Keystone College and Radford. JMU is putting up 92.6 ppg and are outscoring opponents by 20 points a contest.
 
Terrence Edwards, Jr., the reigning Sun Belt Player of the Week, is netting a team-high 17.2 ppg and is shooting 44.5% from the field, 36.4% on three-pointers and 78.8% at the charity stripe. T.J. Bickerstaff is scoring 15.8 ppg with a team best 66.4% shooting and 8.2 rpg.
 
Also with a double-digit scoring mark is Michael Green III (11.5) and Noah Freidel (10.9 ppg). Green paces the squad with 58 assists, 29 made three-pointers and 18 steals. Freidel comes in having made 27 of his attempts from beyond the arc.
 
All-Time Series vs. Dukes
Texas State won the only previous meetings between the teams. The Bobcats defeated JMU 63-62 on Jan. 5, 2023 in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Drue Drinnon knocked down the game-winning free throw with 3.9 seconds remaining and Love would deflect an in-bound pass at midcourt to take the final ticks off the clock to seal the win.
 
Leading the Bobcats that day offensively was Brandon Davis with 16 points. He was 7-for-12 from the field and went 2-for-4 on three-point attempts.
 
Stay up to date on everything Texas State men's basketball by following the team on Facebook,  Twitter, and Instagram.