Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Game 10: VCU 82, East Carolina 74


Late Surge Lifts Rams to Victory
@ the Siegel
Box Score

Brandon Rozzell's 3-pointer with 2:29 gave Virginia Commonwealth a two-point lead and keyed a 9-0 run as the Rams outlasted East Carolina 82-74 on Tuesday night in front of a crowd of 7,124 at the Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center.

The game featured 13 ties and 22 lead changes and neither team could produce a double-digit lead. VCU used a 19-5 run over the final six minutes to erase a six point Pirate lead.

The Rams held East Carolina to just one field goal in the final 7:46.

Junior Larry Sanders led the way with a career-high 23 points, along with nine rebounds and four blocks. Joey Rodriguez had a season-high 19 points and Brandon Rozzell added 15.

Richmond Native Jamar Abrams scored a career-high 26 points for the Pirates. The junior from Highland Springs High went 10-for-15 from the field and 5-for-8 on 3-point attempts.

VCU begins CAA play Saturday against the Seahawks of UNC Wilmington. Tip-off at the Siegel Center is set for 2 p.m.


Tuesday, December 29, 2009

VCU Welcomes the Pirates of ECU


After a 9 day layoff VCU is back in action tonight when it faces the Pirates of East Carolina.

ECU is 5-7 overall and has lost 4 of its last 5 contests including a heartbreaking overtime loss to George Washington last Tuesday.

ECU returns seven scholarship lettermen from last year’s 13-17 team, including three players with 24 or more starts.

The Pirates are lead by a trio of scorers. Junior Brock Young averages 15.5 points per game while Junior Jontae Sherrod averages 13.0 and Sophmore Darrius Morrow 12.2 points per game to go with his 6.8 boards a contest.

A year ago the Pirates were a perimeter oriented team, setting school records for three-point field goals made and attempted.

As a team ECU is shooting 44.4 percent from the field this season, including a 33.2 percent from 3-point range. The Pirates defense is allowing opponents 76.0 points per game while only scoring 71.2 points per.

VCU (7-2, 0-1 CAA) has won four of its last five games, including a 78-77 nail bitter against Tulane on December 19. The lone loss during that stretch was by one point in a conference game at William & Mary.

Tonight’s game also marks the return of former VCU head coach Mack McCarthy. Coach Mack compiled a 66-55 record in four seasons as head coach of the Rams from 1998-2002.

He's 1-0 against his former team as coach of the Pirates after last season's 93-90 overtime in Greenville. VCU leads the all-time series, 15-7.

The game will be broadcasted live on the VCU Athletics website.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Eric Maynor Traded to OK City

Oklahoma City Thunder announced today that the team has acquired guard Eric Maynor from the Utah Jazz in exchange for the draft rights to Peter Fehse. The Thunder also assume the contract of forward Matt Harpring.

Maynor figures to take over as the backup point guard position for Oklahoma City who waived guards Shaun Livingston and Mike Wilks as part of the overall deal.

The 20th overall pick in this year's draft, Maynor currently ranks fourth in assists, 19th in steals and 24th in scoring among NBA Rookies.

The Thunder are 1-4 over their last 5 games and are currently in fourth place, 5 games behind Denver in the Northwest Division. Oklahoma City is 2 games out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Game 9: VCU 78, Tulane 77

VCU too much for the Green Wave
@ Fogelman Arena, New Orleans
Box Score

The Virginia Commonwealth University men’s basketball team survived a late Tulane surge and claimed a 78-77 road victory at Fogelman Arena on Saturday afternoon.

The Rams built a 17-point lead with 11 minutes to go in the second half behind a defensive effort that forced six turnovers in the first four minutes of the period.

However, Tulane would make a defensive switch to a 2-3 zone which caused match up problems for VCU and ignited a 13-4 to closeout the game.

The Green Wave got the VCU lead to just one point with 1:28 left, but could not overtake the Rams.

Junior Larry Sanders led the way for VCU with 16 points and nine rebounds, just one rebound short of his fifth-straight double-double. Sophomore Bradford Burgess was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field for 11 points.

Junior Jamie Skeen chipped in 10 points in his first appearance for the Rams after transferring from Wake Forrest. 





The Green Wave had four players in double-figures led by Aaron Holmes who registered a double-double with a career high 18 points and 10 rebounds.

The Rams improve to 7-2 overall and 0-1 in CAA play.

VCU returns to action on Dec. 29 when they take on the Pirates of East Carolina in a 7:30 p.m. tip-off at the Siegel Center.

VCU takes on the Green Wave of Tulane

While Richmonders find themselves blanketed by a foot of snow the Rams are prepping for this afternoon’s match up with Tulane in the spring like temperatures of New Orleans.

