Radford University was told it could not be done. When they were picked to finish seventh in the Big South preseason poll, when they sat in first place two months into the season and when they earned the second seed in the Big South Championship, they were still told it could not be done. Sunday, Radford became the Big South champion and will be dancing in the NCAA Tournament.
With 13 seconds left in regulation and the game knotted at 52, redshirt freshman guard Carlik Jones received the inbound pass. He dribbled to his left across the top of the key and pulled up to drill a game-winning 3-pointer as the clock hit zero, punching Radford’s ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nine years with a 55-52 victory over fifth-seeded Liberty.
Coach Mike Jones said when he woke up Sunday morning he was completely at peace and told his team no matter the outcome, they’re already winners because of the type of people they are.
“That’s why our team has come together this year because they are great young men and they connected on a team level. You could see the connection and I’m just really happy for them because now they are united as champions for the rest of their lives. The game itself was a lot of fun. It seems like every game is like that and we are most comfortable with one possession games. Our guys had tremendous poise today, they executed down the stretch on both ends of the floors and I’m just extremely happy for them,” he said.
It was a heavyweight battle between two of the top defensive teams in the nation. The Highlanders shot only 36.2-percent (17-for-47) while the Flames knocked down 43.9-percent (18-for-41) of their shots, but they’ve beat the odds before.
Radford weathered an eight-minute stretch from the 9:45 mark to the 1:38 mark in the second half in which it did not hit a field goal, but Liberty was held without a field goal for the final 2:47 of the contest when it mattered the most.
Four perfect trips to the free throw line by Jones, senior center Randy Phillips, and junior forward Ed Polite Jr., kept the Highlanders close in the games’ final minutes, paving the way for Jones’ historic shot. The Cincinnati, Ohio native finished with 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting, five rebounds and matched his career high with six assists.
Sophomore guard Travis Fields Jr., was crucial in the victory as well, going a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc to provide 12 points in a game where points were hard to come by. Sophomore center Devonnte Holland scored all 11 of his points in the first half, going 5-for-6 in the paint.
Polite Jr., struggled from the floor, making only two of his nine attempts, but he finished with 11 points thanks to seven free throws.
Redshirt sophomore forward Scottie James and junior guard Lovell Cabbil were an unbelievable one-two punch for Liberty. James posted a monster double-double of 20 points and 13 rebounds. He went 8-for-10 from the floor and added three blocks. Cabbil poured in 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting to go along with his seven assists.
As was the theme with Radford’s entire tournament run, free throws proved to be a vital key to success. The Highlanders went 16-for-20 from the charity stripe, earning twice as many trips to the line as the Flames went 10-for-10. Depth was also a massive advantage for the Highlanders as their bench scored 25 points compared to 11 for the Flames.
Radford earned the right to host the championship game after top seeded UNC Asheville was upset in semifinal action on Friday night, marking the first time the Highlanders had hosted the title game since its last tournament championship in 2009. That game happened to be the last time two Virginia intuitions played for the championship as Radford came out victorious 108-94 over VMI
The victory gives Radford 22 wins on the year, tying for the most in program history.
Jones was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player and joined Polite on the all-tournament team.
Jones finished with a team-high 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting with his only made 3-pointer coming as the game winner. The Tournament MVP dished out six assists, matching his season high for the fourth time on the season. Jones’ last six-assist game came in the Feb. 22 win at Liberty. Jones finished with a tournament average of 14.0 ppg and 3.3 apg.
Polite, Jr., went 7-for-10 from the charity stripe to finish with 11 points. In the three games, Polite, Jr., averaged 12.3 ppg, 6.3 rpg and 2.7 spg.
The Highlanders made 16-of-20 from the free throw line, including 11 for 12 mark in the second half. Radford outscored Liberty 25-11 in bench play as Travis Fields, Jr., and Devonnte Holland provided 23 of the points.
Fields, Jr., finished with 12 points off the bench, matching a career best with four made field goals.
The sophomore finished the tournament with a 56.3 field goal percentage.
Holland added all 11 of his points in the first half on a 5 for 6 showing as his efforts inside aided Radford’s 18-8 edge in the paint during the opening 20 minutes. Holland also grabbed a team-high seven boards in 21 minutes of work.
Finishing with a 36.2 field goal percentage, Radford became the first team in Big South history to win all of its tournament games with an under 40-percent shooting clip in each game.
The Highlanders finished with a 35.2 field goal percentage for the tournament. Seventeen was the magic number as that is the number of field goals Radford made in each of its three tournament wins.
Radford’s defense held Liberty to under 60 points in all three matchups on the year. The Highlander defense held the Flames to only seven field goals in the first half and countered the second half 50 percent shooting with the performance at the free throw line.
Radford finished the tournament with only 19 turnovers committed, while forcing 44 miscues. The Highlanders scored 53 points off turnovers in the three games. With the win, Radford has won seven straight.
The Highlanders will find out where they head next when the NCAA hosts its selection show on Sunday, March 11 at 6 p.m. The Selection Show will be broadcast live on TBS
–RU Athletics