JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – It was one heck of a fight.
And one heck of a season.
And even if the result wasn't what the Radford men's basketball team had in mind, there is no question the fight and determination in this special group of student-athletes that head coach
Darris Nichols and staff assembled for this campaign.
In the end, despite another valiant effort and a fight to the final whistle, the Highlanders found themselves on the wrong side of an instant classic in a 76-73 defeat at the hands of No. 1 seed High Point in the Big South Semifinals inside the Freedom Hall Civic Center on Saturday afternoon.
The game was decided in the closing minutes as after a close to even first half, High Point jumped out to a 10-point lead at 61-51 with 10:24 left and kept it at 70-60 with 6:37 to go.
The Highlanders weren't going to let their season end without a fight, however. Radford continued to chip away and went on a 7-0 run to make it a 70-67 contest with 4:37 left on the clock.
The Panthers hit a bucket to extend their advantage to 72-67 with three minutes left, but the Highlanders continued to battle and pulled within one at 72-71 with just over two minutes left.
Free throws would push the High Point lead to 74-71, but a Radford layup made it a one-point game once again at 74-73 with just nine seconds left.
The Panthers converted once again on their two free throw chances and a final Radford attempt would be to no avail as High Point escaped with the 76-73 win.
THE FACTS
FINAL SCORE: Radford – 73, High Point – 76
LOCATION: Freedom Hall Civic Center (Johnson City, Tennessee)
RECORDS: RU 20-13 (9-7 Big South), High Point 28-5 (14-2 Big South)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Like it was going to end any other way, it was another complete team attack for Radford as the Highlanders finished with four student-athletes in double figures in points.
- Both
Truth Harris and
Jarvis Moss paced the squad with 15 points apiece, respectively.
- Harris added two rebounds and an assist while Moss chipped in three boards, one helper and a steal.
- Moss had an extremely efficient day with marks of 6-of-8 from the field (.750) and 3-of-5 from three (.600).
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David Early continued his strong stretch of play with 14 points, five assists and one rebound. He truly saved his best for last with an average of 15 points per contest over his last five games played. Early went 5-of-9 from the floor (.555) and 4-of-5 at the charity stripe (.800) in this one.
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Josiah Harris was the fourth Highlander in double digits with 12 points and five boards. He knocked down 6-of-8 of his attempts overall (.750).
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TJ NeSmith posted eight points and tied Harris for the team-lead with five rebounds. He was perfect from the field (3-of-3) and near perfect at the free throw line (2-of-3).
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Ibu Yamazaki (five points) and
Brandon Maclin (two points, two assists, one board, one swipe) rounded out the stat sheet for Radford.
- The instant classic featured six times the game was tied and eight lead changes.
- Radford was a force down low with 36 points in the paint.
- The Highlanders shot a blistering 57.1 percent as a team overall (28-of-49).
A SPECIAL GROUP IN THAT LOCKER ROOM
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