Official Kickers Game Summary

Richmond Kickers: 0

Charlotte Independence: 0

The Richmond Kickers (0-1-0) earned a hard-fought point on the road at fellow 2022 USL League One playoff team, Charlotte Independence (0-1-0), to open the 2023 USL League One season, Saturday night.

Akira Fitzgerald made history when he stepped out onto the pitch becoming the first player in league history to reach 100 regular-season appearances. The iron man between the pipes marked the occasion with his first clean sheet of the season.

In front of Fitzgerald was a Richmond backline that picked up where it left off last season when it conceded the second-fewest goals in the league. Despite Charlotte attempting 16 shots, the Kickers limited the Jacks to only four on target and Fitzgerald was there to keep the net clear.

Defense was a team effort for the Roos as midfielder Justin Sukow tied defender Michael Hornsby with four tackles won apiece which led the team.

Meanwhile, the Kickers dictated the flow of the match, earning nearly 56 percent possession.

Nil Vinyals delivered the Kickers’ best scoring opportunity of the match in the 22nd minute. Hornsby gathered the ball on the left wing before passing it off to the Spaniard who cut in toward the box. Vinyals darted through three defenders, running parallel to the goalline, before cutting a shot back towards the near post that required the Charlotte goalkeeper to make a diving save.

The Kickers return to RVA for a week of training before heading back to Greenville, S.C. to face Triumph SC for the second match of the season on March 25 at 7 p.m.

The Roos then prepare for their home opener at City Stadium on April 1 at 6 p.m. when they will host Independence for a rematch. It will be during the match against Independence that the Kickers will debut their 2023 primary jersey, The Red Night Kit.

Tickets for the match are still available but are selling fast. For a cost as low as $10 per match, Kickers fans can save the most with Season Tickets while unlocking exclusive perks and experiences. With one additional regular season match and two new opponents joining USL League One in 2023, City Stadium will be the place to be! Additional information can be found at richmondkickers.com/seasontickets.

Stay up to date with all of the Kickers news at RichmondKickers.com and on social media on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Download the Richmond Kickers mobile app for news, contests, and more!

Official VCU Game Summary

Score: No. 1 VCU 68, No. 2 Dayton 56
Location: Brooklyn, N.Y. (Barclays Center)
Records: VCU 27-7, Dayton 22-12
Schedule Note:: Atlantic 10 Championship

The short story: VCU trailed Dayton by as many as 11 points early in the second half before the Rams went on a 19-6 run and retook the lead at 49-47 on a Jalen DeLoach dunk with 11:09 left. VCU held onto its slim lead until the Rams closed the game on an 8-0 run, jumpstarted by a 3-pointer from Jamir Watkins, and clinched the A-10 Championship.

OPENING TIP

• DeLoach, a sophomore, recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. He shot an efficient 5-of-8 from the floor. It’s his fifth double-double this season
• Junior guard Ace Baldwin, Jr. had a team-high 16 points while adding seven assists
• Redshirt sophomore Jamir Watkins had 13 points and eight rebounds, including going 3-of-4 from 3-point range
• Dayton was led by DaRon Holmes II who had 28 points and 16 rebounds

THE DIFFERENCE

• The Rams shot 47.3 percent from 3-point range (8-of-17) while limiting the Flyers to shoot just 13.6 percent (3-of-22)
• VCU shot 46.2 percent overall from the floor and held Dayton to just 32.1 percent
• The Black and Gold led in bench points 17-2 over the Flyers
• VCU and Dayton traded blows early, with the Rams holding an 18-15 lead with 7:44 remaining in the first half
• The Flyers answered back and retook the lead, extending it to to 36-28 on a Holmes II layup with 10 seconds left, but a pair of Baldwin Jr. free throws cut the deficit to 36-30 at the half
• Dayton pushed its lead to 41-30, its largest of the game, with 18:59 left in the second half. The Rams immediately fought back with the 19-6 run. The Black and Gold eventually pushed the run to  30-13 overall to retake the lead at 60-54 on a DeLoach layup with 3:31 left
• Dayton cut the deficit to 60-56 on its next possession but Watkins’ 3-pointer allowed the Rams to pull away for the win.

