The Sports Xchange
Nov 28, 2017
Guard Riley LaChance scored a career-high 27 points as Vanderbilt knocked off Radford 74-62 at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville, Tenn., on Tuesday night.
Guard Ed Polite Jr., Radford's leading scorer, led the Highlanders with 16.
The game was closer most of the evening than Vanderbilt, playing without its leading rebounder and second-leading scorer, forward Jeff Roberson, who fouled out at 7:02 mark, would have preferred.
The Highlanders cut Vanderbilt's lead to 58-56 on center Darius Bolstad's layup with 5:12 left. However, the Commodores' 12-1 run over the next 4:07 put the game away for good.
Vanderbilt (3-4) led by three at the break, then scored 11 of the second half's first 13 points.
LaChance hit four free throws to start the period, then a 3-pointer at 17:17 to give the Commodores their biggest lead to that point (seven).
A Roberson layup off a drive gave Vanderbilt its first double-digit lead at 47-36 with 15:33 left
Vanderbilt led 36-33 at the half, but it wasn't easy.
The Commodores, in a midst of a three-game shooting slump, started 1 of 9 from the field, and watched Radford take a 29-19 lead on Donald Hicks 3-pointer with 5:02 left in the half.
Radford (3-3) built that lead with a parade of layups, and eight first-half points from Devonnte Holland. The forward, who came in averaging 2.8 per game, finished with 11 points.
The shots finally started falling for Vanderbilt late in the half.
LaChance put the Commodores on his back during that stretch, assisting on a Roberson 3-pointer to cut the deficit to five, then getting a pair of three-point plays and a 3-pointer from straight away in the half's final 2:15.