Tuesday, December 31
Radford, Va.
2:00 pm
Radford University
3-7 (1-0BSC)
54
vs
42
Presbyterian
4-7 (0-2BSC)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Presbyterian | 6 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 42 |
| Radford | 10 | 10 | 13 | 21 | 54 |
Photo by: Radford Athletics Communications
EXPLOSIVE FOURTH QUARTER PROPELS RADFORD PAST PRESBYTERIAN IN CONFERENCE OPENER
12/31/2019 6:29:00 PM | Women's Basketball
RADFORD, Va.—To win their fourth consecutive Big South Conference opener, the Highlanders played a gritty and grind-it-out game versus The Blue Hose. Multiple defensive stops paired with a combined 28 points from Khiana Johnson and Amele Ngwafang, lifted Radford above Presbyterian, 54-42.
Pace for the Highlanders was key in this matchup, as they garnered 12 points from fastbreak possessions alone. The bench also produced a solid 15 points to the overall effort. In this back-and-forth affair the score changed four times, and the lead seven.
First half scoring for Radford came from four different players, with Johnson and Ngwafang leading the charge with six points each. Contributions from Jen Falconer and Sydney Nunley gave the Highlanders a two-point edge heading into the break. Radford also held the rebounding advantage by a margin of 12.
Coming out of halftime, Tina Lindenfeld drained her signature deep ball to break the tie at 20. Ngwafang took over from there scoring on the following three possessions. Presbyterian put up several points to start the final quarter, but a crucial series of points from Ngwafang and free throws from Bryonna McClean increased the lead to five.
The Highlanders mounted a run to close out the contest beginning with a Johnson fastbreak three-pointer at 3:56. This transition bucket ignited a 17-7 run to end the game. Almost every scoring possession from under four minutes for Radford either ended in free throws or a fastbreak basket. Presbyterian's seventh point came via a split trip to the charity stripe and closed the gap to eight points with only 30 seconds remaining. The Blue Hose fouled in attempt to get the ball back, but Johnson capped off the game going 4-for-4 from the line.
In the second half, the scoring came in waves for the Highlanders from six different players.
STAT OF GAME
In the McGuire era, the Highlanders have now won their fourth consecutive conference opener to make them 4-3 since the 2013-14 season. The all-time series now favors Radford 24-5.
HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHT
Ngwafang and Johnson scored 14 points each, and set the tone for Radford offensively. Ngwafang's near double-double of 14 and nine came over the course of 27 minutes on the hardwood. She added several steals, a block, an assist, while shooting 5-for-6 from the floor and 4-for-9 at the charity stripe. For her second consecutive game posting 14 points, Johnson was an assist machine and served up seven. She got it done from every spot on the floor and even grabbed several boards through 35 minutes.
TWEET OF THE GAME
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
These teams were as equally matched as they could possibly be in every facet. Points in the paint (28) and points off of turnovers (12) were tied for both teams. After starting the game off slower than usual, Radford's offense picked up and shot above 50 percent in the second half. Contrariwise, the electrified Highlander defense kept The Blue Hose under 30 percent shooting on the afternoon.
QUOTABLE
"Today was a hard-fought game and one that we expected," said head coach Mike McGuire. "PC competes hard and is well coached. I am happy for our ladies that we could find a way to win this conference opener. It was not pretty and we have a lot of things to work on and clean up moving forward. This team has a lot of growth in front of them if we will continue to value the day to day work."
UP NEXT
In a doubleheader deal, the women's team will host Charleston Southern on Saturday, Jan. 4th., and tip-off is slated for 2:00 p.m.
FOLLOW RADFORD WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
For more information on the Radford women's basketball team follow @Radford_WBB on Twitter and Instagram or Radford Women's Basketball on Facebook.
Pace for the Highlanders was key in this matchup, as they garnered 12 points from fastbreak possessions alone. The bench also produced a solid 15 points to the overall effort. In this back-and-forth affair the score changed four times, and the lead seven.
First half scoring for Radford came from four different players, with Johnson and Ngwafang leading the charge with six points each. Contributions from Jen Falconer and Sydney Nunley gave the Highlanders a two-point edge heading into the break. Radford also held the rebounding advantage by a margin of 12.
Coming out of halftime, Tina Lindenfeld drained her signature deep ball to break the tie at 20. Ngwafang took over from there scoring on the following three possessions. Presbyterian put up several points to start the final quarter, but a crucial series of points from Ngwafang and free throws from Bryonna McClean increased the lead to five.
The Highlanders mounted a run to close out the contest beginning with a Johnson fastbreak three-pointer at 3:56. This transition bucket ignited a 17-7 run to end the game. Almost every scoring possession from under four minutes for Radford either ended in free throws or a fastbreak basket. Presbyterian's seventh point came via a split trip to the charity stripe and closed the gap to eight points with only 30 seconds remaining. The Blue Hose fouled in attempt to get the ball back, but Johnson capped off the game going 4-for-4 from the line.
In the second half, the scoring came in waves for the Highlanders from six different players.
STAT OF GAME
In the McGuire era, the Highlanders have now won their fourth consecutive conference opener to make them 4-3 since the 2013-14 season. The all-time series now favors Radford 24-5.
HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHT
Ngwafang and Johnson scored 14 points each, and set the tone for Radford offensively. Ngwafang's near double-double of 14 and nine came over the course of 27 minutes on the hardwood. She added several steals, a block, an assist, while shooting 5-for-6 from the floor and 4-for-9 at the charity stripe. For her second consecutive game posting 14 points, Johnson was an assist machine and served up seven. She got it done from every spot on the floor and even grabbed several boards through 35 minutes.
TWEET OF THE GAME
0:44 | 4Q
— Radford Women's Basketball (@Radford_WBB) December 31, 2019
Shake -> Bake -> Bucket.
Radford 50
Presbyterian 41#RiseAndDefend x #BigSouthWBB pic.twitter.com/MVWHGiV3Uu
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
These teams were as equally matched as they could possibly be in every facet. Points in the paint (28) and points off of turnovers (12) were tied for both teams. After starting the game off slower than usual, Radford's offense picked up and shot above 50 percent in the second half. Contrariwise, the electrified Highlander defense kept The Blue Hose under 30 percent shooting on the afternoon.
QUOTABLE
"Today was a hard-fought game and one that we expected," said head coach Mike McGuire. "PC competes hard and is well coached. I am happy for our ladies that we could find a way to win this conference opener. It was not pretty and we have a lot of things to work on and clean up moving forward. This team has a lot of growth in front of them if we will continue to value the day to day work."
UP NEXT
In a doubleheader deal, the women's team will host Charleston Southern on Saturday, Jan. 4th., and tip-off is slated for 2:00 p.m.
FOLLOW RADFORD WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
For more information on the Radford women's basketball team follow @Radford_WBB on Twitter and Instagram or Radford Women's Basketball on Facebook.
Team Stats
PC
RAD
FG%
.276
.386
3FG%
.158
.357
FT%
.583
.625
RB
31
47
TO
12
22
STL
13
4
Game Leaders
Pts
14
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
5
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
6
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's BasketballThursday, April 23
Sunday, April 12
Thursday, April 02
Saturday, March 21
