HIGHLANDERS SEEK ROAD VICTORY AT PRESBYTERIAN SATURDAY NIGHT

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SETTING THE STAGE

After remaining perfect at home in Big South play, Radford's men basketball team looks for its first conference road win Saturday night at Presbyterian.
Tipoff at the Templeton Center in Clinton, S.C. is set for 7 p.m.
Series: Radford leads 10-5
Last meeting: Radford 62, Presbyterian 56 (Feb. 14, 2015)
Radford has won five straight meetings after the Blue Hose had won four in a row before that.
RU has been victorious in its last two visits to the Templeton Center and is 4-3 there all-time.
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HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Record: 10-8, 3-3 Big South
Thursday night's victory over UNC Asheville was Radford's first when trailing by double-digits since last season's 85-77 decision at Winthrop on Jan. 17.
The Highlanders are now 3-0 in overtime this year after going just 1-6 in the previous four campaigns.
RU is 7-3 this season in games decided by eight points or less and has five wins in which it took the lead for good with less than 1:30 on the clock.
Against Asheville, Rashun Davis recorded eight assists in a game for the fourth time this year and regained the sole lead in the Big South at 4.7 per game. He is seventh in the league in scoring (14.2) and second in steals (1.9).
Davis also moved up to 21st on RU's all-time scoring list with 1,125 points.
With his career-high 13 rebounds Thursday night, Ed Polite, Jr. moved up to eighth in the Big South at 6.6 per game. He remains the conference leader in offensive rebounds (3.50 per game), while ranking tied for 28th in the NCAA and tied second among freshmen with LSU's Ben Simmons.
Cameron Jones now has 505 points in 52 career games as a Highlander. He has six games this year with at least three 3-pointers and ranks sixth in the conference at 37.9 percent from long-range.
Justin Cousin has now made a pair of 3-pointers in five straight games, while shooting 42 percent (10 of 24) from behind the arc.
Radford's 52 percent shooting performance from the field Thursday night was its best against a Division I opponent since the victory at Penn State on Nov. 24.
The Highlanders failed to record at least 10 offensive rebounds for the first time since that same game, but still lead the conference at 14.2 per game – 19th in the nation. They also rank first in overall rebounding with 40.1 per outing.
RU is second in the league in blocks with 77 as Polite, Jr. ranks third with 25 and Brandon Holcomb is sixth with 21.
Radford is averaging 13.3 assists per game in Big South play, third-most in the conference.

SCOUTING PRESBYTERIAN

Record: 7-10, 2-4 Big South
Presbyterian has dropped two straight games on the road, including a lopsided 87-58 setback at Coastal Carolina Thursday night. The Blue Hose fell behind 25-0 before getting on the scoreboard at the 10:21 mark.
PC had won two straight conference games (at Campbell and home vs. Longwood) before losing at High Point last Saturday.
Forward DeSean Murray is the Big South's leading scorer with 20.7 ppg despite being limited to 10 against Coastal. It was the first time he failed to score at least 23 points in a conference game this year.
Murray has tallied 20 or more points in 11 games this season, while ranking fourth in the Big South in rebounding (7.8), second in field-goal percentage (57.6) and third in steals (1.8).
Behind Murray, junior Marcus Terry is averaging 9.4 ppg, redshirt sophomore Reggie Dillard is at 8.2 and junior Ed Drew contributes 7.6 points and 4.9 rebounds off the bench.
For the season, Presbyterian ranks 10th in the Big South in scoring (69.9) and field-goal percentage (43.1) and is last in 3-point percentage (27.2).
However, the Blue Hose have shot better in conference play, ranking sixth overall at 44.5 and third from long-range at 34.6.
Defensively against Big South opponents, PC is 10th in points allowed (76.3) and last in field goal-percentage defense (50.0).
The Blue Hose are also at the bottom of the league in rebounding with just 28.5 per game. At 6-foot-5, Murray is the team's tallest starter.
Presbyterian is 6-2 at home this season, although three of the victories came over non-Division I opponents.

UP NEXT

Radford returns to the New River Valley for its only Big South homestand, beginning with a Wednesday night matchup against Campbell.
Tipoff inside the Dedmon Center is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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