Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 7, 1993 TAG: 9302070216
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
HIGHLANDERS ROCK WINTHROP 107-88
Maybe Winthrop's basketball players were throwing spitballs the day the coach discussed defense.Maybe Radford University simply got as hot as one of those cheap Russian nuclear reactors.
Maybe something else is afoot here.
"We're getting close to the team we can be," Highlanders coach Ron Bradley said. "Too bad it's getting so late in the year."
Actually, it was too bad for Winthrop. Radford strafed the Eagles 107-88 in a record-setting Big South Conference performance Saturday night at the Dedmon Center.
The Highlanders (11-12 overall, 5-5 in the conference) broke the conference scoring record of 105 points and teamed with the woozy Eagles (10-9, 4-5) for the most combined points ever in a league game - the second time in four games Radford has done that .
Radford did it this time by shooting 75.6 percent (25-for-33) in the second half and forcing 26 turnovers in the game. Other numbers were almost as shocking: Brian Schmall had 14 assists, giving him 42 in the past three games, and Don Burgess, Chris Harvey, Eric Bowens and Tyrone Travis combined to make 23 of 31 field-goal attempts.
And Doug Day made seven 3-pointers and finished with 31 points. Nothing odd about that. He is, after all, settling into his reign as the most prolific 3-point marksman in NCAA Division I history.
"When Doug's on, we're an awfully good offensive team," Bradley said.
Radford was making the scoreboard whir like the windows on a slot machine in the second half, scoring 63 points.
"That's the best we've executed the offense all year," said Schmall, who added 16 points and four steals. "Coach put in a new offense, the double stack, last practice, and we worked it to perfection. We can't run it any better than we ran it."
Burgess scored 21 points, Bowens added 14 and Travis 10 - the latter two coming off the bench.
Travis drew inspiration from his girlfriend, Susan Graham.
"She's a graduate student at Winthrop," he said. "She gave me a little lip going out on the court."
Whatever happened, it was just one of those nights.
"The oven was turned up, and it was throwing off the heat," Bowens said.
Winthrop made 10 of 22 3-point attempts and was led by LaShawn Coulter with six 3-pointers and Jamie McVay with four. Coulter ended with 22 points and forward Eddie Gay added 20, but Gay and center Mark Hailey were slowed with foul trouble. Hailey fouled out and Gay drew four personals.
Roanoke's Mike Fayed had eight assists and eight points.
Winthrop coach Dan Kenney found himself defending his defense after the game. He said the Eagles defenders had played commendably - at times.
"But those times were in the minority," he said. "That's why you're talking to the losing coach." \
see microfilm for box score