Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 13, 1994 TAG: 9402130174
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
Never mind that the coach's Radford University men's basketball team beat overmatched and outclassed North Carolina-Asheville 69-52 Saturday night at the Dedmon Center.
Disregard that Radford forced a team-record tying 33 turnovers. Ignore that the Highlanders blocked six shots.
Bradley was absolutely ashen-faced.
"It's too bad to have worked since September to get to this point in the season and have it all go down the drain," he said. "We're not a good basketball team now. As for the rest of the season, that doesn't look good either."
Certainly it wasn't encouraging that the Bulldogs, without question the worst team in the Big South Conference, shot so well in the second half. The Bulldogs (2-19 overall, 0-13 in the league) fired in 57.7 percent of their shots and were outscored only 34-32 over the last 20 minutes.
Nor was it particularly encouraging to be outrebounded 30-20 by UNCA, the towering figure of 6-foot-11 Jabe O'Neill of Floyd County notwithstanding. It was Don Gay who led UNCA in rebounding with five, and he scored only one point.
Bradley was depressed by more than that.
"We're just not mentally tough any more," he said.
Perhaps not, but Radford is 16-5 overall and 10-3 in the league and remains in second place behind Towson State, whose game against Coastal Carolina was postponed from Saturday until today.
Yet Radford's players know something was amiss without the coach telling them.
"It just didn't feel right tonight," said center Tyrone Travis, who had 10 points, three steals and an alley-oop dunk.
Added guard Anthony Walker, who led the team with 17 points to go with four assists: "If we want to win the regular-season championship and win the tournament, these things shouldn't happen."
More than anything, Radford seemed to sink to the level of the opposition this week. The past two teams it has played, UNC Asheville and Winthrop, are the two weakest teams in the conference.
"That shouldn't make a difference," said Radford's Don Burgess, who scored 10 points and hauled in six rebounds.
One guy who wasn't down on Radford is Randy Wiel, the Bulldogs' first-year coach.
"Radford is clearly one of the best teams in the conference," he said. "Towson State, North Carolina-Greensboro, Coastal Carolina - all of them are good. But I like Radford. I like their intensity.
"When we played them at our place [a 70-43 loss], they had the intensity the whole time. Tonight, it came and went. But that was enough."
by CNB