HIGHLANDERS PREPARE FOR DEFENSIVE CLASH AT GARDNER-WEBB

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RADFORD, Va. – With its first Big South victory in hand, Radford will look to stay in the winner's circle when the Highlanders head to Boiling Springs, N.C. Thursday night for a 7:00 p.m. tilt against Gardner-Webb inside Paul Porter Arena.

MEET THE RUNNIN' BULLDOGS

♦ Leading the Big South in field-goal percentage defense (.330), Gardner-Webb provides a stern defensive challenge for its opponents.
♦ The Runnin' Bulldogs are sharp from behind the arc, carrying a 37.2-percent rate from long range (second in Big South). Overall, GWU has the fourth-best field-goal percentage (.407) in the league.
♦ The squad averages 45.7 rebounds per game, which ranks second in the conference.
♦ Jasmine Dale averages 11.7 points per contest (13th in league scoring) to lead her squad in the scoring column. Catrina Green chips in 10.2 points an outing (20th in league scoring).
♦ Green also leads GWU in rebounding at 8.7 caroms per game, which ranks fifth in the league.
♦ The Runnin' Bulldogs enter Thursday's tilt averaging 62.1 points per contest, while giving up 57.1 points per outing (ranks fourth in Big South) to its opponents.

HIGHLANDER HAPPENINGS

♦ Radford is led by Ashley Buckhannon in the scoring column at 12.5 per contest (10th-best in conference), while Victoria Hamilton crashes the boards for a team-best 7.6 rebounds per outing (ranks sixth in league).
♦ The Highlanders are efficient with their trips to the charity stripe, converting 72.9 percent of their attempts, which ranks second in the Big South.
♦ At 10.8 steals per game, Radford ranks second in the league, while leading the Big South in turnover margin (+3.17).

SERIES HISTORY

♦ Of the 11 all-time meetings between the Highlanders and GWU, four have gone to overtime. Nonetheless, the Runnin' Bulldogs own a 6-5 edge in the series. The last time these two teams faced each other inside Paul Porter Arena Radford pulled out a 63-50 victory.

WHAT'S NEXT

♦ RU swings by Clinton, S.C. for a Jan. 12 contest at Big South-leading Presbyterian College. Tipoff is set for 5:00 p.m. inside the Templeton Center.

LAST TIME OUT

♦ Radford utilized strong bench play and fended off a second-half comeback by UNC Asheville to prevail, 66-54, in Big South women's basketball action Thursday night inside the Dedmon Center.
♦ Ayana Avery and Ashley Buckhannon poured in double-figure efforts for the Highlanders with 14 and 11 points, respectively. Diani Mason and Sarah Tabb contributed nine points each.
♦ Kelli Riles knocked down 7-of-9 from the hardwood, in addition to a 6-for-6 performance from the charity stripe, on her way to game highs in points (20) and rebounds (10) for the Bulldogs. Riles became Asheville's all-time Division I leader in rebounding during the contest and now has 899 for her career.
♦ Shonese Jones and Brittany Gwyn registered 19 and 11 points, respectively, to round out three Bulldogs in double-figure scoring.
♦ The visitors finished with a 42.9-percent rate (18-of-42), while the Highlanders connected on 40.7 percent of their attempts (24-of-59). The Bulldogs also won the battle on the glass, 35-33.
♦ However, Radford got major contributions from the reserves as the squad outscored UNCA's bench, 38-15. The Highlanders also made a living in the paint, outscoring their opponent 34-20. Radford remains unbeaten at 5-0 when winning this category.
♦ Leading 20-17, RU finished the half on a 14-6 surge to restore its double-digit advantage (34-23) at the break. The Highlanders shot 35.1 percent (13-of-37), while holding the visitors to 31.8 percent (7-of-22). Radford was blistering hot from downtown (45.5 percent), connecting on 5-of-11 from behind the arc.
Opening the second stanza with a 20-9 surge, the Highlanders built their largest lead at 54-32 with 12:08 to go. UNC Asheville would not go away easily as it was able to trim the Radford lead to 11 (63-52) with 1:54 remaining. Buckhannon scored the next three points for the Highlanders to seal their first Big South win of the season.

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