A-10: VCU tops St. Bonaventure, 76-to-59

Final Score: (No. 1) VCU 76, (No. 8) St. Bonaventure 59.
Location: Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
Updated Records: VCU 26-6, St. Bonaventure 22-11.

In a nutshell: VCU is the top-seeded team in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship tournament and it certainly looked the part in defeating the No 8 seeded Saint Bonaventure, 76-to-59. From the game's first minute to its last, the confident Rams looked well prepared. 

After a bitter loss on Mar. 7 to Dayton at the Seigel Center, to finish their regular season, it appeared the Rams used the six-day layoff well to face the intensity of postseason play. For instance, Coach Ryan Odom used his depth to great advantage, as the Rams' bench outscored the Bonnies' bench by a whopping 30-to-5 margin. 

Stats: Jack Clark scored 17 points, to lead the Rams offense. He also grabbed six boards. Zeb Jackson (A-10 Sixth Man of the Year) scored 14 points. Brandon Jennings scored a career-high 12 points. Joe Bamisile was the fourth Ram to score in double figures with 13 points. 

Michael Belle grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. Max Shulga had a bad game shooting, but he dished for 11 assists and got six rebounds. VCU outscored St. Bonaventure 21-6 in points off turnovers. 

NOTES (Information provided by Chris Kowalczyk, VCU Assistant A.D.).

• The Rams also owned a 38-26 edge in points in the paint. 
• VCU led just 27-23 with 3:24 left in the first half before using a 7-0 run capped off by a Clark layup to help build a 36-26 halftime advantage. 
• The Bonnies cut into VCU’s lead twice in the second half, getting with 43-38 with 13:36 left. VCU immediately answered with a Jennings.3-pointer as part of a 5-0 burst. 
• VCU only allowed St. Bonaventure to get as close as the 51-45 deficit for the remainder of the contest as the 9-0 run broke the game open.
• Max Shulga surpassed 1,000 points in a VCU uniform, becoming the 40th Ram to achieve the milestone. 
• VCU’s seven turnovers were the second-fewest this season, with the Rams committing six also in a win over St. Bonaventure back on Jan. 24.

NEXT UP: The Rams will face No. 4 seed Loyola Chicago. Tipoff at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 15. TV: CBS Sports Network.

-- 30 --