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Josiah Jeffers

Men's Basketball

RADFORD WELCOMES CHARLESTON SOUTHERN TO THE DEDMON CENTER THURSDAY NIGHT


 
RADFORD, Va. – The Radford men's basketball team welcomes Charleston Southern to the Dedmon Center on Thursday night with a chance to go 7-0 in Big South play for the first time in program history.
 
SETTING THE STAGE
Opponent: Charleston Southern Buccaneers (7-10, 1-3 Big South)
Date/Time: Thursday, January 24 at 7 p.m.
Location: Dedmon Center (Radford, Va.)
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LAST TIME OUT
A balanced scoring attack and lockdown defense for the entire second half helped the Radford men's basketball earn a key 72-59 victory against Longwood at Willett Hall on Monday.
 
Redshirt sophomore guard Carlik Jones was a man possessed, scoring 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting and five rebounds. Senior forward Ed Polite Jr. went for 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks while senior guard Caleb Tanner hit three 3-pointers and a free throw for 10 points.
 
A 50-percent (13-for-26) shooting performance and only 25 points allowed in the second half lifted the Highlanders to a 14-6 record including a 6-0 mark in Big South play for the first time since the 1999-2000 season.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Another one of Radford's oldest rivals, the Highlanders own a 46-28 record across 74 all-time meetings with Charleston Southern.
 
The two sides have split the season series in back-to-back years including the 2017-18 season in which Radford earned a nail-biting 64-61 win in Charleston before dropping an 84-81 overtime contest in the Dedmon Center.
 
RETURN OF THE STUDENTS
Classes are back in session at Radford University which means students are back on campus! The last time the student body was able to attend a game before Winter Break began was on Monday, Nov. 26 against Glenville State so all of Highlander Nation is excited to see the Dedmon Center packed again on Thursday night.
 
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior forward Ed Polite Jr. was named Big South Player of the Week for the second time in his career on Monday. The Lanham, Md. native and Duval High School product was near the top of the charts in nearly every statistical category last week, averaging 33.5 minutes, 17.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 blocks and 1.0 steal per game all while shooting a combined 76.2-percent (16-for-21).
 
COACH JONES' MILESTONE WIN
With Monday night's win over Longwood, Radford head coach Mike Jones earned his 130th career win. Now in his eighth season leading the Highlanders, Jones has accumulated a record of 130-122 and has the third-most wins in program history behind only Ron Bradley (193) and Joe Davis (165).
 
IN EXCLUSIVE COMPANY
At 6-0 in Big South play, Radford is one of just 28 teams left in the nation still undefeated in conference play. With teams like Virginia, Virginia Tech, VCU, JMU and Richmond all in the loss column, the only teams left in the Commonwealth without a conference defeat are Radford, Liberty (6-0, A-SUN) and Norfolk State (6-0, MEAC).
 
SCOUTING THE BUCCANEERS
Charleston Southern is off to a slow start in conference play this season, dropping two one-point games as part of a 1-3 record. The Big South Preseason Poll tabbed the Bucs to finish fifth out of 11 teams after they went 9-9 against league competition a season ago.
 
Preseason All-Big South selection Christian Keeling has lived up to his lofty expectations, leading the team in points per game (18.5), rebounds per game (6.4), assists (62), steals (23) and blocks (11). The junior guard is one of only 19 players in the nation to have recorded a triple-double this season and he ranks in the top 100 in the country in both points per game and total field goal attempts.
 
As a team, the Buccaneers have proven to be very strong defensively thanks in large part to their propensity to force turnovers. Nationally, they rank second in turnovers forced per game (19.88), fifth in turnover margin (5.3) and 13th in steals per game (9.1). They're also a strong rebounding squad, pulling down 14.88 offensive rebounds per game which ranks fourth in the country.
 
UP NEXT
The Highlanders have Saturday off while the rest of the Big South plays so they'll be well rested when they welcome the Campbell Camels to the Dedmon Center on Wednesday, Jan. 30. The game is set for a 7 p.m. tip and it will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Tickets can be purchased on RadfordTickets.com or by calling the Radford Ticket Office at (540) 831-7889 during business hours.
 
FOLLOW RADFORD MEN'S BASKETBALL
To follow the Radford men's basketball team, visit RadfordAthletics.com, follow @RadfordMBB on Twitter, 'radfordmbb' on Instagram or Radford Men's Basketball on Facebook.
 
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Players Mentioned

Carlik Jones

#1 Carlik Jones

G
6' 1"
Redshirt Sophomore
Caleb Tanner

#10 Caleb Tanner

G
6' 1"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Carlik Jones

#1 Carlik Jones

6' 1"
Redshirt Sophomore
G
Caleb Tanner

#10 Caleb Tanner

6' 1"
Senior
G