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RADFORD, Va. – Art Parakhouski (Minsk, Belarus) scored 34 points, including 20 in the second half, and pulled in 12 rebounds while Radford shot 53 percent in an 80-53 win over George Mason on Wednesday night at the Dedmon Center.

Parakhouski, who went 11-for-15 from the field and 12-for-15 from the free throw line, scored nine points in the first 7:32 to give Radford (6-5) an early eight-point lead.  He had a similar start to the second half, scoring six of Radford's first 10 points over the opening six minutes to help give the Highlanders control.

The senior came into Wednesday's game 16th in the nation in scoring (21.8) and tops in rebounding (13.3).  Parakhouski's double-double was his ninth of the season and his 30-point effort was the third of his career.

“Games like these were challenges for us in the past,” Parakhouski said.  “But playing as many good teams early as we did brought us together as a team and really is starting to pay off for us.”

“I thought tonight Art was exceptional at gathering himself, getting balanced and going up strong,” head coach Brad Greenberg said.  “There was no doubt he was going to the basket.”

Laz Trifunovic (Belgrade, Serbia) added his third double-double in a Radford uniform, scoring 15 points and grabbing a career-high 17 rebounds. 

“This is how we want to play,” Trifunovic said.  “There are still things that we need to work on, but a 30-point win is what we wanted.”

Joey Lynch-Flohr (Fairfax, Va./Fairfax) scored 15 points and Blake Smith (Charlotte, N.C./United Faith Christian) contributed eight along with five assists and five rebounds for the Highlanders.

Radford limited the Patriots (6-6) on the offensive end, who shot just 27 percent (17 of 63), and controlled the glass 47-29.  Mason was led by 10 points from Roanoke native Luke Hancock.

“We were solid defensively,” Greenberg said.  “All of our guys played their players well, in terms of understanding their personnel, and they defended intelligently.”

Despite shooting just 33 percent in the first half (11 of 33), Mason rallied from an eight-point deficit in the opening 5:30 and used a 9-2 run capped off by Mike Morrison's free throws to take a 16-15 lead at 9:48.

But Radford, which shot 52 percent in the first half (12 of 23), outscored Mason 19-13 to close out the period and take a 34-29 lead to the intermission.   The Highlanders connected on 10 of 11 free throws, including Parakhouski's 6-for-7 effort.

“I'm working hard every day at practice, and before and after, trying to make as many free throws as I can,” Parakhouski said.  “Every day, I'm trying to do a little more.”

“With our style of play, we have to get into the bonus, and try not to put teams in the bonus,” Greenberg said.  “We took more free throws than our opponents last year and that's part of our formula for success.”

Radford put away the Patriots in the second half, outscoring them 46-24 and shooting 53 percent (17 of 32) while Mason hit on just 20 percent (6 of 30) of its shots.

The win was the first for Radford over George Mason since Dec. 6, 1993 and its first over a Colonial Athletic Association team since 2003.

“Playing good teams out of conference like Duke, Louisville and Kansas helped prepare us for this kind of game,” Trifunovic said.  “And whether we won or lost, it's still good preparation for the conference season and teams like George Mason, who is a very good team.”

“I think we're ready for conference play right now,” Parakhouski said.  “We still have things to figure out, but from now on, we need to play each game like this one.”

Big South conference play resumes for the Highlanders on Saturday, when they continue a three-game homestand against UNC Asheville at 4 p.m.