FARMVILLE, Va. – Team over self has been the message all season for Longwood men's basketball.
 
Saturday was another entry in the annals of success that have been built in the 2020's. The Lancers (16-15, 8-8 Big South) tied for fourth in the league with UNC Asheville for the team's best finish in the league since 2022-23, and the team's .500 or better record in league play for the fifth time in the past seven seasons.
 
Emanuel Richards had 19 points as five Lancers (16-15, 8-8 Big South) scored in double figures, and a sharp defensive effort helped Longwood pull away from Radford after halftime in a 90-74 win to close the regular season at the Joan Perry Brock Center.
 
"The biggest key, coming in, is playing for the team," said Longwood Head Coach Ronnie Thomas. "That's number one overarching, and the more these guys understand that and play for each other, the more fruitful it is going to be for each individual. That was a really big emphasis for us. That's got to be who we are at all times, but I thought you saw it today. Five guys in double figures."
 
The Lancers blitzed Radford (16-15, 9-7 Big South) in the final 20 minutes, outscoring the Highlanders 56-37 in that stretch to give Longwood a winning record overall for the fifth straight year.
 
Redd Thompson Jr. had 15 points, Elijah Tucker added his eighth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds despite battling foul trouble, and Alphonzo Billups III and Jaylen Benard each chipped in 11.
 
While Del Jones led Radford with 21 points, Longwood's defense made him work for it, as he took 20 shots. Brennan Rigsby added 15 points, and Dennis Parker, Jr. pitched in 14.
 
However, the story was the Longwood defense and a shared load on offense. Longwood shot better than 50 percent from the floor better than 50 percent from three and 23-25 from the foul line after halftime.
 
"I thought we played pretty consistent throughout," Thomas said. "Del Jones, he's going to be a first team all-conference player, and if it wasn't for [Logan] Duncomb [from Winthrop] and Terry Anderson [from High Point], he would have a chance to be player of the year. They had 37 points [in the first half], and we had 11 turnovers. They had 17 points off turnovers, so we weren't even getting a chance to defend some of their shots. When we did defend, I thought we defended them really well. In the second half, I thought we limited our turnovers. I think that took away part of their offense, and we got better there."
 
And it started from the get-go. Richards had hit a triple to pull Longwood within three at the half, and Longwood scored seven straight after the break to take a 41-37 lead. Three different Lancers scored in the 10-0 run.
 
While the Highlanders pulled back within one out of a timeout, Longwood just kept steamrolling forward. Over the next five minutes Longwood kept throwing haymakers and stretched the lead to 60-50 on a pair of Richards foul shots.
 
Jones hit a few circus shots, but the Lancer defense was suffocating otherwise to give Longwood eight conference wins in Big South play.
 
"I think you carry this by, you know, you're feeling well. That's two games, two really important wins that we needed to close out the regular season, and now we've got to move forward and understand, we get one chance at it and play with a desperate mindset—you don't want it to end, you want to be with these guys forever and do it together. I think the more you can do that, I think the best result we can get in Johnson City.
 
The Lancers await tiebreakers and the official announcement from the Big to determine who they face to open the Big South Tournament, presented by Air Force Reserve, on Friday, March 6.
 
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