Gardner-Webb Runs Past Radford, 91-71, Thursday Night For First Big South Win
December 04, 2008 | Men's Basketball
RADFORD, Va. – Gardner-Webb put six players in double
figures and shot 66.7 percent in the second half to key a 91-71 win
over Radford in the Big South Conference opener for both teams.
The win by Gardner-Webb (2-4, 1-0 Big South) was its first as a
member of the Big South Conference.
"This was a team win for us, and our kids came out and put together
a great effort mentally and physically against a very good Radford
team," said head coach Rick Scruggs. "This is the first game all
season we've had our entire starting five healthy, and I was
worried whether or not we'd be able to click enough to get the win.
They played hard, played smart and played together on both
ends.
"Road wins are tough, especially in this league. This was a true
team effort."
Gardner-Webb missed 10 of its first 11 shots, and sat at just
3-for-15 from the floor as Radford (2-4, 0-1 Big South) built an
early 19-7 lead. But GWU recovered from that point, surging ahead
for good on a Takayo Siddle three-pointer with 4:34 to go before
intermission that gave the ‘Dogs a 30-27 edge. Just moments
later, Gardner-Webb's Nate Blank swished another three-pointer for
a 38-29 lead – capping a 31-10 run for the Bulldogs, and a
21-point swing that took just 11 minutes.
Scruggs' squad led 38-34 at the half, and built its lead to 48-38
with 16:52 to play in the game on a Jonathan Moore layup. After
Radford cut the lead back to nine, 56-47, with 13:10 to go on a
pair of Phillip Martin free throws, Gardner-Webb went on a 9-0 run
that included treys by Grayson Flittner, Blank and C.J. Hailey to
go up, 65-47, with 11:49 left.
Radford would get no closer than 15 points the rest of the way, as
Gardner-Webb continued to make shots all angles in building its
lead to 21 points with 7:10 left and as large as 23 points in the
final three minutes.
Aaron Linn battled through foul trouble to score a team-high 22
points in just 22 minutes for the Runnin' Bulldogs – who
overcame the chilly early shooting effort as a team to shoot 52.2
percent for the game (36-of-69).
Linn led a parade of six men in double digits, as Blank added 14
points, Flittner and Siddle scored 12 apiece and Moore joined Josh
Henley with 10 points. Henley added a team-high eight boards off
the bench, and was part of a reserve effort that outscored Radford
31-9 in bench points. Hailey (five points) and Matt Maden (four
points, four rebounds) each notched career-high totals in points
and minutes in the game.
Gardner-Webb's efficiency on offense was punctuated by 23 assists
on 36 buckets and just 10 turnovers, and the ‘Dogs shot a
sizzling 61.1 percent (33-of-54) over the game's final 33 minutes.
GWU turned 23 Radford miscues directly into 30 points.
Radford was paced by Kenny Thomas' 25 points and 6-foot-8 forward
Joey Lynch-Flohr's 20 points (10-of-12 free throws). Art
Parakhouski led the Highlanders with 11 boards, as the team shot
43.8 percent for the game (21-of-48).
Gardner-Webb will stay in Virginia for another stiff test on
Saturday, traveling to face the Big South's hottest team –
Liberty (5-1) – at 3:00 pm ET Saturday in Lynchburg. The game
will be televised live by MASN (Mid-Atlantic Sports Network), with
Jim Hunter and Craig Escherick providing the call. GWU will also
provide a radio call live on Teamline.
| Box Score |
