Aniya Trent and Virginia Tech took care of Radford on Sunday. (Ivan Morozov)

Virginia Tech handled Radford 79-47 in Blacksburg on Sunday afternoon to close non-conference play.

“Really proud of our team’s effort,” Tech head coach Megan Duffy said. “I thought we got stronger as the game went on. This is a little bit of a game that no coach loves because we’re all ready for a little holiday break, and just really impressed with the way our team handled these last few days of just staying focused on basketball, getting in the gym, understanding the game plan. I thought we got off to a little bit of a slow start, but again, just kept getting stronger and stronger with our defense, and moving and sharing the ball.”

Coming off of their 25-point drubbing of Florida State on Thursday, the Hokies (11-3, 1-1 ACC) pulled away from the Highlanders (8-7) late in the first half and widened the margin in the second.

Radford kept it close through the first 15 minutes and took the lead on three occasions. A Georgia Simonsen jumper with 5:55 left in the first half put the visitors up 20-17, but Tech responded after the media timeout.

Two straight layups from freshman forward Aniya Trent, followed up by a Carys Baker jump shot and a second-chance bucket from Leila Wells, swung things the Hokies’ way and put them up 27-22, forcing a Highlanders timeout. Wells and Nelson added layups in transition to close the half strong and take a 31-24 lead into the locker room.

Tech immediately put Radford on its heels to open the second half with a 6-0 run, courtesy of a Baker 3-pointer, pushing the margin to double figures for the first time. It gradually grew from there as the Hokies outscored the Highlanders 20-10 in the third quarter and 28-13 in the fourth.

“Mike [McGuire] is doing a great job with this team,” Duffy said of Radford. “They’re deep, they’re scrappy. I was really concerned about our effort for 40 minutes, and we looked tired at times guarding them because the way they were moving and sharing the ball and cutting, and we finally settled down with a little bit of that.”

Baker was key for Tech. She eclipsed 20-plus points for the third consecutive game and the fifth time in the last seven, scoring 14 in the second half en route to 23 points. She was 8-for-14 from the field, 4-for-7 from 3-point range and 3-for-6 from the stripe while also adding seven rebounds, four assists and two blocks.

Over her last seven games, she’s averaging 17.1 points and 7.7 rebounds per game while shooting 46-for-83 (55.4%) from the floor and 15-for-34 (44.1%) from deep.

“I think Carys has just really fallen in love with that process,” Duffy said. “I know she’s a little bit disappointed in the beginning of the year with how she was playing, and oftentimes we were just talking about resetting herself. She’s a very versatile player, and sometimes when you’re focused on only one aspect of your game, you lose that mindset of you have so many different ways to help our team.

“I think that’s what she’s done in the last couple weeks, just buying into her inside game. Obviously, she can stretch the floor. Her rebounding has gotten better. I think she’s settled into what she’s always wanted to be this season. It’s just a matter of being a little patient with herself to get her going and getting her to the right spots on the floor.”

Carys Baker recorded her third consecutive 20-point game as Virginia Tech beat Radford. (Ivan Morozov)

Wells provided a spark defensively as well, recording two steals and forcing a third Radford turnover on an inbound. She made four of her six shots for eight points and added three rebounds.

“Leila is just growing in her role every day,” Duffy said. “No nonsense, unselfish, like she’ll guard anybody we need her to guard, she’s playing point for us, she’s playing on the wing. Just whatever duty is assigned to her, as I say, and just doing it with a positive attitude. I thought she was a huge spark for us in that second quarter with small things.”

Kilah Freelon posted nine points, 17 rebounds and three blocks while Mel Daley joined Baker in double figures with 15 points (7-for-14) and five rebounds.

The Hokies received a lift from Trent, too, who blocked three shots and had six points and six boards in 11 minutes.

“Aniya was tremendous tonight,” Duffy said. “She was physical, she walled up, was moving the ball on offense. I was lucky when she took that hard spill, she was OK, but she’s doing a great job for us.”

Mackenzie Nelson added six points, seven assists and four rebounds but was just 3-for-10 from the field. Carleigh Wenzel also had a tough scoring afternoon, with just three points on 1-for-9 shooting with six turnovers. She had a season-high seven rebounds and six assists, though.

On the other side, Simonsen paced the Highlanders with 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting with five boards and three assists.

After a 5-for-16 (31.3%) first quarter from the Hokies, they heated up and were 27-for-54 (50%) for the rest of the game. They finished 45.7 percent overall (32-for-70) while Radford struggled to get going at just 25 percent (17-for-68).

It was Tech’s 13th straight win in the 41-game series, which dates back to 1977. Radford has lost each of the last four meetings by 30-plus points.

After Christmas break, Tech turns its focus to ACC play. It hosts Miami on New Year’s Day (6 p.m. ET) before back-to-back road tests at No. 16 Louisville and Syracuse.

“I think we’re growing,” Duffy said. “I think people are getting confident with just settling into their roles and the work is starting to pay off. … As we turn the page when we come back from Christmas break, every night in the ACC is going to be difficult. You have to be mentally focused no matter what’s going on around you, and I think we’ve exposed our team to that and we continue to grow with it.”

Box Score: Virginia Tech 79, Radford 47