RADFORD – The Radford men’s basketball team used stifling defense and held Hampton to just 38.7 percent shooting Tuesday night in a 76-65 win inside the Dedmon Center.
In the first 10 minutes of the game, defense wasn’t at its best for the Highlanders (6-6, 5-1 Big South) as the Pirates jumped out to a 22-9 lead. Then the intensity on the defensive side of the ball picked up as Radford forced three of Hampton’s seven turnovers and held them to just five points over the next five minutes.
The strong defense led to offense as Radford scored 19 points during the five-minute stretch and took a 28-27 lead with 4:43 to play in the first half. It was the Highlanders’ first lead since the early minutes of the game. Josiah Jeffers had eight of the 19 points during the 19-5 spurt.
Jeffers had 14 first-half points, which set a career-high, topping his previous of 12. He ended the game with 16 points on 5-of-5 shooting with a pair of 3-pointers and four free throws.
Radford had a 36-33 lead at the break and held Hampton to 22.2 percent from beyond the arc. On the other side of the ball, the Highlanders tallied a 46.2 percent shooting performance in the first half.
Chyree Walker picked up his second career double-double with a career-high 14 rebounds and 13 points. Ten of his rebounds came on the defensive side of the ball. The 14 rebounds were the most by a Highlander since Ed Polite, Jr., had 15 at Charleston Southern during the 2018-19 season.
Hampton (4-7, 3-3 Big South) took the lead twice in the early stages of the second half, but five points by Walker and two by Jeffers put Radford up 46-41 with just under 14 minutes left in the game. Two minutes later, the Pirates were back within one but a 7-0 mini run by the Highlanders gave them an eight-point edge, 56-48, with 9:32 on the clock.
The Highlanders kept the defensive intensity up, which led to better offense and eventually a 70-59 lead – Radford’s largest of the game – with 3:20 to play in regulation. Hampton got it down to a three-possession game with less than two minutes left, but freshmen Fah’Mir Ali and Xavier Lipscomb knocked down some key free throws to secure the victory.
Lipscomb had 10 second half points, including a pair of 3-pointers. The freshman tallied a season-high 13 points and knocked down a season-best three 3-pointers. Ali finished with 11 points and added a game-high four assists.
Stat of the Game
Radford had five players score in double-digit points against the Pirates. The last time that happened against a Division I opponent was last year on Feb. 27, also against Hampton.
All five starters scored in double-figures Tuesday night. The last time that happened was on Jan. 18, 2014, in a 93-76 win over Longwood. It’s the second time this season that Radford had five players score in double figures with the first coming against non-Division I foe, Mars Hill.
Inside the Box Score
Radford shot 44.4 (8-of-18) percent from the 3-point line. The Big South’s leader in free throws hit 18-of-24 Tuesday night.
The game marked the second time this season the Highlanders overcame a double-digit deficit. The first was against Longwood on Dec. 15 when Radford trailed by 14 and came back to win 62-53. The Highlanders outrebounded Hampton 42-28.
Lewis Djonkam ended with 11 points, his fourth straight double-digit scoring affair.
