FARMVILLE, Va. -- A huge offensive night for the Lancers, featuring 91 total points, a pair of 19-point scorers, and a dominant performance on the glass powered Longwood to a 91-60 victory over rival Radford in their Big South Conference opener.
 
The win is the first against Radford (0-3, 0-1 Big South) under head coach Rebecca Tillett, and their most lopsided victory over the Highlanders in their Division I era—Radford was tabbed second-best in the 2020-21 Big South Preseason poll after finishing in second a season ago. The victory also marks the second-consecutive season Longwood won their conference opener, as they started 2-0 in Big South play in 2019-20, and the first time the Lancers have surpassed 90 points in a game since March 3, 2018 against Winthrop. 

Leading the offensive surge for the Lancers (1-4, 1-0 Big South) was redshirt-freshman Adriana Shipp, who poured in a career-best 19 points on an efficient 8-of-13 from the floor while also posting a game-high eight rebounds. Four players scored in double figures for the second-consecutive game for the Lancers—Kyla McMakin finished with 19 points along with four rebounds, three assists, and a game-best four steals, Akila Smith notched 12 points, seven rebounds, and five blocks, the most rejections by a Lancer since Smith did the same against Hampton on Feb. 15, 2020. Anne-Hamilton LeRoy finished with 13 points, two assists and a steal.

"First off, credit to Radford," said Longwood head coach Rebecca Tillett. "We have modeled a lot of what we try to do based on the success that they have had in Mike [McGuire's] time there and their ascension in the league, and they have been a real marker for us for where we are trying to go. For our women, this win has a lot of significance. I think in terms of preperation and execution, our women did exactly what we asked. I am so proud of their effort tonight. There are a few things we can improve on, including how many layups they were able to score on the interior of our defense, so we will certainly be looking at that tonight in preperation for tomorrow."
 
Freshman Hannah Osaro made her collegiate debut on Tuesday night, finishing with two points, three rebounds and a block, and senior point guard Tra'Dayja Smith ended with six points and four assists. In total, 10 Lancers tallied points in a dazzling offensive performance for Longwood, who currently ranks second in the Big South in scoring, averaging 73.0 points per game.
 
The Lancers put forth their season-best performance on the glass, as they enjoyed a 52-34 rebounding advantage over Radford. Their 20 offensive rebounds, which led to a 21-4 advantage in second-chance points, were their most since Nov. 28, 2020 against East Tennessee State. The Longwood defense was opportunistic, swiping 10 steals and forcing 18 turnovers, leading to 24 points.  

"We have a lot of women who put in the time outside of practice on their own to be really skilled offensively," added Tillett. "What we have been trying to do is teach them how hard you have to play defensively to match those two things up and go on runs and build leads against good opponents, and I think we did that tonight."
 
After Radford started the game with a 6-0 run, the Longwood offense kicked into gear, outpacing the Highlanders 24-9 to end the quarter, including a 14-0 run. The 50-point explosion in the opening half, their most under coach Tillett and first time surpassing 50 in a half since Dec. 12, 2015 against N.C. Wesleyan., powered the Lancers to a 52-28 lead at the break. Three different Lancers scored in double figures in the half alone, led by Shipp's 17, along with McMakin's 12 and LeRoy's 11 in a red-hot start for Longwood. Ariel Williams led Radford with 13 points, while Bryonna McClean pitched in 12.
 
The Lancers kept their foot on the gas in the second half, holding a 39-32 edge in the final two quarters. Longwood outscored the Highlanders in every quarter, thanks in part to a large advantage from the charity stripe—the Lancers shot 15-of-16 from the line, and rank second in the Big South with a 0.778 percentage through five games.

"This is a team we look up to in a sense, because they have such a great history of building up the way we are starting to build up, and then having that championship that they got" said Kyla McMakin, who has averaged 26.6 points per game in her three career starts against Radford. "We are a team that wants to get there. And then there's the rivalry part of it, and I love a good rivalry-- anything like that gets me fired up.

"I've been struggling a little bit lately, but we have such a great team. We've been having meetings and they have been telling me they have my back, that they had me, they had me, and to have that environment makes you want to come out here and do anything you can for them. It meant a lot for us to come out here and work so well as a team."
 
The Lancers and Highlanders will be right back at it tomorrow, as they complete their two-day doubleheader on Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 6 p.m. The game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
#GoWood