Nichols, Mountaineers pummel Radford
It was “Darris Nichols Day” Wednesday in Radford, but it’s the night he turned in that won’t soon be forgotten by his hometown.
Darris Nichols returned to his old stomping ground Wednesday night and lowered the boom on Radford, helping West Virginia to a 90-60 rout.
The senior guard had a game-high 23 points, including shooting a deadly 7-for 10 from three-point range to lead the #24 ranked Mountaineers to victory. West Virginia improves to 9-1, notching their seventh win in a row. The loss drops Radford to 4-9 and the Highlanders have now dropped three in a row.
Alex Ruoff also scored 23 points and Da’Sean Butler chipped in with 14 points. The Mountaineers shot 51.4 percent from beyond the arc and 47 percent from the field. The Highlanders shot 33 percent from three-point range, but were a dreadful 2 for 9 from the free throw line.
West Virginia led at halftime 36-27. Out of the break the Mountaineers took a double-digit lead at 39-29, and the Highlanders were never a factor in the second half. West Virginia built their largest lead of the game, 85-50, with just over six minutes remaining in the second half.
Nichols was honored during the pregrame, being remembered by the city as a standout high school star. December 19th will now be dubbed “Darris Nichols Day” in the city of Radford.
The win marks No. 599 in the coaching career of Bob Huggins. Huggins will aim for his 600th victory on Saturday, Dec. 22nd when the Mountaineers travel to Canisius to take on the Golden Griffins at 4 p.m.
Tags: Darris Nichols, NCAA Men's basketball, Radford Highlanders, West Virginia Mountaineers