Tulane (3-6) will try to snap a three game losing streak when they host VCU for a 1 p.m. tip in Fogelman Arena.

The Green Wave has lost to New Orleans, Western Kentucky and McNeese State over the last three contests. However, they own key wins over Penn State and rival CAA member George Mason.

Junior Kris Richard and senior Kevin Sims lead the way for Tulane. Richards averages 13.8 points per game, while 2010 Bob Cousy Award Candidate Sims is scoring 12.4 points per outing for the Green Wave.

As a team Tulane is shooting 40.3 percent from the field, including a 38.5 percent from 3-point range. Tulane's defense is holding opponents to 63.2 points per game, forcing 15.7 turnovers and collecting 7.4 steals per contest.

VCU (6-2, 0-1 CAA) has won three of its last four games, including a 65-57 victory at home to cross-town rival Richmond. The lone loss during that stretch was by one point in a conference game at William & Mary.

This will be the 13th meeting between the two former Metro Conference foes. Tulane is 11-1 in the series, including a 4-1 mark in games played in Fogelman Arena. The teams have not met since a 76-72 Tulane win on Nov. 27, 2001 in Richmond, Va.

The Game will be broadcasted live on ESPN 950.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Game 8: VCU 65, Richmond 57

Bragging Rights!
@ the Seigel
Box Score

In a game that lived up to its name Virginia Commonwealth defeated the University of Richmond 65-57 Saturday night to capture the Black and Blue Classic for the sixth consecutive year.

The Spiders came out hungry and dominated the first half behind senior David Gonzalvez who scored 12 of his 19 points in the opening frame.

The Rams had no answer for Gonzalvez and the Spiders stingy defense, which held VCU to an abysmal 29.2% shooting from the floor and just 1-10 from behind the arc in the first half.

Senior TJ Gwynn was the lone bright spot for the Rams scoring 12 points in the first half on 5-9 shooting keeping the game close for the VCU.

Richmond would led by as many as 12 points before going into halftime with a 29-20 lead.

The final twenty minutes would prove to be a reversal of fortunes for VCU who opened up the second half with a 19-4 run. Terrance Santil scored all seven of his points during the rally pushing the Rams to a 39-33 lead with 13:43 to go in the game.

From there the Rams turned up the defensive intensity holding Richmond to 11-of-31 shooting and to just two field goals over the final 6:38.

Senior TJ Gwynn finished with a career high 20 points and teammate Larry Sanders registered his fourth consecutive double-double with 12 points and 13 boards for the Rams.

David Gonzalvez scored 19 points and Kevin Anderson added another 18 points and 3 assists in a loosing effort for the Spiders.

VCU improves to 6-2 overall and 0-1 in CAA. Richmond falls to 6-2 on the year.

The Rams return to action next Saturday when they take on the Green Wave of Tulane in New Orleans. Tip is set for 2 p.m.

Saturday, December 12, 2009

LIVE BLOG from Press Row!!!

45 mins before tip: I just got to my assigned seat and I only have one word....SICK!

36 mins until tip: The Spiders are doing their warm ups and the fans are all over them when they miss a layups/dunks. By the way, how can you miss a dunk in warmups?

30 mins until tip: Its a Black Out in the student section. Most of the paying crowd has yet to filter in. Lets hope they got the memo and wear black.

27 mins until tip: Here come the Rams!

20 mins until tip: Santil has the sickest all yellow Hyperdunks on.

17:53 mins before tip: Joey's warmup shirt has "No Excuses" on the back. Hopefully, he wont need any tonight.

12:00 mins until tip: All the white dudes on U of R tuck in their warmups. The U of R student reporters sitting next to me believe VCU doesn't have team unity based on the simple fact that the Spiders are all wearing the same shoes while the Rams are wearing an assortment of colorful Nikes. This is going to be a long 12 minutes.

11 mins to go until tip: Rams are headed back to the locker room.

8 mins until tip: The Siegel is filling up. The National Anthem was off the hook. The teams should be coming out any moment now.

4 mins until tip: Here come the Spiders. VCU's student section is all over them.

2:20 until tip: Here come the Rams as the crowd roars!

Here come the intros...Dan Geriot is a punk.

Its standing room only and the Seigel is shaking!

20:00 Richmond takes the tip and draws first blood. Larry answers with a quick bucket inside.

17:00 on the clock: 5 All. The U of R guys next to me are proclaiming Dan Geriot as the next Pittsnoggle. Ladies and gentlemen, your Richmond Spiders! I can't make this stuff up if I try. Back to the game. It looks like Gavin is coming off the bench tonight.

15 mins to go in the first half and we are deadlocked at 5. Both teams are playing incredible defense.

