VCU returns to the Siegel Center as winners of three consecutive contests, including two big road Ws this past week. Coming off the high of what is arguably the best A-10 game so far this season, a 63-62 comeback win at Dayton, VCU will need to avoid a potential trap game against a UMass team that has one top-100 P5 win already as well as a victory over preseason No.2, Saint Louis.
VCU RAMS (13-5, 4-1)
VCU RAMS (13-5, 4-1)
UMASS MINUTEMEN (11-6, 2-3)[/HEADING=3]
A QUICK LOOK AT UMASS[/HEADING=3]
The Minutemen made a huge splash this offseason with the hiring of former Kansas State and South Carolina Head Coach, Frank Martin. Martin takes over after five disappointing seasons under former coach, Matt McCall, and in year-one seems to be off to a solid start.
The Minutemen opened the year at 7-1 with three wins over kenpom top-150 squads including a Myrtle Beach Invitational championship run that started off with a victory over top-50 Colorado. From that point on however, it's been a bit of a rollercoaster for Martin's squad. UMass has yet to win consecutive contests since Dec 5 and has four losses outside of the top-150 including a rough loss to No.265 La Salle at home. Just to keep everyone on their toes however, UMass sprinkled in one win against Saint Louis, defeating the Billikens 90-81 despite having the 213th-ranked offense in the nation.
The offensive inconsistency has been a struggle, but perhaps more concerning for Martin's squad is what had been a solid defensive unit, has started to fall off a bit as of late.  UMass ranks 106th in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency (very solid), but in A-10 play that efficiency has dipped due to an inability to defend the paint and with that, the Minutemen rank 13th in-conference in defensive efficiency.
The Minutemen are led by dangerous point guard, Noah Fernandes at 13.4 ppg to go along with 4.1 assists, but Fernandes has struggled to stay on the court this year, missing five games in December and one just this past week in a win against UMass. He is just outpacing Louisville transfer (and was a Miami before that), Matt Cross, a 6'7 power forward who is averaging 11.6 ppg to go with a team-high 6.4 rebounds.
The best talent on the team though very well may be returning junior, Dyondre Dominguez. The Providence, RI native saw limited minutes under McCall, but has had a bit of a breakout season for Martin. The 6'9 forward leads the team with a 121.9 offensive rating (down to 105.4 in conference play) and a +7 box plus/minus. Dominguez is averaging 9.2 points in just 17.5 minutes of action and can score efficiently from anywhere on the floor.
STRENGTHS: rebounding and three-point defense
WEAKNESSES: turnovers, interior play (scoring inside the arc, 2-point defense)
The "danger danger" stat for Martin is no doubt UMass' 19.9% turnover rate, which isn't exactly Loyola Chicago, but enough to likely keep the Minutemen coaching staff up at night heading into a matchup with VCU's fifth-ranked turnover defense, especially considering that haven't played a ton of teams that really turn you over and the ones they have (none of which come close to VCU) really gave UMass trouble.
v South Florida (No.70 TO% D): 20 TOs 26.7% of possessions
v North Texas (No.49 TO% D): 19 TOs 28.8%
v St. Bonaventure (No.84 To% D): 17 TOs 25%
A QUICK LOOK AT VCU[/HEADING=3]
It's been quite the ride for Ram fans enjoying this VCU team, typically a ride that results in slow starts followed by strong finishes. Game after game the Rams have stumbled out of the gate, only to somehow storm back more often than not including the recent upset win at Dayton despite trailing by 14 points at halftime.
VCU hasn't been the elite defensive unit we've seen the last few season, but still a top-50 (almost top-40) D on the season, but Atlantic 10 play has seen an offensive breakout as well thanks to the A-10's current top-ranked three-point shooting percentage in-conference at 47%. David Shriver leads that charge and has been riding one of the hottest three-point shooting stretches we've seen at VCU, connecting on almost 80% of his threes the last three games and leads all A-10 players at 63% from deep in conference games.
VCU and Dayton are the only two A-10 teams to rank top-3 in both offensive and defensive efficiency in conference play, with only Saint Louis being the other team to rank within the top-6 on both sides of the ball.