NOTABLE

• VCU clinched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the 19^th  time in program history
• The Rams won their second Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship and first since 2015. It’s the 10^th overall tournament championship for the Rams
• It will be the third NCAA Tournament appearance for VCU under Mike Rhoades

NEXT UP

Twelfth-seeded VCU will take on fifth-seeded St. Mary’s (Calif.) in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament on Friday, March 17 at MVP Arena in Albany, N.Y.  The game will tip at 1 p.m. and be nationally televised on CBS.

The Rams (27-7) will be making their 19th all-time tournament appearance and return to the field of 68 following a one-year absence. VCU has reached the NCAA Tournament 13 times since 2004.

VCU punched its ticket via a 68-56 win over Dayton in the Atlantic 10 Conference Championship Game Sunday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The Rams have won nine straight games and 22 of their last 25 contests.

This will be the second all-time meeting between the Gaels and Rams, both in the NCAA Tournament. St. Mary’s topped VCU 85-77 in the 2017 NCAA Tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Led by 22nd-year Head Coach Randy Bennett, the Gaels (26-7) tied for first in the West Coast Conference with Gonzaga. St. Mary’s fell in the WCC title game to the Bulldogs 77-51 on March 7. The Gaels boast WCC Defensive Player of the Year Logan Johnson, who averaged 14.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. The Gaels are ranked 16th in both the Associated Press Top 25 and the Coaches Poll.

Official VCU Game Summary

Score: No. 1 VCU 90, No. 4 Saint Louis 78
Location: Brooklyn, N.Y. (Barclays Center)
Records: VCU 26-7, Saint Louis 21-12
Schedule Note:: Atlantic 10 Semifinals

The short story: VCU used a 23-5 run to start the second half, powered by 10 points from sophomore guard Jayden Nunn, to take a commanding 67-44 lead and advance to the Atlantic 10 Championship game.

OPENING TIP

• Jayden Nunn led five Rams in double figures with game-high 18 points, shooting a blistering 7-of-9 from the floor and a perfect 3-of-3 from 3-point range
• Junior guard Ace Baldwin, Jr. poured in 13 points while adding six assists and five rebounds
• Redshirt sophomore Jamir Watkins had 15 points and five rebounds
• Graduate Brandon Johns Jr. nearly had a double-double with 16 points and a game-high nine rebounds. He also tied a career-high with four steals and added three assists
• The Billikens were led by Javon Pickett who had 18 points and three rebounds

THE DIFFERENCE

• The Rams outscored the Billikens 24-16 in points off turnovers and 14-8 in second chance points.
• VCU won the rebounding battle 37-30 and led in steals 10-5
• VCU shot 55.7 percent from the floor and 47 percent from 3-point range. Saint Louis shot 49 percent from the floor and 45 percent from behind the arc
• The Black and Gold were firing on all cylinders early, taking a commanding 31-16 lead on a David Shriver 3-pointer with 9:21 left before halftime
• The Billikens responded with a 13-2 run to cut the lead to 33-29 with 4:41 left in the first half. The two teams went back-and-forth as VCU led 44-39 at the break
• The Rams were blistering hot to start the second half, using the 24-5 run to push their lead to 67-44. Nunn hit two 3-pointers and had 10 points during the run
• The Rams led by as many as 25 points but worked the clock to hold off Saint Louis for the win

NOTABLE

• The 26 wins this season mark the most by VCU under Head Coach Mike Rhoades
• The Rams reach their seventh A-10 Championship, the most appearances by any program in the league since 2012-13
• VCU has never lost in the A-10 Semifinals, improving the mark to 7-0 all-time dating back to joining the league in 2012-13
• VCU has won eight straight contests overall and the Rams haven’t lost a road or neutral site game since Jan. 4, now a 10-game streak

NEXT UP
VCU will face the winner of No. 2 Dayton and No. 3 Fordham on Sunday, March 12. The game will tip at 1 p.m. and be nationally televised on CBS.