Mountaineers Narrowly Edged Out by Highlanders at WVU Coliseum in Men's Basketball Showdown
In a closely contested game at the WVU Coliseum, the West Virginia Mountaineers faced off against the Radford Highlanders in a non-conference men's basketball matchup. The final score was a narrow 66-65 victory for the visiting team. The Mountaineers now stand with an overall record of 0-1, while the Highlanders improved to 1-0.
The West Virginia Mountaineers put up a resilient fight throughout the game, which saw 15 lead changes and was tied once. Despite falling short by one point, they showcased their offensive capabilities by shooting an impressive 52 percent from two-point range and scoring 34 points in the paint. The home team also demonstrated their speed on fast breaks with nine points scored from such opportunities.
The Mountaineer’s defense managed to block three shots and matched their opponents with five steals each. They also showed better distribution of the ball with twelve assists compared to ten by Radford Highlanders. However, they were slightly less effective from beyond the arc, making only four three-point shots at a rate of 19 percent.
On the other side of the court, Radford Highlanders capitalized on second-chance opportunities scoring eleven points and grabbed more rebounds with a total of 46 compared to West Virginia's 38 rebounds. Their defensive efforts resulted in four blocks and seventeen personal fouls but did not lead to any player ejections or foulouts.
Despite making fewer field goals than Radford (25 each), West Virginia kept pace through free throws where they made eleven out of seventeen attempts but fell just short as time expired without any remaining timeouts for either side.
West Virginia fans can look forward to seeing if their team can bounce back when they host Toledo Rockets at WVU Coliseum on December 23rd at 6:00 PM Eastern Time. This upcoming game will be available for viewing on ESPN+ internet broadcast network as part of full coverage sports entertainment.