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Ed Polite, Jr.
Red Rocket Productions & Photography
59
Radford RAD 0-1
80
Winner Wake Forest WF 1-0
Radford RAD
0-1
59
Final
80
Wake Forest WF
1-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Radford RAD 28 31 59
Wake Forest WF 36 44 80

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

WAKE FOREST TOO MUCH FOR RADFORD IN SEASON OPENER



Box Score (PDF)

GAME INFORMATION
  • Score: Wake Forest 80, Radford 59
  • Records: Radford (0-1) | Wake Forest (1-0)
  • Location: Lawrence Joel Coliseum | Winston-Salem, N.C.
 
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The new-look Radford men's basketball team hung tough with ACC member Wake Forest into the second half of Friday night's season opener, but the Demon Deacons were able to pull away down the stretch for an 80-59 victory.
 
Radford was within eight at halftime and it was still only a 13-point deficit with 12 minutes to play, but Wake Forest's 63 percent shooting in the second half, largely due to its size advantage, was too much for the Highlanders to overcome.
 
Radford got off to cold start in the game on its two-point attempts, but made three 3-pointers among its first four baskets. Still, Wake Forest was able to build a 22-11 lead with 6:28 left in the opening half half. The deficit was still 11 before the Highlanders used an 11-6 spurt to close within six. Ed Polite, Jr. converted a layup inside, Caleb Tanner hit the fourth 3-pointer of the half and made two free throws and Devonnte Holland's follow basket made it 32-26 at the 2:11 mark. The Demon Deacons capped the scoring in the half with two free throws for the eight-point margin.
 
Wake Forest opened the second half by making five of its first seven shots in the first 3:35 to open up the lead to 47-32. After a Radford timeout, the Highlanders responded with a 3-pointer by Justin Cousin, a jumper by Devin Cooper and a layup by Polite, Jr to get back within 10. With the score 56-43, Radford had a couple of fast-break opportunities to get closer, but was unable to convert and Demon Deacons went on a 7-1 spurt to give them their biggest lead to that point at 63-44.
 
Radford will now prepare for its home opener on Wednesday night as it faces Central Penn for a 7 p.m. tip inside the Dedmon Center.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
  • Ed Polite, Jr. tallied team-highs of 11 points and eight rebounds, while hitting 5 of 12 shots, including his first career 3-pointer. He also chipped in three assists.
  • Freshman Devonnte Holland enjoyed a strong debut with eight points on 4 of 4 from the field, along with six rebounds and two steals.
  • In all, five first-year Highlanders combined for 28 points and 16 rebounds in the game. Christian Bradford added six points, while Donald Hicks had three points and five rebounds and Randy Phillips had three points, four rebounds and two blocks.
  • Returners Caleb Tanner and Christian Lutete each scored nine points, combining with the newcomers to provide 35 points off the bench.
  • Six different Radford players made 3-pointers, but it finished just 6 of 24 from behind the arc in the game, while shooting 36 percent from the field overall.
  • The Highlanders hung with the bigger Demon Deacons on the glass, trailing just 43-39, and also finished with a 19-11 advantage in second-chance points.
  • However, Wake Forest power forward John Collins was tough to handle inside, tallying game-highs of 18 points and 12 rebounds. He was 5 of 6 from the field for 12 points in the second half.
  • Overall, the Demon Deacons had a 48-34 advantage in the paint, while also recording 10 blocked shots.
  • Radford had just two more turnovers than Wake, but the Deacons took better advantage with a 23-8 margin in points off of them.
 
QUOTABLE
  • "I thought we played hard enough to win the game for the majority. Early on, I thought we came out with the right intensity, but as the game wore on I thought their size really affected us. It's almost like being a heavyweight boxer and getting those body blows all game long and eventually it takes a toll on you. I thought we got a little tired and they really started to improse their will in the paint. We did a good job on that in the first half and the second half it just got away from us." ~ Radford head coach Mike Jones
 
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