Radford Rad 4-6,0-0 Big South

Furman Furman 7-6,0-0 SoCon

Radford Rad

4-6,0-0 Big South

Final

Dec. 18, 2022

Furman Furman

7-6,0-0 SoCon

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	3	4	OT 1	F
Radford Rad	14	21	17	9	6	67
Furman Furman	23	10	16	12	14	75

Summary
Box Score

Rob Simmons

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | 12/18/2022 4:52:00 PM

Radford Falls in Thrilling Overtime Game at Furman

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Radford women's basketball program came up just short in a thrilling overtime battle at Furman Sunday afternoon with a final score of 75-67. Radford had three players hit double figure scoring led by Vanessa Blake continuing to excel with 15 more points today.

To start the game Furman, seemed to have complete control over the afternoon thanks to a friendly rim and some skillful shots that allowed the Paladins to race out to a 23-14 lead by the end of the first quarter. As Radford would do all game, five different players got on the score sheet in the first 10 minutes as the Highlanders tried to keep pace.

The second quarter was a completely different story as the defense flipped the script and held the Paladins to just 10 points in the quarter. Radford turned on the heat, scoring 21 to pull all the way ahead of Furman to take a lead into halftime.

After no made shots from the floor through the first five minutes of the quarter, it was Vanessa Blake who broke the cold streak by converting a three-point play with an and-one. Ashlyn Traylor followed that with a steal and converting a fast break layup to suddenly put Radford within four. Olivia Wagner then stepped up and nailed a huge three-pointer to pull Radford within one.

Furman would use three free throws to pull back ahead by four. The Radford freshman duo of Wagner and Maci Rhoades finally broke the Furman lead as the pair hit back-to-back three-pointers to give Radford a 32-30 lead. Makaila Brown got in on the scoring fun with her first points of the season to push Radford further ahead.

At the halftime break, it was 38-33 Radford. Coming out of the break Radford would get five straight points from Ashley Panem and Traylor to get their biggest lead of the day at 40-33. The Paladins refused to go away, using a 10-2 run to pull back ahead in the match. Radford returned the favor, not backing down to hold a 52-49 lead at the end of the third.

Set up for an exciting finish, the fourth quarter delivered. Blake and Rachel LaLonde traded layups to keep the offense firing, but Furman was right there with an answer every time to retake a slim lead. Furman would lead by as much as five with five minutes to go, but Rhoades hit a huge three to pull back within two points at 61-59.

With just 30 seconds remaining, trailing by two, and desperately needing a basket after a flurry of defensive stops, Blake had the huge and-one basket to tie the game. Her free throw rimmed out and gave Furman the ball with a chance to win.

Furman's top scorer Jaelyn Acker, a 90% free throw shooter, drew the foul and headed to the line with a chance to win. Both of her free throws were off-target, and suddenly it was Radford with a chance to win. Ashlyn Traylor got the look she wanted, but the shot fell just short off the rim and sent the two squads to overtime.

Facing their first overtime since February of 2021, Radford was in new territory with its young roster. Furman would hit every shot they took except for missing just one free throw which allowed the Paladins to pull away on their turf. LaLonde, Traylor and Blake all added overtime baskets to the comeback effort, before falling short in a 75-67 final.

BREAKOUT FOR RHOADES
The freshman Rhoades had another big performance today, but for those closely following the box scores it's no surprise. The 11 points today were a career-high for Rhoades beating her previous best of eight points earlier this week against Queens. While the box score today credited Rhoades with just two steals, her impact on the defensive end has also been incredible this week as she forced opponents into miscues and disrupted multiple set plays.

FIRST OVERTIME GAME SINCE…
Today marked the first time Radford women's basketball competed in overtime since all the way back against Winthrop in February of 2021. Radford fell in that game 59-63. The Highlanders last won in overtime on the road against High Point during their Big South Championship run in February 2019.

UP NEXT
The Highlanders' will close out their three-game road trip and the nonconference portion of their schedule when they play Clemson on Tuesday with tip set for 1 p.m.

Follow Women's Basketball on Social Media
For more information on the Radford women's basketball team, follow @Radford_WBB on Twitter and Instagram or Radford Women's Basketball on Facebook.

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