VCU seems to be gelling as a unit and what appears to be helping that is a more reduced roll for the freshman centers, Tobi Lawal and Christian Fermin, as well as the rise of Shriver and a breakout by sophomore Nick Kern that has elevated him into the starting lineup. Kern ranks eighth in the A-10 in-conference with a 127.5 offensive rating, currently the best on the team in conference games. Joining Kern has been efficiency improve in-conference from Zeb Jackson, Jalen DeLoach and Jayden Nunn since conference play has begun.
TALE OF THE TAPE[/HEADING=3]
Scoring Offense: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 71.7, VCU 70.7</span>
Scoring Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 64.7, UMASS 69.2</span>
Effective Field Goal% Offense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 51.6%, UMASS 47.4%</span>
Effective Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 48.3%, UMASS 49.1%</span>
3-Point Field Goal%: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 35.2%, UMASS 35.1%</span>
3-Point Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 31%, VCU 33.7%</span>
2-Point Field Goal%: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 51%, UMASS 45.2%</span>
2-Point Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 47.3%, UMASS 50.9%</span>
Rebounds per game: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 38.8, VCU 31.5</span>
<span style="color: #000000;">Turnover% Offense: </span><span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 19.9%, VCU 21.7%</span>
Turnover% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 25.6%, UMASS 20.4%</span>
VCU WINS IF[/HEADING=3]
Win the turnover battle (preferably by a lot), take smart shots/get to the stripe on offense (VCU ranks fifth in offensive free throw rate while UMass 210th in defensive free throw rate...very helpful) and don't allow multiple open threes and VCU can continue to pace the A-10 in moving to 5-1 in conference action.
Kenpom: 74-67 VCU loss with a 75% chance of a Rams victory.
Game tips at 7PM at the Stuart C. Siegel Center in Richmond, VA
Watch: NBC Digital (I have no idea what that is either)
Listen: <a href="https://www.iheart.com/live/fox-sports-910-richmond-2461/?autoplay=true&pname=1248&campid=header&cid=index.html">Fox Sports 910 AM & 98.5 FM</a>
Live Tweets: <a href="https://twitter.com/vcuramnation">@VCURamNation</a>
The Minutemen made a huge splash this offseason with the hiring of former Kansas State and South Carolina Head Coach, Frank Martin. Martin takes over after five disappointing seasons under former coach, Matt McCall, and in year-one seems to be off to a solid start.
The Minutemen opened the year at 7-1 with three wins over kenpom top-150 squads including a Myrtle Beach Invitational championship run that started off with a victory over top-50 Colorado. From that point on however, it's been a bit of a rollercoaster for Martin's squad. UMass has yet to win consecutive contests since Dec 5 and has four losses outside of the top-150 including a rough loss to No.265 La Salle at home. Just to keep everyone on their toes however, UMass sprinkled in one win against Saint Louis, defeating the Billikens 90-81 despite having the 213th-ranked offense in the nation.
The offensive inconsistency has been a struggle, but perhaps more concerning for Martin's squad is what had been a solid defensive unit, has started to fall off a bit as of late.  UMass ranks 106th in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency (very solid), but in A-10 play that efficiency has dipped due to an inability to defend the paint and with that, the Minutemen rank 13th in-conference in defensive efficiency.
The Minutemen are led by dangerous point guard, Noah Fernandes at 13.4 ppg to go along with 4.1 assists, but Fernandes has struggled to stay on the court this year, missing five games in December and one just this past week in a win against UMass. He is just outpacing Louisville transfer (and was a Miami before that), Matt Cross, a 6'7 power forward who is averaging 11.6 ppg to go with a team-high 6.4 rebounds.
The best talent on the team though very well may be returning junior, Dyondre Dominguez. The Providence, RI native saw limited minutes under McCall, but has had a bit of a breakout season for Martin. The 6'9 forward leads the team with a 121.9 offensive rating (down to 105.4 in conference play) and a +7 box plus/minus. Dominguez is averaging 9.2 points in just 17.5 minutes of action and can score efficiently from anywhere on the floor.
