The Dukes never trailed while Goins was on the bench, and they got 20 points from A.J. Davis en route a 68-55 victory over LIU Brooklyn in a first-round NCAA Tournament game at University of Dayton Arena.
James Madison (21-14) advances to face top-seeded Indiana in the second round Friday in Dayton.
"We get to play one of the best teams in the nation," said Dukes guard Andre Nation, who scored 14 points Wednesday. "We know about them. I mean, they're Indiana. We see them on TV all the time."
Davis hit seven of 15 shots, including four of 10 3-pointers. Charles Cooke added 15 points for the Dukes.
James Madison recorded its first NCAA Tournament victory since 1983, and coach Matt Brady earned his first career NCAA win.
"We're really excited to win a game in the NCAA Tournament," Brady said. "It's always nice to get the first one under your belt."
Jamal Olasewere scored 20 points and C.J. Garner added 16 for LIU Brooklyn (20-14). It was the seventh straight game in which Olasewere scored in double figures.
"Not the outcome we were looking for," Blackbirds coach Jim Ferry said. "It took us a while to get going. We kept our poise pretty well and got back into the game."
The loss dropped LIU Brooklyn to 0-6 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
Goins returned to the Dukes lineup to begin the second half, but it took him a while to get acclimated. He missed his first three shots and two free throws before he made consecutive baskets to put James Madison ahead 58-51 with less than seven minutes remaining.
After serving his first-half suspension, Goins finished with four points and eight rebounds.
"Coach told us not to do anything out of character (while Goins was out)," Nation said. "We had some other guys step up."
James Madison held LIU Brooklyn to 35.6 percent shooting. The Blackbirds averaged 48.4 percent from the field coming in. The Dukes also had a season-high 10 blocked shots.
"They really bothered our shots around the rim, which we didn't expect to happen," Perry said.
LIU Brooklyn trailed until Reed hit two free throws with 15:02 remaining to put the Blackbirds ahead 40-39. However, James Madison answered with a 9-0 run to regain control.
With Goins cheering from the bench during the first half, James Madison's offense got off to a hot start.
Davis, who made his ninth start this season in Goins' absence, began the game with a long 3-pointer.
A 3-pointer by Cooke and a layup by Nation put James Madison ahead 10-2. Davis' dunk off a lob pass from Devon Moore highlighted the hot start by the Dukes, who led by as many as 12 points in the first half.
Cooke and Davis made back-to-back 3-pointers to put James Madison ahead 20-8.
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