After ending the regular season with a win at Fordham, VCU opened their Atlantic 10 conference tournament on Thursday at the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. The 8 seeded Rams faced the 9 seed Dayton Flyers. The two teams split the series in the regular season but VCU would win the rubber match and advance to the next round in the 77-72 win.
VCU struggled from the free throw line but they hit them when they needed them most with a pair from Williams late to help secure the victory.
9 Rams chipped in on the scoring with senior Justin Tillman leading the way scoring with 15. Senior Johnny Williams was right behind with 14 points.
Sophomore De’Riante Jenkins and freshman Sean Mobley both had 11 and sophomore Issac Vann had 10.
In a tight game that saw 6 lead changes and 5 ties, VCU’s work at the defensive end in the final 3 minutes helped them fight back from a 5 points deficit.
VCU advances in the Atlantic 10 tournament and will face the number 1 seed Rhode Island Rams Friday, March 9th at Noon. The game will be televised on NBC Sports Network.
