Radford Highlanders at West Virginia Mountaineers

No. 11 West Virginia cruises over Radford 84-57

"I thought I had four guards that I could depend on," Huggins said. "I couldn't depend on half of them today."

Guards Jevon Carter and Tarik Phillip scored in double figures, but Daxter Miles Jr and Teyvon Meyers struggled to put up any points in No. 11 West Virginia's 84-57 victory over Radford.

Esa Ahmad led the Mountaineers (10-1) with 17 points.

"I thought I played well," Ahmad said. "I got the open shots when my teammates found me. I was just trying to get my shots within the flow of the game."

The game was closely contested during the first 10 minutes of the game as Radford pulled within five points midway through the first half. Carter then led the Mountaineers on a 30-4 run to go into the locker room with a 53-22 lead.

West Virginia was able to score 41 points off 29 Radford turnovers, which is the most the Highlanders have committed this season.

"We forced 21 turnovers in the first half and only eight in the second half," Huggins said. "You're not ready to play."

Carter had 15 points and Phillip added 13.

After improving on free throws since their Thanksgiving weekend loss to Temple, the Mountaineers regressed to 48 percent from the line.

"I 've said this forever, if you miss free throws, if you miss layups and if you drop balls, you're absolutely not ready to play," Huggins said.

Justin Cousin lead Radford with 12 points and Sterling Christy grabbed nine rebounds.

The Highlanders won the battle off the glass, collecting 40 rebounds to West Virginia's 37.

"I thought we started off the game with our game plan intact and our guys executed it early on," Radford coach Mike Jones said. "We were breaking the press and getting the kind of shots we wanted and not turning it over. Then there was that stretch when they were just so relentless with their depth, with their size and length and athleticism."

BIG PICTURE

Radford looks to snap out of their lackluster shooting and sloppy ball handling when they begin Big South competition against conference favorites UNC Asheville and Winthrop before New Year's.

West Virginia has looked dominant in every facet of the game in the month of December. The Mountaineers look to continue their success when they move into Big 12 conference play at Oklahoma State on Dec. 30.

PRESS VIRGINIA

The Mountaineers average 33 points off 26 turnovers so far this season.

NOT VERY POLITE

Radford forward Ed Polite Jr. came into the game averaging a double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds) for the season. He was nearly silenced by West Virginia, scoring only five points during his 26 minutes.

UP NEXT

Radford will host Grace College on Friday.

West Virginia will host Northern Kentucky on Friday.

How can I watch Radford vs. West Virginia?

• TV Channel: Radford at West Virginia 2021 College Basketball, week 7, is broadcasted on .
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