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RADFORD, Va. – Radford returns from a holiday break to face its third major-conference foe of the 2009-10 men's basketball season, when the Highlanders travel to Louisville in a televised game on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.

The first-ever matchup between Radford (5-4) and Louisville (8-3) can be seen live regionally on Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN) and nationally on ESPN Full Court and ESPN360.com.

Louisville is the fourth current member of the Big East that the Highlanders have faced in program history, as Radford looks for its first win against the conference. The Cardinals are also the third NCAA Tournament team from a year ago (Duke, Kansas) that Radford is scheduled to meet this season. Louisville, the top seed in the Midwest Region, lost to Michigan State in the Final Four last season.

Sunday's game is also the third this season for the Highlanders in a storied college basketball venue – Freedom Hall. The Cardinals are playing their 49th season in the 18,856-seat venue, where they've finished in the top five nationally over the last 21 seasons in attendance. Radford has also played games in Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium (Nov. 21) and Allen Fieldhouse at Kansas (Dec. 9).

Radford will try to rebound from a 70-68 home defeat to William & Mary on Tuesday (Dec. 22). In the loss, the Highlanders out-rebounded the Tribe by 13 (43-30) but William & Mary's 15 made three-pointers were the difference.

Art Parakhouski (Minsk, Belarus), the nation's top rebounder (14.0) and ninth-leading scorer (22.7), turned in his eighth 20-point game of the season on Tuesday. The 6-11 center finished 10-for-12 from the floor on the way to a 24 point performance.

Throughout his Radford career Parakhouski has shined against major-conference opponents, averaging 16.3 points and 11.8 rebounds in games against the ACC, Big East and Big XII.

Parakhouski and Louisville sophomore center Samardo Samuels highlight Sunday's matchup. The 6-9 Samuels leads the Cardinals in scoring (16.6) and rebounding (7.2) while shooting 56 percent from the field this season. A player on the Naismith Award Watch List, Samuels turned in a 29-point, 15-rebound outing in Louisville's 84-69 win over Louisiana-Lafayette on Wednesday night (Dec. 23).

Louisville continues an eight-game homestand on Sunday while playing its final non-conference game of the 2009-10 season. The Radford game extends a stretch where 11 of Louisville's first 13 are within the confines of Freedom Hall.

Radford returns to the Dedmon Center court on Thursday, Jan. 30, in another televised game, when the Highlanders host George Mason at 7 p.m. on MASN.

RADFORD vs. THE BIG EAST
Radford meets its fourth team in the current Big East membership on Sunday, in the first-ever matchup between the Highlanders and Louisville. The Highlanders are in search of their first win against the Big East. Among the current membership of the 16-team conference, Radford has faced Georgetown (0-1), South Florida (0-1) and West Virginia (0-4). Past Big East members on Radford's schedule include Miami (Fla.) and Virginia Tech.