It seemed like today has been circled on everyones calendar for years. We all knew tonight would one day come–Texas was coming to Richmond.
The Longhorns wasted no time in jumping out to a 12-2 start in Coach Shaka Smarts return to Richmond.
Jonathan Williams would be the lone Ram to score in the opening minutes. Williams would end the night with 6 points to go with 7 assists.
A three by Justin Tillman would break the near 5 minute scoring drought by the Rams.
Tillman scored a game-high 22 points, and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds to finish the night with the double-double.
Texas built a 8 point halftime lead behind 50% three-point shooting in the first half.
A 17-6 run out of the half would push Texas out to their largest lead of the game as the Rams faced a 19 point deficit.
The Rams would answer with a 25-5 run of their own in the following 8 minutes.
Khris Lane would cap the run with a three pointer–He would hit four over the course of the VCU comeback run–to take a 63-62 lead for the Rams with 3:52 left on the clock.
Lane finished the evening with 15 points and 5 rebounds.
Two Free throws from Mohamed Bamba, and then a three-pointer by Dylan Osetkowski, would push the Longhorn lead back to 4 points.
De’riante Jenkins would hit a three pointer with 18 seconds left to play to bring the UT lead back down to two points. But that was as close as the Rams would get for the remainder of the game.
De’Riante Jenkins would be the only other Ram to finish in double-digits with 12 points and 5 rebounds.
Tonight was Shaka Smarts 200th career win.
Tonight also marked the 105th consecutive sell-out at the Stuart C. Siegel Center.
The Rams will travel to New Jersey on December 9th, 2017 to take on the Pirates of Seton Hall in the Never Forget Tribute Classic.
