RADFORD, Va. – In a game that featured two of the Big South Conference's best, the Radford men's basketball program was tripped up by visiting High Point, 78-75 in a hard-fought battle that lived up to the billing inside the Dedmon Center on Wednesday night.

The Panthers jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead, but the charge was answered right away by the Highlanders, who took a 11-10 edge with 16:11 left to go in the first. The two sides were tied at 15-15 with 13:29 on the clock when Radford went on a 11-4 run to take its largest lead of the contest with a 26-19 advantage with eight minutes remaining in the first. 

High Point was down for the battle however, as the Panthers responded with a 16-6 run of their own to take a 36-32 lead into the locker room at the half.

Radford tied the game once against at 38-38 with 17:43 to play, but once again High Point doubled up the Highlanders with a 18-9 run to take a nine-point advantage at 56-47 with 11:30 left. 

The Highlanders weren't going down without a fight though as they made it a four-point game at the 10:08, 9:19, 8:05, 7:23 and 6:38 marks of the final period. Radford would get it as close as a two-point game at 4:23 (67-65), 3:04 (69-67) and once again at 2:12 (71-69), but the squad just ran out of time as High Point escaped with the 78-75 victory.
 
THE FACTS
FINAL SCORE: Radford – 75, High Point – 78
LOCATION: Dedmon Center (Radford, Virginia)
RECORDS: RU 15-10 (5-5 Big South), HPU 20-5 (8-2 Big South)
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Jarvis Moss had a huge outing with 21 points on a very efficient night from the field. He shot 5-of-9 overall (.555), which included a mark of 4-of-8 from three (.500). Moss also knocked down seven of his eight chances at the charity stripe (.875). It was his 15th game so far this season with double figures in points and his sixth 20-plus point effort overall.
- Brandon Maclin added a strong night of his own with 17 points and three rebounds. It was his 10th contest of the season with double digits in points. The standout from Jackson, Tennessee is now averaging 17.6 points per game over his last three contests.
- Both Moss and Maclin tied for the game-high with four assists.
- TJ NeSmith (one board, one block) and David Early (one rebound, one helper) chipped in nine points apiece, respectively.
- NeSmith was also perfect on the evening as he shot at a 4-of-4 clip from the floor (1.000) and 1-of-1 at the free throw line (1.000).
- Truth Harris added seven points, three assists and one board.
- Isaiah Gaines led the Highlanders in both blocks (two) and rebounds (five) to go with five points and one helper.
- Josiah Harris (four points, four boards, one swipe) and Zion Walker (three points, two rebounds, one assist) rounded out the night for Radford. 
- The Highlanders shot the ball well with averages of 47.1 percent from the floor (24-of-51) and 42.9 percent from beyond the arc (9-of-21).
- Radford also notched 30 points in the paint, 21 bench points and 14 points off turnovers.
- The conference clash featured four lead changes and four times the contest was tied overall.
 
NEXT UP
The Highlanders return to life on the road for the next two games, with the slate getting underway at Longwood on Saturday, February 8. Tip is set for 3 PM ET inside the Joan Perry Brock Center. Fans and supporters can watch the action nationwide on ESPN+ and the conference clash can also be heard anywhere in the nation on WRAD.

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