Wildcats battle Landrum tough until pivotal third-quarter turnovers

Travis Miller It's tough to win when you commit a turnover in crucial situations. The Blacksburg boys basketball team learned that lesson on Friday.

Trailing by five points and with momentum, the Wildcats turned the ball over twice in a row. The visiting Landrum Cardinals turned those miscues into points en route to a 67-48 victory.

Both teams entered the game unbeaten in the region.

"I told the kids that against good teams you can't do that," said Blacksburg coach Travis Miller, referring to the two crucial turnovers.

Alex Wilson led the Cardinals with 21 points. Myron Mitchell had 13 points and JJ Lattimore added 11 for the Wildcats.

The Wildcats also got solid play from reserve Ty Davis, who hit three 3-pointers in the second half to finish with nine points.

The Wildcats kept it close most of the way, trailing by five at the end of the first quarter and by 10 at the break.

The Wildcats got as close as five points in the third quarter, but the Cardinals went on a spurt to stretch their lead to 19 points heading into the fourth quarter.

"I was real proud of the kids' effort," Miller said. "I just felt like we didn't execute like we needed to do to win a game against a good team."

The Wildcats also got no second shots.

"They went to a 2-3 zone and we couldn't get any offensive rebounds," the Blacksburg coach said.

Blacksburg travels to Christ Church on Tuesday. The Cavaliers are 2-2 in the region.