After picking up their first ACC win on Thursday night at Florida State, the Virginia Tech women's basketball team returned home on Sunday afternoon to close out their non-conference schedule, hosting Radford.
The Highlanders offered the Hokies an interesting challenge coming off a blowout win over the Seminoles. After a sluggish first quarter that saw Virginia Tech lead just 11-9, Megan Duffy's team used a 10-2 run to close out the first half and then outscored the visitors 20-10 in the quarter to pull away for a 32-point win. Here are three observations after Virginia Tech improved to 11-3 heading into the Christmas Break.
Carys Baker carries offense again
It was a game where Carys Baker eclipsed the 20-point plateau. She had her third straight 20-point game with 23 in 31 minutes, which included four 3-pointers. She also had seven rebounds, four assists, and two blocks. Baker has five 20-point games this season so far. She has been able to score both on the inside and outside as her game continues to evolve.
Kilah Freelon & Mel Daley contribute in different ways
Two big Transfer Portal additions from last season for the Hokies have been Northwestern transfer Mel Daley and Texas Tech transfer Kilah Freelon. Against Radford, they both continued to make big impacts at both ends of the floor.
Daley had 15 points, making seven of her 14 field goal attempts with five rebounds. Her mid-range game has been very impressive this year. As for Freelon, she grabbed 17 rebounds, 11 on the defensive end, and was one point shy of a double-double. Point guard Mackenzie Nelson had six points and seven points.
Virginia Tech turned up the defensive pressure over final 30 minutes
It was a defensive battle in the first quarter between the two teams. Over the final 10 minutes, the Hokies locked down defensively and held the Highlanders to 38 points over the final three quarters. They did a good job of turning Radford over and limiting their second-chance points.
Virginia Tech will now be off until New Year's Day, when they host Miami as ACC play kicks into high gear for the rest of the season.