Current Records: VCU 10-7, 2-2 in A-10. La Salle 10-7, 1-3 in A-10.
In a nutshell: In winning its second consecutive road game, once again VCU called upon its defense to make the difference, especially in the closing minutes. The Rams have looked like a different/better team this week.
Today some of the Rams most consistent offensive threats had cold shooting hands from the field; Shulga went 2-for-8; Bamisile went 0-for-5; Nelson 0-for-1. And, Jackson went 1-for-3 before leaving the game, due to an injury in the first half.
So, to stay in the game with the Explorers, VCU had to fall back on playing heads-up team defense. Which it did. La Salle didn't get all that many easy shots.
With Jackson sitting on the bench, VCU lost its quickest player. Bairstow responded by becoming a sort of "point forward," while turning in a career performance with the ball in his hands.
NOTES: (Information provided by Chris Kowalczyk, VCU Assistant A.D.)
· Graduate wing Sean Bairstow handed out a career-high 12 assists, and graduate forward Kuany Kuany buried a pair of late 3-pointers to lift VCU Saturday at La Salle. Bairstow recorded his first double-double in a VCU uniform with 14 points to go along with his 12 assists. He knocked down 4-of-5 attempts from the field and 5-of-6 from the free throw line.
· Kuany knocked down all three of his 3-point attempts in the game and finished with 14 points, all in the second half.
· Sophomore forward Christian Fermin added 12 points and four rebounds on 5-of-7 shooting, while senior guard Max Shulga provided 13 points and nine rebounds for the Black and Gold. Sophomore forward Tobi Lawal kicked in nine points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
· Jhamir Brickus led all players with 20 points for La Salle.
· Lawal slammed home a feed from Bairstow with 1:36 remaining to give the Rams a 64-62 lead. Kuany buried a triple from the left corner on the Rams’ next possession to push VCU to a five-point cushion with 58 seconds on the clock. VCU would not trail again, but Brickus hit a 3-pointer with 48 ticks left to trim the Rams’ lead to 67-65. But Bairstow found Lawal for another dunk on VCU’s ensuing possession. A La Salle turnover effectively snuffed out the Explorers’ comeback chances with 21 seconds remaining.
· Kuany hit three 3-pointers in the second half, including one at the 6:40 mark that provided VCU with a 55-49 advantage.
· The Rams held La Salle to 34 percent (22-of-65) shooting in the game, including 26 percent (6-of-23) from the 3-point line. VCU shot 48 percent (23-of-48) in the contest and connected on 6-of-13 three-pointers.
· The Rams trailed by as many as seven in the first half, at 22-15, but a Bairstow 3-pointer from the left wing kicked off a 7-0 run. The game remained close the rest of the afternoon.
· Bairstow’s 12 assists are the most by a Ram since JeQuan Lewis handed out 12 against Princeton on Nov. 29, 2016. VCU improved to 13-2 all-time against La Salle and is now 7-0 at Tom Gola Arena.
NEXT UP:
VCU will host Saint Louis on Fri., Jan. 19, at the Siegel Center. Tipoff at 7 p.m. This A-10 Conference game will be televised by ESPN2.
No comments:
Post a Comment