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How “Sweet” it is…

March 20, 2011 By 5 Comments

photo courtesy Kyle LaFerriere

You might want to go purchase a pink party dress, because the Rams are celebrating a Sweet 16.

In what continues to be one of the most improbable runs in NCAA tournament history, the VCU Rams, a controversial selection into this year’s NCAA tournament, have dominated yet another opponent, this time in a 94-76 offensive clinic taught to 3rd seed Purdue.

After watching this VCU team light up a Georgetown Hoya squad from 3-point range in their previous game, Purdue coach Matt Painter made sure his players defended the Rams well beyond the arch.

That strategy, unfortunately for Painter, blew up in his face.

The Rams took advantage of the spread out Purdue defense by continuously attacking the basket, hitting an impressive 56.9% of their shots and posting a ridiculous 26-4 assist to turnover ratio.

Joey Rodriguez lead the VCU charge by dishing out 11 of those dimes, and committing a perfect ZERO turnovers on the evening.

Rodriguez added 12 points in the effort, his second consecutive double-digit performance this postseason.

Bradford Burgess helped the black-and-gold extend a 10-point halftime lead by knocking down 8 of his 12 shots on the evening.

Burgess posted a team high 23 points to go with another team high, 8 rebounds.

Jamie Skeen and Ed Nixon rounded out VCU’s list of starters in double digits, scoring 13 (Skeen) and 11 (Nixon) points in the win.

VCU’s depth may have been the greatest factor in tonight’s victory, as the bench from Broad Street outscored Purdue’s 29-5.

Juvonte Reddic lead that charge with 12 points in only 10 minutes of play.

The freshman from Winston-Salem was lights out, hitting 6 of his 8 shots and added 2 rebounds and 2 assists for the Rams.

The win punched VCU’s first ever ticket to the Sweet 16. The three NCAA tournament wins are also two more than any previous VCU team.

The Rams will have four days to prepare for the winner of tonight’s Florida State v. Notre Dame matchup.

VCU will head to San Antonio, Texas to play in a Friday night primetime tip.

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Warmed up Rams knockout Georgetown

March 19, 2011 By 1 Comment

VCU had its share of doubters heading into this year’s NCAA tournament.

They had a few less after Wednesday’s defensive dominance of USC.

Tonight? I’m not sure there are any left.

VCU took it’s first round momentum and turned it into a 74-56 domination of 6th-seeded Georgetown.

The Rams came out hot offensively, continued their impressive defense from round one, and put together perhaps their best all around performance of the year.

The teams traded baskets early, and Georgetown’s Jason Clark gave the Hoyas an early 19-18 lead. But Brandon Rozzell answered with his third 3-pointer of the game, in what would be the story of VCU’s 2nd-straight upset over a power conference team.

The Rams took an 11-point lead in the half and never looked back, piling on the points by hitting 12 of their 25 attempts from long range, and holding the Hoyas to 15 points below their season average.

Brand Rozzell lead the Rams off the bench with 26 points in 28 minutes of play.

The output was his fifth 20-point performance, and a season high for the senior from Richmond.

Joey Rodriguez lead the Rams with 7 assists on the evening, and followed up Rozzell’s high with 17 points of his own.

Bradford Burgess and Jamie Skeen, the two Rams VCU has perhaps leaned on more than any others, posted a matching 12 points each.

Burgess, a 6’6 G/F hybrid, lead all players with 8 rebounds.

The win was VCU’s 25th of the season, and moves them into what is now being called a “third round” matchup (after this year’s new “First Four” round) against the Purdue Boilermakers.

The win was also the CAA’s second against the vaunted Big East Conference in a matter of hours, as George Mason had previously taken out Villanova in an 8 v. 9 matchup.

The Rams have one day to rest and enjoy the praise and press they are sure to receive after being criticized so heavily by ESPN pundits.

VCU tips off against Purdue this Sunday at 7:10PM Eastern Time.

(Highlights via VCU Athletics, www.VCUAthletics.com )

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Video: VCU v USC, NCAA Tournament

March 18, 2011 By 1 Comment

VCU shocked a lot of prognosticators when their name was announced as an at-large selection into this year’s NCAA tournament.

Those same “basketball experts” had to be equally as shocked when the Rams had little difficulty dispatching their first round opponent, a 19-14 Southern California squad who somehow slipped into the tournament without the same controversy that accompanied VCU’s inclusion.

