Men's Basketball 1/14/2018 9:00:00 AM

LIBERTY COMES TO DEDMON FOR COMMONWEALTH SHOWDOWN

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GAME INFORMATION

GAME DAY PROMOTIONS

Radford Athletics and Radford Transit have joined forces once again to bring fans a free and easy-to-use shuttle service from campus to the Dedmon Center. For more information, click here.

SETTING THE STAGE

Monday's game is a matchup between two of the top teams in the Big South. Radford is tied for first at 4-1 while Liberty sits just behind in third at 3-2
Both teams are hoping to bounce back from Friday night losses. The Highlanders fell, 59-54, to Gardner-Webb while the Flames dropped a 58-51 contest to Longwood
Winter break ends and classes begin for Radford students on the 16^th, so Highlander Nation should be in full effect at the Dedmon Center Monday night

SERIES HISTORY

Radford holds a 38-33 advantage in the all-time series with Liberty
On Jan. 16, 1992 Radford and Liberty met for the first time as Big South foes, with the Highlanders earning a tight 76-74 victory at home. Radford is 26-8 all-time in the Dedmon Center against the Flames
Last season, Radford dropped both regular season games to Liberty, but got revenge with a 56-52 victory in the first round of the Big South Tournament

HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Record: 11-7 (4-1 Big South) | RPI: 110
The Highlanders are a perfect 5-0 in front of the home crowd in the Dedmon Center this season
Radford's Friday night contest at Gardner-Webb marked the 50^th career game played for senior Christian Bradford, sophomore Donald Hicks and senior Randy Phillips
Despite the loss against the Runnin' Bulldogs, it was one of Radford's best defensive performances of the season. The Highlanders forced 20+ turnovers for the first time since Feb. 14, 2015 at Presbyterian
Hicks recorded a career-high three steals in the game after entering with only three the entire rest of the season combined
Junior forward Ed Polite Jr. is averaging a team-leading 20.0 points on 56% shooting, 10.4 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game since conference play began
Sharpshooting guard Caleb Tanner has hit at least one 3-pointer in 16 of 18 games this season including multiple threes in 14 of those games. He has also hit 10 straight free throws dating back to the Virginia Tech game on Dec. 6, 2017
The Highlanders rank third in the Big South in scoring defense with 67.0 points allowed per game. Opponents have averaged only 60.0 points per game over Radford's last two contests
Radford also ranks third in the Big South for rebounding margin at +3.4 rebounds per game

SCOUTING THE FLAMES

Record: 12-6 (3-2 Big South) | RPI: 264
Currently in his fifth year at Liberty, head coach Ritchie McKay holds an 85-67 record including a 4-5 record vs. Radford
Liberty was picked to finish third in the Big South preseason poll, garnering one first-place vote and placing just three points (244-241) behind Winthrop for second
Out of 10 teams in the Big South, Liberty is the only one to own a winning record on the road (3-1) this season
The Flames bring the sixth-best scoring defense in the nation, allowing only 60.4 points per game
Liberty also ranks seventh in the nation for free throw percentage, shooting 78.7-percent from the charity stripe as a team
Junior guard Lovell Cabill leads the Flames in several categories including points per game (12.4), assists (54) and steals (27)
Redshirt sophomore Scottie James leads the Big South and ranks 41^st in the country with 9.2 rebounds per game
Redshirt senior Ryan Kemrite was tabbed as a preseason All-Big South second team selection, but has posted modest numbers at 9.0 points and 3.2 rebounds per game