HIGHLANDERS PUT HOME STREAK ON THE LINE VS. TRIBE ON SATURDAY

RADFORD, Va. - Winners of three straight at home and undefeated on at the Dedmon Center for the season, the Radford men's basketball team plays host Saturday to William & Mary in the first game of a doubleheader vs. the Tribe with the women's teams. The men's game is set to tip at 2:00 p.m.

The men's game will be carried live on the RU Sports Radio Network on the flagship station, WVRU 89.9 FM and the commercial affiliate, WBLB 1340 AM. The live audio and video streams can also be heard / seen on the RU athletics website at www.radfordathletics.com. The video stream is part of the Big South Network.

THE SERIES
♦ The Highlanders and the Tribe are meeting for the seventh time dating back to the series opening game in December of 1977. William & Mary leads the series 4-2.
♦ William & Mary has won three straight in the series and most recently a two-point win in the Dedmon Center in December of 2009.
♦ Radford is 18-41 all-time vs. the Colonial Athletic Association, including 0-2 this season.

SCOUTING THE TRIBE
♦ William & Mary enters today's game with a 5-3 overall record and on a two-game winning streak after defeating Howard, 78-69, on Thursday night.
♦ The Tribe are 2-2 on the road this season with wins at Big South foes Liberty and High Point. The losses came at Wake Forest and in double overtime at Richmond.
♦ W&M is led by three prolific scorers in Marcus Thornton (18.3 ppg), Brandon Britt (16.5 ppg), and Tim Rusthoven (15.0 ppg). Rusthoven also leads the team on the glass at 7.6 rpg.
♦ The Tribe get a lot of mileage from their starting lineup. Each of their starters, which have been the same for all eight games, average at or near 30 minutes per game.

STATS NOTABLES
♦ Ya Ya Anderson tied his career high with 14 points at Delaware.
♦ Brandon Holcomb tied his career high with three blocked shots at Delaware.
♦ Javonte Green leads the Big South Conference in steals per game at 2.9. He set a career personal best with six thefts vs. Hampton.
♦ Javonte Green leads the Big South Conference in field goal percentage at .590 (49-83).
♦ Javonte Green notched his ninth career double-double and second of the season vs. Hampton.
♦ Blake Smith has moved into fourth all-time in RU history with 169 career steals.
♦ Ya Ya Anderson ranks sixth in the Big South Conference in free throw percentage at .793 (23-29).
♦ R.J. Price leads the Big South Conference in three-point field goals made at 2.89 per game.
♦ As a team, RU leads the Big South Conference in turnover margin at +3.11 per game.

TIDBITS
♦ Radford's current three-game home winning streak is the longest since a four-game streak at the end of the 2009-10 season (3 games) and the beginning of the 2010-11 season (1 game).
♦ Radford has not won a game played in the month of December since an 80-53 victory over George Mason on Dec. 30, 2009.
♦ Radford has won nine straight home overtime games dating back to the home-opener of the 2002-03 season vs. Howard.
♦ Radford has won five straight games decided in overtime.

RADFORD'S LAST TIME OUT
♦ Radford had its three-game winning streak snapped Tuesday night as the Highlanders fell 68-59 at Delaware. R.J. Price and Ya Ya Anderson each scored 14 points, and Kion Brown added 13 for RU. Anderson tied a career high with his point total.
♦ The Blue Hens opened the game on a 13-3 run over the first eight-plus minutes before an Anderson three-point field goal started a surge for the Highlanders that would see them scratch and claw their way through the first half with their leading scorer on the bench. Javonte Green picked up two early fouls and sat most of the period. RU trailed by a single point, 31-30, by intermission.
♦ Delaware piled up a 47-33 advantage on the boards, including 19 offensive rebounds. No Highlander grabbed more than five rebounds on the nigh, led by Kyle Noreen with five.
♦ Yet, despite it all, thanks to timely shooting from Price and Anderson and the inside offensive presence of Brown, the Highlanders grabbed the lead early in the second half. The Blue Hens, however, went on an 18-4 run midway through the second half to grab their biggest lead of the night with 10 minutes to play, 53-40.

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