RADFORD, VMI RENEW RIVALRY WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT DEDMON

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SETTING THE STAGE

Radford is back at home for the first time in two weeks Wednesday night as it welcomes Commonwealth and former Big South rival VMI to the Dedmon Center for a 7 p.m. tipoff.
The teams are meeting for the first time since the Keydets left the Big South two years ago. VMI holds a slim 21-20 edge in the all-time series, having won the last two games as conference foes.
Radford is 11-7 in home matchups, but the Keydets have come away with victories in their last four visits.
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HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Record: 2-4
After a rough start to its four-game road trip, Radford played well in back-to-back games last weekend in Savannah, defeating Stetson in overtime, before falling short by a single point to Georgia Southern.
The two games marked the first time this season in which Radford had the same starting lineup.
Ed Polite, Jr. totaled 26 points and 24 rebounds in the two games and was named to the All-Tournament Team.
Polite, Jr. has had at least eight boards in all five of his games and is averaging a conference-best 9.6 per game, while ranking second with 21 offensive rebounds. He also leads the team in steals.
Radford has had balanced scoring early in the season with 10 players averaging between 5.2 and 9.5 points per game. Five different Highlanders have posted team-highs in the first six games.
Caleb Tanner still leads with 9.5 ppg, followed by Polite, Jr. (9.2), Christian Bradford (7.5) and Donald Hicks (7.3). Hicks is shooting a team-best 44 percent from 3-point range.
Junior transfers Bradford and Randy Phillips are coming off career-high games, with 15 and 12 points, respectively. In the Stetson win, Bradford dished out a season-best six assists, while Phillips grabbed a season-high 12 rebounds.
Bradford has nine assists in two starts since replacing injured point guard Devin Cooper.
Radford is second among Big South teams with 38.5 rebounds per game and a +4.3 rebounding margin.

SCOUTING VMI

Record: 1-4
VMI has dropped three straight games all by double-digits, capped by a 67-53 home loss to Campbell on Saturday. That followed road setbacks at Virginia Tech (by 16) and Presbyterian (by 10).
The Keydets' lone victory was over Southern Virginia, while the other loss was a three-point defeat at Richmond in its opener.
Senior guard QJ Peterson, an All-Southern Conference First Team member last season, leads the team with 21.0 ppg this season, including 29 in the loss to the Hokies.
Peterson is shooting 37 percent from the field and 34 percent (15 of 44) from 3-point range, while also leading the team with 2.8 assists per game and sharing top honors with 6.6 rebounds per contest.
Peterson scored 20 and 9 points, respectively, in two games against Radford as a freshman in 2014.
Fellow senior guard Julian Eleby is also scoring in double figures at 13.4 ppg, hitting on 13 of 36 attempts behind the arc.
Senior forward Trey Chapman is tied with Peterson at 6.6 rebounds per game, while contributing 8.2 points.
Under second-year coach Dan Earl, who played point guard at Penn State, the Keydets have transitioned to a slower-paced more defensive style of play, averaging 67.8 ppg, while allowing 70.2.

UP NEXT

Radford makes its first-ever trip to Chapel Hill, N.C., on Sunday to take on third-ranked North Carolina for the second time in program history.
The 2 p.m. game will be broadcast on Raycom/Fox Sports South.

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