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Highlanders begin 2009 Big South title defense
Associated Press,
03-03-2010
RADFORD – Radford begins defense of its 2009 league tournament title when the second-seeded Highlanders host seventh-seeded Charleston Southern in quarterfinal round action of the Advance Auto Parts Big South Tournament on Tuesday night at the Dedmon Center.
If Radford advances past the quarterfinals, tournament action will continue for the Highlanders at Coastal Carolina’s Kimbel Arena on Thursday night with a 6 p.m. contest against the winner of the No. 3 Winthrop-No. 6 Liberty matchup. Both Big South semifinal games can be seen nationally on ESPNU.
For the second straight year and third since the current tournament format began in 2003, the Highlanders are hosting a quarterfinal game. Radford is 1-1 in the Dedmon Center in Big South quarterfinal matchups, including an 82-58 win over High Point last year.
Radford, which has made six championship game appearances, is 21-22 all-time in Big South tournament games. Against Charleston Southern, the Highlanders are 5-3 in tournament play. The Buccaneers are 22-19 in conference tournament games with four titles, and an NCAA Tournament bid in 1997.
Entering tournament play, the Highlanders are coming off their finest month of the season with a 7-1 mark in February games. On the way to wrapping up the No. 2 seed in the Big South tournament, Radford shot better than 50 percent in four of the last seven games, while holding opponents under the 40 percent mark in five of the seven February contests.
In contrast, Charleston Southern went 3-5 in the month of February, and enters the tournament with a 2-3 record in the last five games.
Radford and Charleston Southern split the season series, with each grabbing a win on its home floor. In the first meeting, Jamarco Warren scored 18 of his game-high 21 points in the second half to lead the Buccaneers to a 70-55 win on Jan. 16.
Charleston Southern, which shot 53.3 percent (8-for-15) from 3-point range and missed just one of its 17 tries from the free throw line, held the Highlanders to 32.8 percent (21-for-64) from the floor and 5 of 24 from deep. At the Dedmon Center on Feb. 11, the Buccaneers scored on each of their last five possessions of regulation to force overtime, but the Highlanders held them scoreless in the extra period to grab a 61-58 win. Joey Lynch-Flohr (Fairfax, Va./Fairfax) paced Radford with his 24 points, and netted the Highlanders’ only overtime field goal.
Radford had four players selected to the postseason all-conference team: Big South Player of the Year and first teamer Art Parakhouski (Minsk, Belarus), Lynch-Flohr on the second team, all-freshman Blake Smith (Charlotte, N.C./United Faith Christian) and Scholar Athlete of the Year Phillip Martin (Roanoke, Va./Roanoke Catholic). Charleston Southern had Warren on the first team, and Freshman of the Year Jeremy Sexton.
