PHOTOS & GAME SUMMARY: Rams Get Back to Winning Ways Against Howard
Howard got the early lead with a 10-2 run in the first 4:02, but the Black and Gold outscored the visiting Bison 39-21 for the rest of the opening half to take a 41-31 lead to the locker room.
Score: VCU 70, Howard 60 Location: Richmond, Va. (Stuart C. Siegel Center) Records: VCU 6-4, Howard 4-8
The short story: A quartet of Rams, led by Graduate forward Brandon Johns Jr. at 16 points, scored in double figures as the Black and Gold got out to a 10-point halftime lead and held on to beat the visiting Bison Sunday night.
OPENING TIP
Johns filled out the box score, scoring 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line. Additionally, Johns snagged seven rebounds and racked up a career-high three blocks, leading the team in both of those categories
Junior guard Josh Banks had a career night, setting career-best marks in both points (11) and rebounds (5)
Sophomore forward Jalen Deloach put up 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting, eight of which came in the first half. Deloach left the game with a knee injury at about five minutes to go in the first half, but was able to come back to play 15 minutes in the second half
Senior forward David Shriver was the fourth and final Ram in double figures, scoring 10 points on 4-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-6 from beyond the arc
Howard had three double-figure scorers themselves, with Steve Settle III, Bryce Harris, and Jordan Wood scoring 18, 13, and 12 points, respectively
THE DIFFERENCE
Howard got the early lead with a 10-2 run in the first 4:02, but the Black and Gold outscored the visiting Bison 39-21 for the rest of the opening half to take a 41-31 lead to the locker room
The Rams grew their lead to 12 before the Bison went on a 7-0 run over the course of three minutes to cut the margin to five at the under 16 media timeout
VCU responded with a 7-0 run of their run over 1:50 to swell the lead back to 10, at 57-47 with 10:06 left. The Rams kept Howard at arm’s length for the rest of the game, not allowing Howard to get any closer than five points. VCU and Howard scored 29 points apiece as the Rams maintained their 10-point halftime lead at the final buzzer
The bench players came up big for the Black and Gold, outscoring Howard’s bench 23-10
NOTABLE
The Rams improved to 21-2 against teams from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), including two wins this season, defeating Morgan State earlier this season
Junior guard Ace Baldwin Jr., the Rams’ leading scorer this season, did not play due to a sprained left wrist
VCU improves to 21-2 when leading at halftime, dating back to the beginning of the 2021-22 season
QUOTABLE “Proud of our guys. We had some resolve there to finish the game off. I just thought we had more intensity and stuck more to the game plan then we have the last two games. Just proud of our guys. We had two really hard days of practice the last two days to get ready for this one and thought the guys responded the right way.” – VCU Head Coach Mike Rhoades
“I think it’s really important to start off the game with great intensity and great effort and really important to end the game with great intensity and great effort. If you don’t end the game well, how you going to win. So I think we were very disciplined tonight. We had a couple of fouls that we could’ve been more disciplined on. I think overall we have been working the past two days on defense and I think it’s going to be more of an emphasis for us and I think we did pretty well with it tonight.” – Brandon Johns Jr. on finishing off the game strong
“I thought we did a good job. I thought some guys gave us really good energy early to get us going in the game and it carried over for most of the first half…I just challenged these guys, well I didn’t challenge them, I told them that if they don’t play till exhaustion they’re not playing. And we’ll make mistakes, that’s how it goes but when you’re not playing well individually, you become sensitive to what may occur, and then what happens is you forget to play really hard. That’s competition. It happens to lots of young competitors. And I said that’s not us, that’s not my team, that’s not our team, that’s not VCU. We’re gonna play till exhaustion and if you don’t your coming out. And it’s nothing personal because you got to play for the name on the front of the jersey more than anything. That’s really important around here.” –Rhoades on playing to exhaustion
UP NEXT The Rams’ six-game December homestand continues on Wednesday, Dec. 14 when in-state rival Radford comes to the Siegel Center. Tip-off against the Highlanders is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on MASN and streamed on ESPN+.
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The rumor was bouncing around and yesterday it became official with an Instagram post. Citizen Burger is no more.
What an amazing run! After 7 years in this location, it is time for someone new to give it a go. Things have changed so much since we opened, including buying this historic building, opening new concepts in Cville, partnering on more projects here, getting married, having a kid, going through a pandemic…just about everything that can change has.
The staff here was actually some of the best I have ever seen, and anyone would be lucky to partner with them. I thank you all. Sincerely.
It’s no secret that after Covid we went through a challenging period. It was so so hard. There’s no right answer in these transition situations, nothing is real until it is already done, but I know for sure that this decision had nothing to do with this staff.
While I am proud of everyone, it would be inappropriate not to single out Ernesto Gonzalez. When you’ve been doing this a long time, you know when someone is special and is going to go far, and this is one of those people. There were so many stand outs, but Kyle, Travis, Tony, Alex, Sam, and Ruthie helped make the place. I know people were drinking during our sendoff, but they gushed about all of you and I was so proud.
A number of the staff recently announced that they have an exciting new concept in the works, an idea that will be new to Richmond and I can’t wait to see it. As I told many of you, if I had a new place right now I would pitch this entire team to move to it. I apologize for not being able to.
We also want to thank our amazingly supportive guests. Carytown has been a special place for us. Thank you so much for the support over the years.
