Box Score

RADFORD, Va. – The Longwood University women's basketball team pulled within one possession with less than a minute remaining in the contest before eventually dropping a 57-51 decision at Big South Conference and in-state rival Radford University (3-15, 1-8) on Thursday evening at the Dedmon Center in Radford. Sophomore Raven Williams/Richmond paced the Lancers with 14 points in the outing, while classmate Khalilah Ali/Suffolk notched her third double-double of the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Ayana Avery led the Highlanders to victory with a game-high 20 points. Longwood (6-11, 3-5) will travel to Big South opponent Winthrop University on Saturday, January 18 for a 1 p.m. tilt.

"You won't beat many people when you shoot 24 percent from the field," said head coach Bill Reinson. "When we don't score, we don't do a very good job defending. Radford had a good game plan and we couldn't solve it. Give them all the credit. We took a huge step backward this evening and may have to shake things up a bit."

Longwood scored the first five points of the game thanks to a jumper from Ali and a three from Williams. The Highlanders got on the board with a field goal by Kiera McIvor before redshirt-senior Heather Tobeck/La Porte, Texas added a jumper from beyond the arc to give the Lancers an 8-2 advantage at 17:48. Radford tallied seven-straight points to erase the gap and take its first lead of the night at 9-8 with just under 16 minutes remaining in the first half. Longwood regained the momentum using a 12-3 spurt over the next seven and a half minutes to pull ahead by its largest margin, up 20-12 at 8:26. Radford battled back once again, knotting the score at 22-22 before Williams drained her third three-pointer of the outing to regain the upper hand for the Lancers with just over four minutes to go in the period. However, RU would close the half on a 12-3 run, giving the home squad a 34-28 edge at the break.

Coming out of halftime, Radford found the basket first, but Tobeck and sophomore Daeisha Brown/Richmond combined to go 4-for-4 at the line, sparking a 12-2 Lancer run that gave the visitors a slight, 40-38 lead with 15:29 left to play. Radford reclaimed the advantage less than three minutes later at 41-40 before outscoring Longwood 11-4 to pull ahead by eight with just over two minutes remaining. The Lancers would not go quietly, though, fighting back with the help of three points from Ali and four from Brown to make it a one-possession game at 54-51 with 56 seconds left in the contest. Longwood was unable to convert on several opportunities in the final seconds, and after being forced to foul to stop the clock, conceded a 57-51 decision.

Ali set a new career-high with her 12 rebounds and tied a personal-best with 12 points. Tobeck and Brown notched eight points apiece to add to the offensive effort. Williams recorded a career-best seven steals, while freshman Treasure Avery/Lincolnton, N.C. totaled 10 rebounds, as well. As a team, the Lancers shot 24% (17-71) from the floor, including 27% (7-26) from beyond the arc, and 56% (10-18) from the line in the outing.

Ayana Avery was aided by two other double-digit scorers in Breshara Gordon with 11 points and Rachael Ross with 10 points. McIvor pulled down a team-best 11 boards. As a whole, Radford shot 40% (21-53) from the field, 42% (5-12) from three-point territory and 53% (10-19) from the foul line.

Thursday's contest marked the 30th meeting ever between Longwood and Radford in the sport of women's basketball. The Highlanders now hold an 18-12 advantage in the all-time series.