The Radford University men’s basketball team is ready for the 2018-19 season that includes non-conference games against Texas and Notre Dame.
Radford University’s men’s basketball team hopes the 2017-18 season was a sign of what’s to come in the future.
The Highlanders won their first NCAA tournament game last year before falling to eventual national champion Villanova. This year, they will face several top tier teams like Notre Dame and Texas. Coach Mike Jones is optimistic about the returning cast of players.
“We play four Power Five teams that could all be ranked and two of them will probably be in the top-10,” Jones said.
“What makes this year’s non-conference schedule so tough is all of the strong mid-major programs. I’m looking forward to those games in particular because they will really give us a picture of where we are as a team and as a program. We will learn a lot about ourselves after playing this gauntlet.”
Posting a school record 23 wins a season ago, Radford won the Big South Tournament in dramatic fashion and earned a bid to the 2018 NCAA Tournament where it went on to defeat LIU Brooklyn, 71-61, for the first NCAA Tournament victory in program history.
The Highlanders are the preseason favorite to win this year’s Big South. Ed Polite Jr. was named to the league’s preseason first team, and Carlik Jones was named to the second team.
Jones was the Big South coach of the year and the Basketball Coaches District 3 coach of the year. He was also a finalist for the Ben Jobe award, which recognizes the nation’s top NCAA Division I minority head coach.
The key this season could be Polite and Jones, along with two transfers into the program.
Polite Jr., did it all for the Highlanders during the 2017-18 season, leading the team in points (13.3), rebounds (7.9), steals (1.9) and minutes played (32.1) per game. He also set career-highs for field goals (166), 3-point field goals (22) and free throw percentage (72.7%).
The Lanham, Md., native made history several times over last year. First, he became the fifth player in program history to record 500 career rebounds and 100 career blocks.
Polite, Jr., later became the third player in program history, as well as the ninth player in Big South history, to reach 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 100 assists, 100 blocks and 100 steals in his career.
He became the 15th different player in Radford history to be named to the All-Big South First Team, was named to the NABC All-District 3 Second Team and earned a spot on the VaSID All-State Second Team.
Jones enjoyed a breakout season in 2017-18, winning Big South Freshman of the Year and earning spots on the Big South All-Freshman team and Honorable Mention All-Conference list.
Hailing from Cincinnati, Ohio, Jones averaged 11.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game. He broke the Radford program record and tied the Big South Conference record with seven Big South Freshman of the Week awards.
Highlanders schedule is shaped by the previously announced Gotham Classic, a tournament that pits Radford against UIC, Notre Dame, Duquesne and William and Mary. UIC, who reached the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament final last season, will kick off the tournament at Radford on Friday, Nov. 9.
Radford then hits the road for the first time to take on Notre Dame (Wednesday, Nov. 14), Duquesne (Saturday, Nov. 17) and William and Mary (Tuesday, Nov. 20) to close out the tournament.
In a quick return home before another long stretch of road games, the Highlanders host Glenville State on Monday, Nov. 26.
The schedule’s most difficult stretch comes at the end of the November and continues through the entire month of December. Coach Jones reunites with his old boss, Shaka Smart, on Friday, Nov. 30 when Radford flies to the Lone Star State for a clash with Texas.
Then in December, the Highlanders stay on the road to go head-to-head with James Madison (Tuesday, Dec. 4), Ohio (Saturday, Dec. 8), Clemson (Saturday, Dec. 15) and UNC Greensboro (Tuesday, Dec. 18).
Before heading off for Christmas break, the Highlanders bring Georgia Southern to the Dedmon Center for a Friday, Dec. 21 match-up. Radford then closes out 2018 on Saturday, Dec. 29 at Maryland.
Helping usher in 2019 for Highlander Nation, the team welcomes Mars Hill to the Dedmon Center on Tuesday, Jan. 1 and then the journey for another Big South title begins with conference play.
The Highs could also benefit from two transfers who joined the program this fall.
Devin Hutchison is a 6-5 guard from Brunswick Community College where he 16.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game this past season. He shot an impressive 51.1 FG%, 41.6 3FG% and 70.1 FT%.
Mawdo Sallah, 6-8, is a graduate student from Latri Kunda, Gambia, who played at Kansas State seeing action in 21 games a year ago. Previously, he played at Mount St. Mary’s and spent a postgraduate season at Fishburne Military Academy.
In high school, Salluh averaged 18 points, 14.8 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game.
Former Floyd High School standout Caleb Tanner will also be relied this season upon to score from behind the arc.
Tanner finished with a team-high 19 points Tuesday night against Davis & Elkins and a career-high three steals. As a team, the Highlanders shot 54.5-percent from 3-point range.
Polite recorded his 27th career double-double with an 18-point, 12-rebound effort on 7-for-9 shooting.
–Staff reports
