During last year’s Sun Belt Men’s Basketball Tournament, one needed a silicon grip to safely handle the Red Wolves. No team in the universe was hotter. Arkansas State opened the tournament by demolishing longtime foe Louisiana 89-62. Next, Bryan Hodgson’s men shocked Appalachian State with a 67-65 buzzer beater. The Red Wolves seemed to be the Sun Belt’s team of destiny, positioned to super-heat themselves into the NCAA Tournament.

Earlier in the season, such a prospect seemed dim indeed. Arkansas State reached their lowest depths in November, losing at home to Jackson State 75-71. The next game, the dismay deepened with a 77-66 defeat to instate foe UA Little Rock. The team would find its winning ways after defeating UAB, but two regular season losses to the Ragin’ Cajuns stirred doubts within the caustic guts of the A-State faithful. Everybody could see that the Red Wolves had talent. But did it have the mysterious ingredients absolutely essential to victory?

The tourney opener win over Louisiana was the first domino to fall on the Red Wolves Vengeance Trail, fueled by 23 points from a healthy Freddie Hicks. Hodgson and his squad had finally found the proper formula for overcoming the dynamic trio of Joe Charles, Hosana Kitenge and future Red Wolf Kobe Julien. This season, there would be more blood. The Red Wolves dispatched both UA Little Rock and Jackson State with business-like efficiency. If Coach Bryan Hodgson found added satisfaction in those victories, he didn’t say. After all, there are meatier fish to boil.

In the Sun Belt Tournament Finale, it was obvious from the start that James Madison held the advantage. TJ Bickerstaff and Terence Edwards were universal forces rivaling the destructive power of a gamma blast. Xavier Brown, mostly anonymous on a roster of stars, emerged from anonymity to drill 5 of 6 from the three point line. Senior guard Noah Freidel seemed to be in the face of every Red Wolf simultaneously. Combined, the Dukes cooked Arkansas State on 62% shooting. The Red Wolves, who primarily played five guys throughout the tournament, simply could not match Jimmy Mads’ energy. A-State would take the 81-71 L, and JMU would enjoy a trip to the NCAA Tournament, where it would defeat Wisconsin in the first round.

Saturday marks the first opportunity for payback. Arkansas State arrives to Harrisonburg a deeper, more talented team bearing a bench that is capable of exceeding the capacity of the team’s starters on any given game. The Sun Belt has predicted Arkansas State to finish first in the conference, a prediction thus far validated by the Red Wolves’ 11-3 record and conference high NET ranking. The roster features a 6’11” freshman who is addicted to nailing three-pointers. What more does Hodgson need to rectify the record?

On the opposite end, the Dukes face the Red Wolves dinged by their own success. Last year’s head coach Mark Byington is now coaching Vanderbilt, and he took former JMU forward Jaylen Carey and guard Hollman Smith with him. Terrence Edwards jumped to Louisville (where he averages 14-points per game) while Bickerstaff and Freidel have aged out of the game. The losses have left new head coach Preston Spradlin managing a capable but no longer dominating team, 8-6 overall and 1-1 in conference play, the loss a thundering defeat to South Alabama.

The Dukes are not without danger. JMU features Texas A&M transfer and redshirt freshman guard Bryce Lindsay, who leads the team with 13 points per game. Seton Hall transfer center Elijah Hutchins-Everett is six feet-eleven inches of trouble in the paint. Mark Freeman, the OVC 2024 Player of the Year, tagged along with Coach Spradlin from Morehead to give the Dukes added firepower. Oh yeah, Red Wolves killer Xavier Brown is still a Duke, putting up nearly 12 a game.

The Dukes of James Madison is the last name standing on the Red Wolves vengeance list. Bryan Hodgson and the players who endured the Dukes’ bucket party in Pensacola haven’t likely forgotten the chagrin. Tip off is Saturday, 3:00 PM central.

Image: Sun Belt Media