The Rams started their Atlantic 10 season on the right foot by ending their 2025 year on it as well, defeating a tough St. Bonaventure squad, 89-82 Wednesday afternoon.
St. Bonaventure came into the contest with an 11-2 non-conference record, but one that featured just one matchup against a top-100 team, an 85-70 loss against North Carolina. They quickly proved they were more than just a pretender however, leading VCU 9-2 over the first three minutes of action. The Rams rallied back with a 9-0 to take the lead, a lead the teams would trade throughout the first before VCU took a 46-45 advantage into the lockers at halftime.
The two teams played tight through the first 10 minutes of the second half before Frank Mitchell's hook shot, two of his game-high 24 points, gave the Bonnies a seven-point lead that threatened to spoil the New Years Eve of all VCU fans in attendance. The Rams used the next four minutes to dig themselves out of that hole though, tying the contest on two Brandon Jennings free throws with four minutes left to play. A couple of stops and two more Jennings free throws would give VCU the lead, one they would never surrender in the win.
Jennings scored 12 points for the Rams in that final four-minute stretch, mostly from the free throw line where he made a VCU record 14 free throws in the win on his 15 attempts to finish with a career-high 20 points. He was just barely outscored by Lazar Djokovic's 23 points. The Serbian big man was 9-10 inside the arc and hit all five of his free throw attempts.
Terrence Hill Jr. continued his hot streak, chipping in 19 points for the black and gold in his 26 minutes of action. He was 3-6 from beyond the arc. He's now shooting 44.3% from three on the season.
Barry Evans added 10 points for the Rams against his former team on 5-7 shooting including a number of dunks and dished out a team-high four assists in the win.
The win starts VCU off at 1-0 in conference play and moves the Rams to 10-4 so far on the season. They'll take on Duquesne next this Saturday in Pittsburgh at noon.
St. Bonaventure came into the contest with an 11-2 non-conference record, but one that featured just one matchup against a top-100 team, an 85-70 loss against North Carolina. They quickly proved they were more than just a pretender however, leading VCU 9-2 over the first three minutes of action. The Rams rallied back with a 9-0 to take the lead, a lead the teams would trade throughout the first before VCU took a 46-45 advantage into the lockers at halftime.
The two teams played tight through the first 10 minutes of the second half before Frank Mitchell's hook shot, two of his game-high 24 points, gave the Bonnies a seven-point lead that threatened to spoil the New Years Eve of all VCU fans in attendance. The Rams used the next four minutes to dig themselves out of that hole though, tying the contest on two Brandon Jennings free throws with four minutes left to play. A couple of stops and two more Jennings free throws would give VCU the lead, one they would never surrender in the win.
Jennings scored 12 points for the Rams in that final four-minute stretch, mostly from the free throw line where he made a VCU record 14 free throws in the win on his 15 attempts to finish with a career-high 20 points. He was just barely outscored by Lazar Djokovic's 23 points. The Serbian big man was 9-10 inside the arc and hit all five of his free throw attempts.
Terrence Hill Jr. continued his hot streak, chipping in 19 points for the black and gold in his 26 minutes of action. He was 3-6 from beyond the arc. He's now shooting 44.3% from three on the season.
Barry Evans added 10 points for the Rams against his former team on 5-7 shooting including a number of dunks and dished out a team-high four assists in the win.
The win starts VCU off at 1-0 in conference play and moves the Rams to 10-4 so far on the season. They'll take on Duquesne next this Saturday in Pittsburgh at noon.
