Radford Rally Falls Short Versus St. Mary's

MORAGA, Calif. -- Radford nearly overcame a 21-point deficit against St. Mary's, but was unable to secure the victory, falling 72-60 in game two of the Shamrock Office Solutions Classic Tuesday night at McKeon Pavilion. (box score)

The Highlanders (5-5) quickly fell behind in the first half, dropping behind by 21 points. RU put together an 11-0 run to close the first half and pull within 10 at the intermission.

The second half opened up the same for RU, allowing the Highs to close within four on a jumper from senior Olumuyiwa Popoola (Gardena, Calif.) at 11:18. St. Mary's was able to extend the lead back to 13 and hold of RU down the stretch.

Sophomore Chris Oliver (Kernersville, N.C.) led all scorers with 17 points and four rebounds. Junior Chris Goodin (Springfield, Va.) chipped in 11. Senior Brandon Jeffers (Baltimore, Md.) had nine points and four rebounds.

The Gaels (10-4) placed four players in double figures, with Daniel Kickert and Jonathan Sanders each collecting 14 points. Brett Collins, who led St. Mary's on the glass with eight boards, scored 12 points, as did E.J. Rowland.

The Highlanders will face UC Davis at 8:00 pm (ET) Wednesday in the consolation game. The Aggies fell 66-43 to Murray State. The Racers will face host St. Mary’s in the championship at 8:35 (ET) Wednesday.