NEW ORLEANS (JMU Athletics) – James Madison guards Mark Freeman and Bryce Lindsay collected major awards from the Sun Belt Conference on Monday afternoon, as Freeman was named the Newcomer of the Year while Lindsay was awarded Freshman and Sixth Man of the Year in a vote by the 14 head coaches in the league Monday.

Lindsay – who was also named Third Team All-Sun Belt – became just the second player in program history to be named Freshman of the Year while also being named all-conference, joining William Davis in the 1988-89 season. The native of Baltimore finished the regular season averaging 13.6 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game while leading the Sun Belt in three-point percentage (.415) and finishing second in made threes (86). He produced 21 games in double figures and four 20-point games, the first JMU freshman with four or more 20-point outings since Matt Lewis in the 2020-21 season.

Furthermore, Lindsay’s scoring average of 13.6 points per game is tied with Kent Culuko (1991-92) for the fourth-most by a JMU player in their freshman season. On Feb. 25 at ULM, Lindsay made six three-pointers to pass Culuko for the most three-pointers in a single season by a JMU freshman. Additionally, Lindsay’s 86 treys are the most by a Duke since Stuckey Mosley made 95 in the 2018-19 season. He has finished with four or more three-pointers in 12 games this season, making him just the third JMU player since 2004 to accomplish that feat.

With his selection to the first team, Freeman became just the seventh JMU player since 2000 to take home a first-team nod. It is the guard’s second time making First Team All-Conference in his career after he was named First Team All-Ohio Valley Conference in 2022-23 at Morehead State. Freeman leads the Dukes in points (15.2) and assists (3.2) per game and has produced 23 games in double figures, eight games over 20 points, and two games with 30 or more. He also has 15 games with four or more assists.

Conference games are where Freeman shined, as he averaged 17.2 points per game to lead the Dukes to a 13-5 league record and a 10-game winning streak in conference play. He was the only player in the Sun Belt to record five 25-point games against league opponents and had a season-high 31 points at Marshall (Jan. 9) and also 30 versus Southern Miss (Jan. 2), making him the first JMU player since Mosley in 2017-18 with two 30-point games in the same season. As of Monday, he is one of 12 players in Division I with over 1,500 points and 500 assists in their career.

The second-seeded Dukes earned a bye into the semifinals of the Sun Belt Men’s Basketball Championship and will open play on Sunday, March 9, at 8:30 p.m. ET (7:30 p.m. CT) against the winner of No. 3 seed Troy and an opponent to be determined. The championship game will take place on Monday, March 10, at 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT) all game will air on the JMU Radio Network (92.1 FM | 550 AM) and on the Varsity Network App.

— JMU Athletics —