The black-and-gold struggled shooting early, but played their best defensive game of the season in holding USC to just 46 points in the 13-point win.

Jamie Skeen found himself in foul trouble as a whistle-happy officiating crew tried to keep the game as a USC-like pace, but still managed to lead the Rams with 16 points on the night, and grabbed 9 rebounds against a very large USC interior.

Skeen’s usual partner in crime, Bradford Burgess, was held to single digits (9-points) for the first time in five games, but lead the Rams with 10 rebounds on the night, half of which were of the offensive variety.

The teams headed into the half tied at 22, but VCU was able to find their stroke in the second stanza, scoring 37 points as seniors Joey Rodriguez, Brandon Rozzell, and Ed Nixon  were able to connect on several long range shots.

Freshmen Rob Brandenberg, Juvonte Reddic, and DJ Haley contributed valuable minutes in their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance.

Haley notched yet another start in his young career, helping lock down on star Nikola Vucevic, and the Rams got 13 combined points off the bench from Reddic and Brandenberg.

The win is the first NCAA tournament victory of coach Shaka Smart’s career, and punched the Rams a ticket to Chicago to face 6th-seeded Georgetown tonight in a late 9:50 tip.

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Rams win in Dayton, on to Chicago

March 17, 2011 By 1 Comment


The Rams didn’t need any additional motivation once they found out they were in the NCAA Tournament, but they got it after hearing their name dragged through the mud by ESPN’s Jay Bilas, Hubert Davis, Dick Vitale and a slew of other “basketball people”.

They would prove everybody wrong.

VCU defeated the University of Southern California last night in Dayton, OH, 59-46, in the final game of the new “First Four”, the name given the opening round of this year’s NCAA tournament.

Senior Jamie Skeen was the only Ram in doubled digits, scoring 16 points and grabbing 9 rebounds.

Junior Bradford Burgess contributed 9 points on the night, and lead the Rams with 10 rebounds.

The black-and-gold were led by Joey “The General” Rodriguez, and stifled the Trojans with stellar defense by senior guard Ed Nixon.

USC had two of its starters (Fontan, Simmons) foul out towards the end of the second half, a bad sign for a team that generally plays about 7 or 8 players per contest.

After the win, the Rams caught a 2am flight to Chicago where they will take on Georgetown, Friday night at 9:40pm.

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Video: VCU Selection Sunday

March 13, 2011 By 5 Comments

In definitely one of the most memorable moments in VCU hoops history, The Rams found their way into the NCAA tournament as one of the first 11 seeds to play in this new play-in format in a newly expanded tournament field.

The addition of the 24-win Shaka Smart coached squad also marks the first time the CAA has sent three teams into the Big Dance.

Reaction to VCU’s inclusion has been mixed…scratch that, ESPN is straight freaking out, but the fact remains the Rams will advance to compete for a national title for the third time in five years.

We got a chance to sit down with Coach Smart, as well as players Joey Rodriguez, Jamie Skeen, and Ed Nixon, to talk Selection Sunday, and find out just how excited this VCU squad was when they heard their names announced just hours ago.

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Play on Players, Rams get at-large bid to NCAA tournament

March 13, 2011 By 4 Comments

As much as Dick Vitale and the rest of ESPN hates it…VCU is going to the NCAA Tournament!

As bubble team after bubble team flashed across the screen, it seemed as if VCU’s tournament hopes were all but lost. But as the wise and sage-like Jerry Palm predicted, the Rams are going dancing.

VCU lost a memorable CAA tournament final to rival Old Dominion, but the gods of basketball have once again smiled on the Black-and-Gold, sending them to Dayton, Ohio this wednesday for a first round matchup with USC, another bubble team smiling tonight, for a chance to play Georgetown in the 11 v. 6 matchup.

Among bubble teams the Rams beat out for the bid included perennial snub Virginia Tech, and an Alabama team coached by former Rams coach Anthony Grant.

This game will be Shaka Smart’s first NCAA tournament appearance as a head coach, and VCU’s second in three years.

Tune in to ESPN for the two days leading into the matchup to hear the “worldwide leader” complain about VCU’s inclusion into the NCAA tournament. It’s sure to be the most entertaining programing they’ve had since Craig Kilborn left SportsCenter.

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