HIGHLANDERS LOCK DOWN COASTAL CAROLINA, 68-50

BOX SCORE RADFORD, Va. – For the fourth time this season, Radford women's basketball held its opponent to 50 points or less as the Highlanders claimed a 68-50 decision in Big South action inside the Dedmon Center on a snowy Thursday afternoon.

With its fourth straight victory, Radford improves to 9-6 overall and 4-2 in league play. The Chanticleers drop to 7-10 on the season and 2-5 in conference contests.

“Once again, our defense paved the way to victory,” head coach Tajama Abraham Ngongba said. “The effort we have shown the past few games on that side of the ball is outstanding and has translated into the results we want to have.”

Ashley Buckhannon led four Highlanders in double figures with a game-high 22 on 7-of-15 shooting. Diani Mason and Victoria Hamilton contributed 11 points each, while Sarah Tabb chalked up 10 points and 10 rebounds to record her first double-double of the season and second of her career. Hamilton also dished out a career-high-tying six assists.

Alexx Puckett's 16 points led the Chants, while Angelica Henry added 13 points and Katelyn Connor tallied 10.

Radford forced the issue early on, leading 23-13 with 9:24 remaining in the opening stanza. However, the Highlanders failed to connect on a shot for nearly six minutes, while the visitors were able to trim the margin to four (23-19) at the 4:25 mark.

Mason had an answer as the freshman guard completed a three-point play to spark an 8-1 run, which gave RU a 31-20 lead at intermission.

Both squads barely broke 30 percent shooting in the first frame as Radford (32.4 percent) outshot the Chanticleers (30.4 percent). The Highlanders' defense came up huge in the first 20 minutes, converting 14 CCU miscues into 14 points.

Nearly four minutes into the second stanza, Coastal Carolina was able to close the gap to seven (35-28). From there, it was all Radford. Using a 16-4 streak, the Highlanders established a 51-32 advantage and never looked back.

Improving upon its first half performance, Radford finished with a 41.9 percent clip in the final frame and a 36.9 percent rating for the game. For the second straight outing, the Highlanders held their opponent under 40 percent from the floor as the Chanticleers only managed 36.2 percent.

In addition to edging the visitors in rebounding (39-37), RU controlled the paint for a 34-14 advantage to improve to 8-0 when winning this category. The Highlanders' ferocious defense picked up right where it left off in the first half by forcing 10 more CCU turnovers in the second half. For the game, Radford cashed in the Chanticleers' 24 miscues for 29 points.

RU's bench played a vital role in initiating the surge to cushion the hosts' lead in the final 20 minutes of action, which led to a 23-5 advantage in bench scoring. Continuing its stellar play from the charity stripe, Radford connected on 15-of-16 for a season-best 93.8 percent mark.

Up next for the Highlanders is a date with Charleston Southern on the hardwood inside the Dedmon Center. Action gets underway at 3:00 p.m. Saturday. RU and the Buccaneers split the season series last year with both winning at home.

Coastal Carolina continues its journey through the Commonwealth with a 2:00 p.m. tilt at Longwood Saturday.

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