12:28 Gonzalves is a one man wreaking crew for the Spiders. The last three UofR offensive positions have gone like this: Gonvalves three, Gonzalves jumper just inside the line and a Gonzalves steal and layup. Timeout VCU. UofR up 14-7.

10 mins to go. UofR 16, VCU 11. Both teams are running up and down the court and playing tremendous perimeter defense.

7:07 Rams down 20-13. Larry is coming back in after a brief rest. With Larry out Richmond was having their way inside.

6:33 The crowd gives a standing O for Santil who enters the game... oh wait that was for Larry has he takes another breather with 2 fouls. On a side note. I get a stat sheet ever 5 minutes. Now if I could just get a beer.

5:21 Rams down 23-15. The Spiders seem like the hungrier team at this point. They are out hustling the Rams to every loose ball and are contesting ever shot. The one bright spot for the Rams is TJ Gwynn. He has 7 of VCU's first 15 and is our only presence in the paint.

4:45 The Rams are throwing a block party. Santil just swatted a Spider layup attempt igniting an unsuccessful break. The Rams have 7 blocks in the first half. Larry has 4 of those.

4:30 The Refs are clamping down on this game after an unassuming altercation between Butler and Gwynn. The Rams have lost the last three offense positions to tick-tack fouls. Rams are down 25-15.

3:13 Bronx cheer for the refs after VCU finally gets a call to go their way. VCU down 27-15.

Random side notes: Joey is a broken ankle waiting to happen. He is wearing a low top Nike Air Force One.

1:40 TJ Gwynn continues to be the one shining star for the rams inside. The rest of the team cant cut through the Spider defense.

1:09 Another bucket for TJ inside this one draws a foul. TJ hits the freebee and cuts the UofR lead to 7. VCU down 27-20.

The Halftime Buzzer sounds and its 29-20 UofR. The Rams head into the locker room down 9 but may have stolen a little of the momentum from the Spiders. TJ Gwynn leads the way for the Rams with 12. David Gonzalvez has 12 at the break to lead the Spiders.

Halftime goodies! All the soda and water I can drink! No bathroom in sight though.

More halftime stats: TJ Gwynn is 5-9 from the floor. The rest of the Rams are a combined 2-15. The Spiders shot 46.4% from the floor and 42.9% from behind the arc. The Rams shot an abysmal 29.2% from the floor and were just 1-10 from behind the arc.

20:00 The Second Half is underway. Richmond ball to start the second.

19:20 Joey start its off for Rams with a baseline layup. Followed by a steal. Dan Geriot cant handle TJ's quickness inside and fouls him on the shot attempt. He sink both free throws and the Rams cut the lead to 29-24.

18:24 David Gonzalvez continues his dominance over the Rams cutting through the lane and drawing a trip to the line. He cans both freethrows and puts the Spiders back up 7.

17:27 its coast to coast action for both teams. The Spiders and Rams unable to convert fast break layups. UofR up 33-26.

16:26 Terrance Santil is playing like a man on fire. He wants the ball inside and is going to the rim strong. He earns a trip to the line and hits both. On the ensuing trip down the floor he gets a block and puts in a layup at the other end. Rams are within 3. 33-30.

15:28 Easy Ed gets a steal and is fouled on the break. The Crowd is alive and the Seigel is shaking. Timeout UofR!

15:28 Santil cans both free throws and VCU comes out in the press. Richmond is clinging to a 1 point lead. This roof is coming off if we get a stop here.

14:25 Another Santil bucket and the foul! VCU takes it's first lead since the opening minutes. 45-33.

14:04 Tech on Mooney! The crowd is going nuts. Joey makes both free throws. Rams ball up 37-33.

13:34 Timeout Richmond. Mooney is trying to slow the Rams momentum and quiet the rockus crowd. VCU up 39-33.

13:25 Santil gets a standing ovation has he takes a breather after picking up his third foul. Lets see if Larry can keep it going inside for the Rams.

12:20 Gonzalvez nails a three on the curl and Dan Geriot adds a fastbreak layup to put UofR back up 40-39. The Spiders are showing tremendous poise right now. VCU clearly has the momentum and the crowd.

Ever wonder if the ref can hear you when you tell them much the enjoyed the previous evening with their mother? They can. Clearly.

10:00 both teams have settled into their half court sets. The Spiders continue to cling to a one point lead 44-43. More importantly they seemed to have weathered the storm. The crowd has quieted.

8:39 The Spiders continue to pound it inside and it seems to be working. There has been a Larry Sanders sighting! The Condor gets low post bucket to cut the Spider lead back to one. 46-45.

8:05 Santil is back in the game. Lets see if he can keep it going.

