VCU (8-6; 0-1) was unable to withstand the hot-shooting of St. Bonaventure as the Rams drop their first conference game of the season, 89-78.
The Rams defense just wasn't able to manage the threat of Chad Venning in the front court and the outside shooting of the remainder of the Bonnies.
St. Bonaventure ended the night shooting 48% from the floor while connecting on 12 of their 22 triples for 55%.
VCU got down by as many as 14 points in the first half before clawing back with a 13-5 run.
A near-steal by the Rams resulted in a buzzer beating prayer shot from Venning to close out the first half with an 8 point deficit for VCU.
In a strange turn of events, it was turnovers that proved an achilles heel for the Rams tonight.
VCU turned the ball over 11 times resulting in 14 points for the Bonnies.
That, coupled with the Bonnies getting 27 attempts from the free throw line, kept VCU at bay.
Behind a 12-2 run in the second half, the Bonnies lead jumped out to 19 points with just 12:43 left on the game clock.
VCU was able to get as close as 8 points with 1:29 left to play, but couldn't close the gap any further.
Christian Fermin led the Rams with both 15 points and 9 rebounds—he also added 3 of the Rams 7 blocks on the night.
Kuany Kuany had 13 points, while Sean Bairstow and Zeb Jackson both contributed 11 points to round out the double-digit scoring for the Rams.
VCU shot 50% from the floor but were only able to connect on 8 of our 21 attempts (38%) from distance.
Venning grabbed a game-high 11 boards for the Bonnies en route to their 35-29 advantage on the glass.
St. Bonaventure was able to convert those rebounds into 15 second chance points.
Despite the mismatch in the front-court competition, the Rams did put up 40 points in the paint.
The Rams return to action Saturday, January 6th as they take on the George Washington Colonials. That game is set to tip at 4pm and will be broadcast on the USA Network.
The Rams defense just wasn't able to manage the threat of Chad Venning in the front court and the outside shooting of the remainder of the Bonnies.
St. Bonaventure ended the night shooting 48% from the floor while connecting on 12 of their 22 triples for 55%.
VCU got down by as many as 14 points in the first half before clawing back with a 13-5 run.
A near-steal by the Rams resulted in a buzzer beating prayer shot from Venning to close out the first half with an 8 point deficit for VCU.
In a strange turn of events, it was turnovers that proved an achilles heel for the Rams tonight.
VCU turned the ball over 11 times resulting in 14 points for the Bonnies.
That, coupled with the Bonnies getting 27 attempts from the free throw line, kept VCU at bay.
Behind a 12-2 run in the second half, the Bonnies lead jumped out to 19 points with just 12:43 left on the game clock.
VCU was able to get as close as 8 points with 1:29 left to play, but couldn't close the gap any further.
Christian Fermin led the Rams with both 15 points and 9 rebounds—he also added 3 of the Rams 7 blocks on the night.
Kuany Kuany had 13 points, while Sean Bairstow and Zeb Jackson both contributed 11 points to round out the double-digit scoring for the Rams.
VCU shot 50% from the floor but were only able to connect on 8 of our 21 attempts (38%) from distance.
Venning grabbed a game-high 11 boards for the Bonnies en route to their 35-29 advantage on the glass.
St. Bonaventure was able to convert those rebounds into 15 second chance points.
Despite the mismatch in the front-court competition, the Rams did put up 40 points in the paint.
The Rams return to action Saturday, January 6th as they take on the George Washington Colonials. That game is set to tip at 4pm and will be broadcast on the USA Network.
