Location: MVP Arena in Albany
Notes: The Gaels had a one-point lead at halftime, 29-to-28. Although that suggested the teams were evenly matched, VCU probably needed to make an adjustment in its overplaying defense, to allow fewer easy buckets for St. Mary's. Too often, VCU's traps away from the lane were backfiring, owing to St. Mary's ability to make excellent passes to the open man. The Rams also needed for their two starting big men, Johns and DeLoach, to stay out of foul trouble.
Most of VCU's opponents during this season eventually became unraveled by the Rams many aggressive traps. For the most part, St. Mary's did not. And unfortunately, Johns and DeLoach stayed in foul trouble, which limited their playing time.
Then came Baldwin's leg injury in the second half. When Baldwin went down, the Rams' best player on both offense and defense, what little was left of VCU's nine-game-winning-streak-confidence evaporated. He watched the game's most crucial minutes of action from the bench.
In the second half, by not allowing dribble penetrations into the lane, the Gaels' half-court defense did an even better job of limiting VCU's scoring. When the Rams game plan schemes didn't work, it seemed they had no Plan "B."
Key stats:
- Rebounds: StM 37, VCU 29
- Assists: StM 13, VCU seven
- Free throws: StM 20-for-27, VCU 10-for-16.
There was no lack of effort on the part of the Rams. They played hard, but they simply lost to what was a better team; at least it was on March 17, 2023.
The VCU Rams, coached by Mike Rhoades, won the A-10 regular season title, as well as the conference's tournament. They finished the season with a 27-8 record.
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