RADFORD, Va. – A lackluster second half doomed the Radford men's basketball team in an 85-69 defeat to Winthrop on Carilion Clinic Court at the Dedmon Center on Thursday night. 
 
UPDATED RECORDS
Radford: 13-13 (3-8 Big South)
Winthrop: 16-11 (7-5 Big South)
 
PLAY-BY-PLAY
It was the DaQuan Smith show for the first 10 minutes of the game as the redshirt senior racked up a quick 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting, including a pair of three-pointers, to put Radford ahead.
 
His hot shooting continued as he notched his 15^th point less than three minutes later, making it a 27-23 game in favor of the Highlanders.
 
Radford's offense soon stalled out however, going scoreless from 6:16 to 1:07 on the clock, with Kenyon Giles accounting for the last bucket and the one that snapped the cold streak.
 
The lack of scoring let the Eagles stay close and eventually regain the lead, as a 30-25 lead for Radford turned into a 34-32 deficit at halftime.
 
Momentum stayed on Winthrop's side in a big way throughout the second half, as the Eagles extended their lead with a 17-4 run. A particularly rough 7-0 streak forced Coach Nichols to call a timeout and regroup as the Highlanders searched for answers.
 
From the 15:52 mark all the way to 10:45, Radford went without a field goal, getting only a pair of free throws from Truth Harris along the way. With less than 10 minutes to go in regulation, the Eagles went up 60-44 and never looked back.
 
Even as the Highlanders began to find their shooting stroke down the stretch, Winthrop continued to score at will and fended off the comeback effort to seal another Radford defeat.
 
KEY STATS

• DaQuan Smith led the Highlanders with 23 points, just three shy of his career high
• K.J. Doucet paced the Eagles with 25 points
• Neither team shot the ball well from three as Radford went 7-21 (33.3%) and Winthrop went 8-27 (29.6%)
• The Eagles earned a 42-28 advantage in points scored in the paint

 
AROUND THE BIG SOUTH
UNC Asheville 71, Presbyterian 69
USC Upstate 86, High Point 81 (OT)
Gardner-Webb 85, Charleston Southern 77
 
UP NEXT
The Highlanders hit the road once again for their next game, this time to High Point for a 7 p.m. bout with the Panthers this Saturday, Feb. 17. The contest will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
FOLLOW RADFORD MEN'S BASKETBALL
To follow the Radford men's basketball team throughout the season, visit RadfordAthletics.com, follow @RadfordHoops on Twitter, 'radfordhoops' on Instagram or Radford Men's Basketball on Facebook.