In a back-and-forth game, the Presbyterian College men's basketball team held off a late Radford rally, including a last second Highlander miss, to come away with the 65-63 win Thursday afternoon at Templeton Center in Clinton, S.C. Rayshon Harrison led the effort with 13 points, followed by Brandon Younger and Trevon Reddish with 12 points apiece.
 
Scoring the Game
The Blue Hose led most of the opening 10 minutes of the first half, with Radford trailing by as much as seven, including at the 13:44 mark, 7-14, after Kirshon Thrash connected on his first three-pointer of the game.  The Highlanders rallied with a 9-0 run, highlighted by four from Fah'Mir Ali, to take a two-point lead, 16-14, 10:54 on the clock. The lead was short-lived with a game-tying jumper by Ambaka Le Gregam sparking an 11-5 run that gave PC the eight-point lead, 27-19, 5:28 left. In a half that was defined by runs, the Highlanders answered, outscoring PC 8-0 the next two-and-a-half minutes, off a free throw and back-to-back three-pointers, to knot the contest at 27-27. Thrash stole back the lead with his career-best second three-pointer of the game at 2:11 to make it a three-point contest, 30-27. It was all Radford the final two minutes, with the Highlanders getting a basket from Lewis Djonkam and two free throws from Dravon Mangum, as the visitors headed to the locker room holding a 31-30 lead.
 
Brandon Younger opened the second half with a three-pointer to take the Blue Hose back on top, 33-31.  Radford used a small 6-2 run to retake the lead by four, 37-33, 17:10 left. With Radford holding a four-point margin again at 15:49, the Blue Hose scored eight in a row, helped by five from Trevon Reddish, to flip the score to a four-point PC lead, 44-40, 11:10 to go. A back and forth battle the next few minutes, the game saw three ties, the last during that span at 47-47, 8:23 to go.
 
Neither team could pull ahead by too much, and a Le Gregam jumper at 6:13 knotted the game again at 52-52.  Will Ferguson made it a four-point game just over a minute later with his first three-pointer of the game, giving the home team a 56-52 lead, 5:31 remaining. The Blue Hose extended the lead to six, 61-56, 3:15 on the clock, but Radford's Xavier Lipscomb quickly posted up a three-pointer to cut the margin to three, just under three to play. The game hovered around the three to five-point margin the minute and a half, with Chyree Walker hitting a basket and subsequent free throw to cut the margin to two, 63-65, just 42 seconds left. Radford had a chance at the end, but Quinton Morton-Robertson's layup as time expired just missed the rim as PC survived for the 65-63 win.
 
Players of the Game
Rayshon Harrison led four Blue Hose in double-figures with 13.  Brandon Younger (career high) and Trevon Reddish followed with 12 apiece, while Ambaka Le Gregam rounded out the four with 10 points. Reddish flirted with a double-double with a team-leading and career-high nine rebounds. Pacing Radford was Dravon Mangum with 16 points and Lewis Djonkam with 11 rebounds to go with his 13 points for the double-double.
 
Stats of the Game
Neither team shot exceptionally well with PC finishing with 38.5%, and Radford coming away with 36.5%. The Highlanders pulled down five more rebounds, 39-34, and had more turnovers, 14-11. Of PC's 11, only two were in the second half. The home team went 14-of-18 from the line and hit seven three-pointers, while the visitors finished with a 20-24 effort from the line and with five three-pointers.
 
Notables
- There were 10 lead changes and nine ties in the game
- Will Ferguson recorded a career-best seven points off a perfect three-for-three effort from the field
- Trevon Reddish pulled down a career-high nine rebounds
- Brandon Younger posted a career-high 12 points, and three three-pointers.
 
For the Record
PC improves to 3-3 overall, 1-1 in the league, while Radford moves to 4-6, 3-1.
 
Up Next
The Blue Hose travel to Asheville, N.C., to take on UNC Asheville in a two-game series Jan. 4-5.  Monday's tip-off is at 5pm and will air live on ESPNU. Tuesday's game is on ESPN+ and tips at 2pm. Both contests can be heard on WPCC.
 
How to follow
Fans can follow at www.GoBlueHose.com, and @BlueHoseHoops.