Men's Basketball 12/28/2019 3:03:00 PM

RADFORD HOSTS CENTRAL PENN FOR FINAL NON-CONFERENCE GAME

RADFORD, Va. – The Radford men's basketball team will host Central Penn for its final non-conference game of the 2019-20 season on Sunday inside the Dedmon Center at 4 p.m.

A week ago, the Highlanders notched a big win over A-10 foe Richmond in Washington, D.C., as part of the D.C. Holiday Hoops Fest. Cle'von Greene shot lights out with a career-high 19 points and a perfect 4-for-4 performance from beyond the arc. The Highlanders held the Spiders to 36.4 percent from the floor and 29.2 percent from 3-point land. Richmond was also held to 21 points lower than their average points per game (79.4).

The Highlanders will return to the Dedmon Center after nearly two weeks away from home. Radford is 2-1 in the NRV this year and has scored over 90 points twice as well as held the three opponents to an average of 57.0 points.

Not go to unnoticed was Carlik Jones double-double against Richmond that helped him become Big South Player of the Week for the third time this season. Jones was very close to averaging a double-double through two games last week as the redshirt junior averaged 14.5 points and 9.0 assists for the pair of contests against Mississippi State and Richmond.

The Cincinnati, Ohio native tallied seven assists against Mississippi State and 11 against Richmond. The 11 assists tied a career-high and were four shy of tying a single-game Radford record. More notably was the way Jones shot from the charity stripe. He went 12-for-14 from the free throw line, including an 8-for-8 day against Richmond on Sunday.

Jones is averaging 19.1 points and 5.2 assists per contest, both ranking second in the Big South. Jones has scored 10 or more points in 10 of the 11 games played this year and has led the Highlanders in scoring for eight of them.

The team's second leading scorer is Travis Fields, Jr., averaging 11.1 points per game. He ranks inside the Big South's top-20 scoring leaders and had an outstanding game against Richmond last week. The senior tallied a season-high 17 points and brought down five rebounds. He knocked down three 3-pointers and went 6-for-8 from the free throw line.

Central Penn is based in Summerdale, Penn., and competes in the U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA Division II). The Knights enter the contest with a 7-3 record and have competed against two NCAA Division I opponents. The first was against Morgan State and the second came against Campbell. Morgan State defeated Central Penn, 71-44, while the Fighting Camels won 101-47.

The Knights have won five straight and their last loss coming on Nov. 19th at Washington Adventist. Central Penn is averaging 74.7 points per game and is led by Marqel Wansley, one of four players averaging double-figure points per outing. He is averaging 17.2 points per game and is shooting 50 percent from the floor. Noah Baylor is the only player averaging a double-double for the Knights. The 6-8 senior forward has 14.7 points and 12.4 rebounds per game.

Sunday marks the first meeting between Radford and Central Penn since 2016. The Highlanders and Knights have met six times overall with every meeting being played inside the Dedmon Center. Radford is averaging 102.8 points per game in the series and its biggest win came in 2015, 123-63.

The game can be seen on ESPN+ or heard live online through Stretch Internet or radio outlets, WRAD 101.7 FM and WVRU 89.9 FM.

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