STRENGTHS: rebounding and three-point defense
WEAKNESSES: turnovers, interior play (scoring inside the arc, 2-point defense)
The "danger danger" stat for Martin is no doubt UMass' 19.9% turnover rate, which isn't exactly Loyola Chicago, but enough to likely keep the Minutemen coaching staff up at night heading into a matchup with VCU's fifth-ranked turnover defense, especially considering that haven't played a ton of teams that really turn you over and the ones they have (none of which come close to VCU) really gave UMass trouble.
v South Florida (No.70 TO% D): 20 TOs 26.7% of possessions
v North Texas (No.49 TO% D): 19 TOs 28.8%
v St. Bonaventure (No.84 To% D): 17 TOs 25%
A QUICK LOOK AT VCU[/HEADING=3]
It's been quite the ride for Ram fans enjoying this VCU team, typically a ride that results in slow starts followed by strong finishes. Game after game the Rams have stumbled out of the gate, only to somehow storm back more often than not including the recent upset win at Dayton despite trailing by 14 points at halftime.
VCU hasn't been the elite defensive unit we've seen the last few season, but still a top-50 (almost top-40) D on the season, but Atlantic 10 play has seen an offensive breakout as well thanks to the A-10's current top-ranked three-point shooting percentage in-conference at 47%. David Shriver leads that charge and has been riding one of the hottest three-point shooting stretches we've seen at VCU, connecting on almost 80% of his threes the last three games and leads all A-10 players at 63% from deep in conference games.
VCU and Dayton are the only two A-10 teams to rank top-3 in both offensive and defensive efficiency in conference play, with only Saint Louis being the other team to rank within the top-6 on both sides of the ball.
VCU seems to be gelling as a unit and what appears to be helping that is a more reduced roll for the freshman centers, Tobi Lawal and Christian Fermin, as well as the rise of Shriver and a breakout by sophomore Nick Kern that has elevated him into the starting lineup. Kern ranks eighth in the A-10 in-conference with a 127.5 offensive rating, currently the best on the team in conference games. Joining Kern has been efficiency improve in-conference from Zeb Jackson, Jalen DeLoach and Jayden Nunn since conference play has begun.
TALE OF THE TAPE[/HEADING=3]
Scoring Offense: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 71.7, VCU 70.7</span>
Scoring Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 64.7, UMASS 69.2</span>
Effective Field Goal% Offense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 51.6%, UMASS 47.4%</span>
Effective Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 48.3%, UMASS 49.1%</span>
3-Point Field Goal%: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 35.2%, UMASS 35.1%</span>
3-Point Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 31%, VCU 33.7%</span>
2-Point Field Goal%: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 51%, UMASS 45.2%</span>
2-Point Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 47.3%, UMASS 50.9%</span>
Rebounds per game: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 38.8, VCU 31.5</span>
<span style="color: #000000;">Turnover% Offense: </span><span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 19.9%, VCU 21.7%</span>
Turnover% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 25.6%, UMASS 20.4%</span>
VCU WINS IF[/HEADING=3]
Win the turnover battle (preferably by a lot), take smart shots/get to the stripe on offense (VCU ranks fifth in offensive free throw rate while UMass 210th in defensive free throw rate...very helpful) and don't allow multiple open threes and VCU can continue to pace the A-10 in moving to 5-1 in conference action.
Kenpom: 74-67 VCU loss with a 75% chance of a Rams victory.
Game tips at 7PM at the Stuart C. Siegel Center in Richmond, VA
Watch: NBC Digital (I have no idea what that is either)
Listen: <a href="https://www.iheart.com/live/fox-sports-910-richmond-2461/?autoplay=true&pname=1248&campid=header&cid=index.html">Fox Sports 910 AM & 98.5 FM</a>
Live Tweets: <a href="https://twitter.com/vcuramnation">@VCURamNation</a>
Scoring Offense: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 71.7, VCU 70.7</span>
Scoring Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 64.7, UMASS 69.2</span>
Effective Field Goal% Offense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 51.6%, UMASS 47.4%</span>
Effective Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 48.3%, UMASS 49.1%</span>
3-Point Field Goal%: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 35.2%, UMASS 35.1%</span>
3-Point Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 31%, VCU 33.7%</span>
2-Point Field Goal%: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 51%, UMASS 45.2%</span>
2-Point Field Goal% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 47.3%, UMASS 50.9%</span>
Rebounds per game: <span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 38.8, VCU 31.5</span>
<span style="color: #000000;">Turnover% Offense: </span><span style="color: #ff0000;">UMASS 19.9%, VCU 21.7%</span>
Turnover% Defense: <span style="color: #339966;">VCU 25.6%, UMASS 20.4%</span>
