Can the Highlanders Pull Off a Stunning Victory Against Longwood in the Big South Tournament?
The Radford Highlanders have been unstoppable as they are ranked third in the Big South Conference with a record of 10-6 and are on a winning streak, which is pretty impressive knowing this team has a great matchup with Longwood, who's ranked number two in the standings, but they are holding a record of 11-5, so they will be a great game for both of these women's basketball teams. The Highlanders won against Gardner-Webb 69-63, which moved the Highlanders up in the Big South Tournament to play competitive teams like Longwood. For the team they played against, it wasn't a challenge for Gardner-Webb knowing that they are on a losing streak in the conference, but they were able to keep up the pace with Radford. Most of the Highlanders' points came from Kendall Scott, who is their leading guard in this particular game against Gardner-Webb, pulling up 19 points, three rebounds, and two assists. However, the Highlanders team-leading players are Joi Williams with 12.0 points, 2.5 assists, and 1.3 steals per game, while Kirah Dandridge has 4.8 rebounds and 0.5 blocks as well.
Those are the two leading players Longwood will have to be ready to attack because it will be a very dominant duo together on the court. Williams is a shooter for the Highlanders who will make buckets, and she is very quick on her feet attacking the ball. This team will make many wide-range three-pointers from the court. The Runnin’ Bulldogs were not able to keep up, honestly, with them, especially with Williams shooting and taking long drives to the basket. From this previous game against the Runnin’ Bulldogs, they did set a high field goal percentage of 41.8%. This will be a battle for Highlanders due to the fact that they are a competitive team who will be fighting to get to the next round in the Big South Tournament. The Longwood Lancers have been dominating every single team they have played so far in their conference. Their previous matchup against the USC Upstate Lancers was a victory with a score of 56-37. Frances Ulysse contributed 15 points in this game, Otaifo Esenabhalu also had 14 rebounds, and Malea Brown had three assists. There was a tremendous difference in three-pointers that were shot; USC Upstate had a higher percentage, at 10.5, compared to 5.9 from the Lancers. There were a significant number of rebounds from the Lancers, so it's best for Radford to know there will be a lot of putbacks on the glass and assists through the paint. If their shots are off in this matchup against Radford, they will find some initiative to get points on the board. The Lancers must make sure they do a great job with their offensive rebound attacks as well as defensive rebounds.
This team works the ball around the defense and makes eye contact with their opponents, taking the initiative to get steals and blocks from who they're up against. Per game stats, the Lancers have all five starting players who put up a significant amount of points and put backs on the board. Amor Harris has 10.9 points, with Kiki McIntyre with 3.3 assists and four steals. Within this matchup, Radford will have to look out for the whole starting five lineup and the Lancers’ bench as well. The way it is looking for Lancers, this will be another victory in the books for them, so the Highlanders will have to come out ready to play on the court. Radford has lost two games compared to the Lancers losing one game in the past five previous games they both have played. This game will premiere at 8:30 p.m. EST at Freedom Hall.