7:19 The Spiders and Rams trade three pointers. The Spiders are up 51-48.

6:09 Following an Anderson drive and lay up to put Richmond up 5. Larry answers for the Rams to cut the Spider lead back to 3. UofR 53-50.

House of Pain over the PA. Please make it stop. This is killing out momentum.

4:47 Shaka Smart wants to pound it inside with Larry. It pays immediate dividends with a trip to the line. Larry misses the front end of the 1 and 1. The Spiders are still up 53-50.

4:21 Larry misses two more free throws.

3:39 After a Larry Sanders bucket in the paint. David Gonzalvez cuts to through the lane and gets another layup to put the Spider lead to three.

3:22 Rozzell ties the game at 55 with a three from the corner!

2:24 The Spiders have no answer for All American candidate Larry Sanders. He puts the Rams up 57-55.

1:37 Media Timeout. Both teams huddle up and make their last minute adjustments for the stretch run. Larry is on the sideline trying to get the Seigel Crowd going. The fans respond.

1:00 to go. VCU ball. Rozzell nails a three to put the Rams up 5. VCU is caught celebrating and Richmond gets a break away layup. VCU 60-57.

40.8 ticks on the clock. Richmond fouls TJ on the inbounds. Gwynn puts both shots through the net to extend the Ram lead to 62-57.

25.7 David Gonzalvez ari balls a three out of bounds and the Seigel Center crowd can sense victory.

25.2 I hear the clanging of keys as Joey misses the front end of the 1 and 1. Joey hits the second and puts VCU up 63-57.

16.7 Another miss by the Spiders and TJ is fouled again. Its all formalities at this point. TJ hits his 19 and 20th points to put VCU up for good!

ITS OVER!!!! VCU 57, Richmond 65.

Black and Blue All Over

Once again its time for the annual Black & Blue Classic! VCU will face off against its intracity rival the Richmond Spiders.

VCU has won the last five games in the series, including all four since Chris Mooney took over the head coaching duties at UR.

However, this will be the best Richmond squad that VCU has faced in recent years as the Spiders have won five straight and hold a 7-1 overall mark, matching the second-best start in program history.

Richmond has key wins over Mississippi State, Missouri and Old Dominion, the preseason favorite to win the CAA.

The Spiders are allowing just 58.1 points per game (24th in the nation) and opponents are shooting just 36 percent from the field(ninth in the nation).

The Rams (5-2) are coming off a six-day break. They are averaging 75.7 ppg, while allowing 69.4 ppg and shooting 43.8 percent from the field.

This is the 64th meeting between VCU and Richmond with the Rams holding a 39-24 edge in the head-to-head series.

Game time at the Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center is set for 7:30 p.m.

The Holiday/Exam Week Get Up

Game 4: VCU 63, Hampton 52

11/23/2009
@ Hampton
Box Score

Playing in their third game in just six days, Virginia Commonwealth University grinded out a tough 63-52 road victory at Hampton University

Sophomore Bradford Burgess posted career-highs in points with 18 and rebounds with 10 and senior T.J. Gwynn grabbed a career-best 11 rebounds.

The Rams moved to 3-1 on the year, while the Pirates of Hampton fell to 0-3.

Game 5: VCU 85, Nevada 76

11/27/2009
@ The Siegel
Box Score

Behind 17 point efforts from Larry Sanders and Ed Nixon the Rams (4-1) upended a talented Wolfpack (2-2) squad to pick up a third straight victory and improve to 4-1 on the year.

Sanders registered his 15th career double-double, adding 14 rebounds to his 17-points.

Luke Babbitt was the game’s high scorer with 27 points and 11 rebounds, while Joey Shaw and Brandon Fields added 14 and 13 respectively for Nevada.

Game 6: VCU 82, Rhode Island 80

12/2/2009
@ The Siegel
Box Score

The Rams (5-1) survive a late comaback and last second half court shot to upend Rhode Island (4-2) 82-80 at the Siegel Center.

Larry Sanders registered his second consecutive double-double with 19 points and 11 boards. Brandon Rozzell added a career-high 17 points off the bench and sophomore Bradford Burgess tallied double-figures for the fifth time this year with 16 points.

Will Martell led five URI players in double-figures with 18.

Game 7: VCU 74, W&M 75

12/5/2009
@ William and Larry
Box Score

A last second three-pointer by junior Ed Nixon fell short as the Rams lose to the Tribe of William & Mary, 75-74, in the CAA opener.

Nixon posted a second straight career-high with 18 points. Larry Sanders added his third consecutive double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

VCU falls to 5-2 overall and 0-1 in the CAA. W&M improves to 6-2 overall and 1-0 in the CAA.