RADFORD BEGINS BIG SOUTH TOURNEY THURSDAY VS. PRESBYTERIAN

Follow @RadfordMBB

RADFORD, Va. – After an up and down regular season, Radford looks to put it all together as the Big South Men's Basketball Championship begins on Thursday. The seventh-seeded Highlanders take No. 10 Presbyterian at 4:30 p.m. in Buies Creek, N.C.

The winner moves on to face No. 2 seed Winthrop in the quarterfinals Friday evening. The Highlanders (16-14) suffered a disappointing defeat in their regular-season finale, but have been good at bouncing back all season, going 11-2 in games following a loss.

SETTING THE STAGE

Series: Radford leads 10-6
Location: Gore Arena (Buies Creek, N.C.)
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Live Stats
Live Video
Live Audio
Game Notes: Radford | Presbyterian

LAST MEETING
In the teams' only matchup during the regular season, Presbyterian came away with a 69-68 victory on its home floor after a back and forth battle on Jan. 16. Radford rallied from an eight-point deficit early in the second half, but the Blue Hose shot 54 percent in the second half and regained the lead for good 63-60 on a 3-pointer with 2:15 left. Rashun Davis made two 3-pointers in the final 1:30 to give the Highlanders a chance, but his desperation attempt at the buzzer didn't go.

Radford connected on 7 of 14 3-pointers in the second half, but shot just 42 percent from the field in the game while making only 11 of 23 free-throw attempts. The Highlanders did capitalize on 14 PC turnovers to score 22 points. Davis finished with 15 points, while Ed Polite, Jr. totaled 15 points and 12 rebounds and Cameron Jones added 14 points, including four 3-pointers.

Presbyterian shot 50 percent in the game and totaled 36 points in the paint. DeSean Murray tallied 22 points and eight rebounds despite battling foul trouble, but did not score in the game's last 15 minutes. Markus Terry added 15 points and Reggie Dillard had 10.

HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS
Rashun Davis finished the regular season first in the Big South in assists at 4.8 per game, tied for third in steals (1.9) and ninth in scoring (14.0). His season total of 145 assists is the sixth-most by a Highlander. Along with ranking third in program history (and 19th in the Big South) with 453 assists, he stands tied for seventh in steals (167) and 12th in scoring (1,289). He needs 25 points to move into the top 10.

Cameron Jones scored in double figures in each of the last 13 regular season games, averaging 18.6 ppg during that span while shooting 49.5 percent from the field and 41.6 percent from beyond the arc. Jones tied for seventh in the Big South with 14.8 ppg for the season and 16.7 in conference play. His 73 3-pointers were fifth-most in the league and his 40.2 percentage against Big South foes was third.

Ed Polite, Jr. completed his first collegiate regular season tied for second in the Big South in rebounding at 7.4 per game and was second alone during conference play at 8.2. He also shared second in blocks (1.8) and offensive rebounds (3.2) per contest. Polite, Jr. recorded double-digit rebounds eight times and pulled down at least six boards in 17 of the 18 conference games.

Justin Cousin's seven made 3-pointers during Saturday's game against Longwood were the most by a Highlander since March 19, 2014. His previous career high for long-range shots in a game was two. Cousin equaled his career-best scoring effort (12) in the first half alone and doubled it by the end of the game.

Brandon Holcomb now has 146 career blocks to rank 18th in Big South history. He closed out the regular season by making 27 of his last 37 field-goal attempts (72.9 percent) over the last eight games.

Radford played just two neutral-site games during the regular season, splitting a pair of 2K Classic games hosted by Bryant University way back in November. The Highlanders were 8-8 away from home overall, winning four of their last five.

SCOUTING PRESBYTERIAN
After dropping its finale to High Point on Saturday, Presbyterian (10-19) finished in the four-way tie for eighth in the conference. The Blue Hose had suffered eight straight losses before winning back-to-back road games at Liberty (79-73) and Longwood (74-73).

All-Big South First Team selection DeSean Murray finished as the conference's top scorer at 20.4 ppg overall and 20.1 in league play. He also shared second in rebounding at 7.4 per game, tied for third in steals (1.9) and was fourth in field-goal percentage (54.9). Murray tallied 28 points in the victory over Liberty and followed up with a career-high 34 against Longwood. He finished with 16 vs. High Point. In the game against Radford, he shot 8 of 18 from the field and 6 of 8 at the free-throw line.

Murray's supporting cast in the starting lineup has changed since the teams met. Senior Janiel Jenkins and junior Will Adams have taken over spots in the backcourt over the last nine games. Jenkins, who did not play at all on Jan. 16, is averaging 5.3 ppg in 20 games, but reached double figures three times in the last eight contests, including 16 against UNC Asheville and 15 vs. Coastal Carolina. Adams is at just 3.7 ppg for the season and was scoreless in nine minutes against RU, but tallied 10 each in the wins at Liberty and Longwood.

Reggie Dillard (8.4 ppg) has remained in the starting lineup, but Markus Terry (8.1 ppg) is now coming off the bench. Terry is averaging 15.0 ppg in five previous games against RU, while shooting 58.5 percent from the field. Ed Drew, the other starter, is second on the team with 4.5 rebounds per game, along with scoring 6.7 points. Eight of Blue Hose's last 12 games were decided by single digits, including five within one possession.

For the latest on Radford Athletics, please subscribe to our weekly newsletter, Highlander Happenings.

Print Friendly Version