CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Southern made some noise in the Big South with a 70-55 upset win over the Radford Highlanders Saturday, at the CSU Field House. The Bucs held the Highlanders to just 32 percent shooting and held preseason player of the year, Art Parakhouski, to a season low 11 points. CSU improved to 10-8 on the year with a 5-3 mark in the Big South, while Radford dropped to 9-7 and 5-2 in the conference.

CSU's starting backcourt had another outstanding performance, combining for nearly half the offense with 39 points. Jamarco Warren led all scorers with 21 points on 6-10 shooting, while adding three assists and two steals. Jeremy Sexton added 18 points of his own, including three threes. Tom Tankelewicz chipped in with nine points and five rebounds off the bench. Joey Lynch-Flohr was the only Radford player who could find the bottom of the net, scoring 14 points on 7-11 shooting.

The Highlanders put the first points on the board, with a Lynch-Flohr layup, but a lack of offense ensued for the next several minutes. A scoring draught of nearly four minutes followed the layup, including a combined 13 missed shots from both teams. Warren provided the first points for the Bucs, to take a 3-2 lead at the 15:09 mark.

The field goal percentage wouldn't get much better, with Radford holding a 13-7 advantage with 9:29 on the clock. CSU eventually got a spark off the bench, with back-to-back threes from Austin Johnson and Tankelewicz. Sexton made it a third straight three, when he gave the Bucs a 20-16 lead with 4:30 remaining in the half.

After trading the lead, another Sexton three put CSU on top 27-25 with just five second left in the first period. The Highlanders managed a near full-court three at the buzzer however, with Blake Smith providing the heave that put Radford on top 28-27 at the intermission.

The Bucs turned around to post 43 points in the second half, outscoring the Highlanders by 16. After limited action in the first half, Warren hit a three to start off the second, followed by a Kelvin Martin jumper. The scoring had a better flow in the second period, with Radford taking a 38-36 lead on another Smith jumper, five minutes into the half.

From there CSU steadily increased their lead, outscoring the Highlanders 19-5 over a 7:34 stretch, capped off by Sexton's third three. Lynch-Flohr kept the game in reach with multiple short ranged jumpers, but it was all Buccaneers in the second half.

CSU held a double digit lead for the remainder of the game, taking their biggest lead with a 63-49 score at the 3:51 mark, thanks to a pull-up jumper from Tankelewicz. Radford wouldn't get much closer, cutting the margin to just 12, with less than a minute to play. Martin and Jo'el Lamb hit free throws in the last minute of play, en route to a final 70-55 score.

CSU will enjoy a week off, before they are back in action at home against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Saturday, January 23, at 7:30 p.m. Radford will also be back at home, when they play host to VMI on Thursday, January 21, at 7 p.m.