Most of you know what we try to do here with local and responsible products, and thanking hard working local suppliers is always warranted. Our 100% grass finished Timbercreek beef is second to none. The completely natural buns from ABC are the perfect compliment to the pasture raised beef. The Mountainview farm cheese always makes me smile. And what hasn’t been said about Sugar and Salt. Lastly, the local beer support was super strong with this one. There are many more, I thank you all, we thank you all. We thank everyone.
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Vinyals Returns – Nil Vinyals came off the bench last Saturday so barring a training setback he should be in the starting lineup. With the midfielder back in action expect the midfield to look better and hopefully more in control of the ball. In theory that control should lead to more transition into attack and more goals.
Everyone Scores – So far this year seven different Kickers have scored, with midfielder João Silva leading the pack with 3. The latest goal was a beautiful Olympico but Sukow that must be seen to be believed. Don’t whine at me that it was a cross. It goes into the books as a goal and will be celebrated as such. So far 8 goals have been produced by the midfielders and defenders. Meanwhile our forwards, you know the guys paid to put the ball in the net have racked up 4 goals.
Hot Ticket – It does my jaded heart good to see the amount of support in the stands the team is getting this year. Every game so far has had over 5,000 in attendance. This is well over the 3,500 or so we averaged last year. I’m not sure what switch flipped in the community but I’m glad to see it happen. The drawback is longer lines for food and drink but the Kickers are addressing that with more trucks. If you’re looking for a drink don’t forget there are multiple beer stations you don’t have to go straight for the building in the center of the concourse.
Prediction
The Kickers had a tremendous season last year until their first playoff game. In that game, despite being a man up for the majority of the game they ended up losing to Chattanooga by a goal. The fans, coaches and certainly the players remember the night a little too well. A win would have meant hosting the Championship Game in City Stadium, instead, it ended with a crushing defeat. Revenge will be on everyone’s mind and Chattanooga is not having a great season. The Red Wolves sit in second to last place and have a -8 goal differential. If ever there was a time for the Kickers to rack up some goals and get their scoring mojo flowing this is it. I predict it will happen.
Kickers 3 – Chattanooga 0
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Sea Suite Cruises RVA is thrilled to announce the launch of its latest cruise experience, Tiki Club RVA (seasuitecruises.com/tiki-club/richmond-va), officially debuting on the James River at Rocketts Landing for the summer and fall season on Saturday, June 3, 2023 — which also happens to be the start of National Fishing and Boating Week across the country. Following the success of the first season of Paddle Club RVA (seasuitecruises.com/paddle-club/richmond-va) in 2022, the team behind Sea Suite Cruises RVA is excited to bring this fun and unique recreational boating experience to residents and visitors of Richmond.
Tiki Club RVA offers a one-of-a-kind “tropical vibes” excursion on the scenic and historic James River. Step aboard the custom-built, 40-foot tiki boat, complete with bamboo trimmings, a thatched roof, and a tiki bar that you can stock with your favorite BYOB drinks and snacks. Available for private charters and public tours, Tiki Club RVA is built for 30 passengers, and accommodates both single-passenger or small group tickets as well as private parties. Similar to Paddle Club RVA, Tiki Club RVA cruises are an hour and 45 minutes in duration.
With music, drinks, and water views of nature and the city skyline, Tiki Club RVA is a memorable way to sight-see along one of Richmond’s biggest attractions – the James River – with friends or family. “With the addition of Tiki Club RVA, along with Paddle Club RVA, we can’t wait to give Richmonders even more fun and relaxing ways to soak up the sun and experience the water,” said Mike Scearce, General Manager of Sea Suite Cruises RVA.
Whether you’re looking for a day out with friends, a unique date idea, a festive way to celebrate a birthday party, an outing idea for a bachelor or bachelorette party or corporate gathering, or just want to get out on the James River, Tiki Club RVA and Paddle Club RVA are where it’s going to be in 2023.
ABOUT SEA SUITE CRUISES: Sea Suite Cruises co-founders Jack Maher and Jack Walten (“The Jacks,” as they are known) were born and raised in Arlington, Va. and have been best friends since they were two years old. The business-side of their journey began in 2018 when the then 24-year-old Jack and Jack launched Potomac Paddle Club, the first pontoon “cycleboat” in Washington, D.C. After adding more boats in Washington, D.C., they built on their success further in 2022 by partnering with local Richmond-based investors to launch Paddle Club RVA and form the parent company, Sea Suite Cruises. Sea Suite Cruises’ mission is to connect exciting people in exciting places around a suite of water-based offerings. After a successful first year in Richmond, the company has now expanded to further locations in the Mid-Atlantic such as The Wharf, Navy Yard, and Alexandria, Va. in the D.C. area, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, and Annapolis.
CRUISE DETAILS: Group Size: Up to 30 people (available for both single ticket purchases or to rent the entire boat for a private party) Duration: 1 hour and 45 minutes
PRICING*: Monday-Wednesday: $40/Person Thursday: $45/Person Friday-Saturday: $55/Person Sunday: $50/person *Pricing may change for holiday weekends and special events
PICKUP + DROPOFF LOCATION: 4708 Old Main St, Richmond, VA. 23231 | On the dock at Rocketts Landing beneath The Boathouse restaurant and Island Shrimp Co.
MISC: — Bathroom: The vessel comes equipped with a private bathroom on board — Boat is equipped with Bluetooth-speakers, party lighting for night cruises, and built-in coolers + ice — Tiki Boat RVA tours are BYOB (hard liquor not allowed, only beer, wine, seltzer, or canned cocktails) — All cruises are staffed by a licensed master captain and deckhand
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