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HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Ohio men's basketball team (0-1) opened the 2024-25 season Monday night (Nov. 4) in the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge, falling to James Madison (1-0) on the road, 88-78, inside Atlantic Union Bank Center. 
 
Overall, Ohio shot 50.8 percent from the field, 38.9 percent from three and 55 percent from the line, while JMU shot 54.4 percent from the field, 50 percent from three and 61.5 percent the line. JMU outrebounded the Bobcats, 41-23, while Ohio dished out 11 assists compared to JMU's 15. The Ohio defense forced 15 JMU turnovers, while controlling eight steals. 
 
Individually, four Bobcats scored in double figures and were led junior forward Aidan Hadaway (Lafayette, Ga) with 17 points, going 7-of-12 from the field, 3-of-6 from three and grabbed two rebounds. Junior guard Jackson Paveletzke (Kimberly, Wis.) was next with 16 points and snagging five rebounds, followed by redshirt sophomore guard AJ Brown (Orlando, Fla.) with 14 points and graduate student guard Shereef Mitchell (Omaha, Neb.) with 14 points, three rebounds and four steals. Senior forward AJ Clayton (Roseville, Ohio) added four assists, five rebounds and eight points. 
 
JMU won the tip and got on the board first. However, Paveletzke got the first basket of the season for the Bobcats. After JMU got the lead again, a steal and layup from Mitchell tied the game back up at 4-4. After the two teams traded baskets, a three from the Dukes put JMU up 9-8 going into the first media timeout. Back-to-back threes out of the timeout from JMU gave the Dukes a 17-8 lead, forcing an Ohio timeout with 12:54 left in the half. 
 
Out of the timeout, a spinning layup in the paint from junior guard Ajay Sheldon (Dublin, Ohio) stopped the JMU run, cutting the Ohio deficit to 17-10 going into the media break. However, out of the break, JMU got hot behind arch, taking a 32-14 lead with 6:51 left in the half. Out of the break, a defensive stop led to a three from Clayton, stopping the Bobcats scoring drought. Out of the final break of the half, a layup and a three from Brown and a driving layup from Paveletzke at the end of the half, helped cut the Ohio deficit to 41-26 going into halftime. 
 
At the half, Ohio shot 35 percent from the field, 22 percent from three and were 2-of-5 from the line, while JMU shot 52 percent from the field, 43 percent from three and were 3-of-4 from the line. JMU outrebounded the Bobcats, 24-13 with seven offensive boards, while Ohio forced eight JMU turnovers. 
 
The Bobcats opened the second half with a 10-2 run, starting with a layup from Hadaway and three free throws from Clayton to cut the deficit to 10. Moments later, a three from Brown and another layup from Hadaway cut the JMU lead to 43-36, forcing JMU to call a timeout with 18:04 left in the second half. The next three minutes saw the two teams trade baskets, with JMU holding a nine-point lead with 15:22 remaining. 
 
After JMU took an 11-point lead, a three from junior guard Elmore James (Cleveland, Ohio) cut the deficit back to nine. Moments later, a layup from graduate student forward Vic Searls (Hilliard, Ohio), his first points in Green and White, cut the JMU lead to seven, however, JMU countered with a layup of their own, taking a 56-48 lead into the under-12 media timeout. Out of the timeout, JMU went on a 7-4 run, taking a 64-52 lead with 7:48 remaining in the game. 
 
Out of the break, the Bobcats hit a scoring drought, allowing JMU to take a 73-54 lead before a dunk from Hadaway stopped the run. After JMU responded with a layup, Ohio went on a 9-0 run that was capped by a Hadaway three and a steal and a driving layup from Mitchell, cutting the JMU lead to 10 going into the final media timeout. Put of the break, JMU was able to stop the Ohio momentum before a three from Hadaway cut the Ohio deficit to nine points with under two minutes to go. A layup from Paveletzke with under a minute to go cut the JMU lead to 83-76, however a jumper from JMU stopped the Bobcats' momentum once again. Despite a basket from Paveletzke with 15 seconds to go, Ohio was unable to cut away at the JMU lead, falling, 88-78. 

JMU was led by Xavier Brown with 23 points and six rebounds, while Mark Freeman added 16 points and Elijah Hutchins-Everett adding 13 points and a game-high eight rebounds. 
 
Up next, the Bobcats return to Athens on Saturday, Nov. 9 when they take on UNC Asheville in the home opener. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. inside the Convection Center and can be seen on ESPN+. 

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