Inside the Numbers: Radford at Winthrop

You’ve read the recap. Now, let’s go inside the numbers of one of the wildest games I’ve seen in a while.

• Radford coach Mike Jones, even with all of the weird events of the first seven minutes, was effusive in his praise of Winthrop when we caught up with him after the game.

“Crazy game, man. Hell of a team. They’re no fun to play, I can tell you that. They’re deep, they’re super-talented, they’re well-coached. That’s like getting a root canal like, five times in one day. They deserve a lot of credit for the spirit that they had down the stretch after being down so big, to keep fighting, keep fighting, keep fighting, and have a chance to win at the end.”

• Jones was asked about Winthrop’s 14-game win streak, and he responded, “We never talked about it one time.” He mentioned that the team kept its focus on the game it dropped to the Eagles in the Dedmon Center on January 20, and how to keep the causes from that loss to keep from occurring again in this contest.
• Winthrop coach Pat Kelsey preaches the “windshield” mentality, where he focuses his players on the task ahead, and never looking in the rear-view mirror. He spoke of that Monday night, when I asked if that mentality was particularly helpful in a situation like that his team faced against Radford.

“In this crazy stretch where you’re playing five games in ten days, you’ve gotta be able to have that next play, next thing, next day, next game mentality, and get ready for a Gardner-Webb team that’s playing phenomenal.  Ever since arguably their best player, Jose Perez, stepped away from the team, they won by 30 tonight, they won by 30 the other day. I saw a little bit of that game the other day, (and) they looked like they were shot out of a cannon. They’re playing with confidence, playing fast, pushing it, guarding, flying around. We’ve got our work cut out for us. We’ve got a big one on Thursday.”

• On the numbers front, Winthrop closed the game on an unbelievable stretch. At one point, the Eagles knocked down 15 of 20 tries. When considering Winthrop was 12-of-43 otherwise, the string is all the more impressive. Hunter Hale scored 15 of his 24 in the second half, and the Eagles splashed home 47.1 percent of their second-half threes.
• Winthrop center/forward DJ Burns’ nine-game string of double-figure scoring outings — in which he averaged 16.3 points per game — came to a close in this one. Burns played just seven minutes, scoring two points, snaring two rebounds, dishing out two dimes, and collecting two fouls — including the technical after which he shortly exited.
• And finally, to the Hustle Stats:
  • Points in the paint:  Radford 42, Winthrop 22
    • The Highlanders were 11-for-13 on layups; Winthrop was 6-for-11
  • Points off turnovers:  Winthrop 14, Radford 13
  • Second-chance points:  Radford 11, Winthrop 9
  • Fast-break points:  Winthrop 5, Radford 3
  • Bench points:  Winthrop 23, Radford 19

RADFORD 81, WINTHROP 77

RADFORD (15-9, 10-2 BIG SOUTH): Jones 8-15 4-4 20, Hicks 3-8 2-2 11, Fields 8-10 1-3 19, Djonkam 2-3 0-0 4, Eke 3-3 2-5 8, Hutchinson 0-2 2-2 2, Morton-Robertson 0-1 0-2 0, Greene 1-4 0-0 2, Jeffers 0-3 2-2 2, Walker 2-3 0-0 4, Holland 3-5 3-4 9. Totals 30-55 16-24 81.

WINTHROP (18-8, 12-1): Anumba 3-4 0-0 9, Hale 8-18 3-4 24, Ferguson 1-6 2-4 4, Burns 1-2 0-0 2, Vaudrin 4-7 2-4 10, Jones 4-11 2-2 13, Falden 2-4 0-0 6, King 1-4 0-0 2, Zunic 1-5 0-1 2, Claxton 2-2 1-2 5. Totals 27-63 10-17 77.

Halftime — Radford 46-31. 3-Point Goals—Winthrop 13-35 (Anumba 3-4, Hale 5-11, Ferguson 0-3, Vaudrin 0-2, Jones 3-6, Falden 2-3, King 0-3, Zunic 0-3), Radford 5-19 (Jones 0-3, Hicks 3-5, Fields 2-3, Hutchinson 0-2, Morton-Robertson 0-1, Greene 0-2, Jeffers 0-3). Fouled Out — NA. Rebounds —Radford 38 (Eke 9), Winthrop 35 (Vaudrin 8). Assists —Winthrop 15 (Vaudrin 7), Radford 14 (Jones 6). Total Fouls —Winthrop 26, Radford 22. Technical — M. Jones (RU), Fields (RU), Kelsey (WU), Burns (WU). A —2415.

CURRENT BIG SOUTH STANDINGS