PHOTOS & GAME SUMMARY: VCU Advances in A-10 Tourney by Taming the Wildcats

Official VCU Game Summary

Score: No. 1 VCU 71, No. 8 Davidson 53
Location: Brooklyn, N.Y. (Barclays Center)
Records: VCU 25-7, Davidson 16-16
Schedule Note:: Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals

The short story: VCU shot a season-high 57.4 percent from the floor and never trailed in its A-10 Quarterfinals contest, pulling away from Davidson midway through the second half.

OPENING TIP

• A-10 Player of the Year Ace Baldwin, Jr. was one of three Rams who scored a team-high 11 points. The junior guard also added a game-high six assists and three rebounds
• Redshirt sophomore forward Jamir Watkins had 11 points while shooting 3-of-4 from 3-point range. Senior guard David Shriver was the third Ram with 11 points going 3-of-6 from 3-point range
• VCU’s defense limited Davidson to shoot just 37 percent from the floor and 25 percent from behind the arc
• The Wildcats were led by Sam Mennenga who had nine points and eight rebounds

THE DIFFERENCE

• The Rams shot 57 percent from the field (27-of-47) and 43 percent from behind the arc (9-of-21)
• Both teams committed 12 turnovers but the Rams outscored the Wildcats 14-4 in points off turnovers
• VCU and Davidson went back-and-forth early with VCU holding a 16-13 lead with 8:26 left before halftime. It was the closest margin the Wildcats would see for the remainder of the contest
• The Rams were able to put some distance between themselves and the Wildcats with a pair of 3-pointers from Shriver and layups from Brandon Johns, Jr. to take a 37-28 lead into halftime
• In the second half, VCU held a 40-33 lead with 17:41 left in the second half before a Jalen DeLoach dunk started a 17-7 run to put the Rams up 57-40 with 7:10 remaining
• The Rams shut down the Wildcats offense and Davidson was unable to get closer than a 12-point deficit for the remainder of the game

NOTABLE

• VCU has won seven straight contests overall and the Rams haven’t lost a road or neutral site game since Jan. 4, a nine-game streak
• The Rams got 30 points off the bench, tied for the second highest mark this season, and marked the second straight game the Rams scored 30 bench points
• Ace Baldwin, Jr. has recorded at least six assists in five of his last six contests
• VCU improved to 10-1 this season when shooting better than 40 percent from 3-point range
• The Rams reach the A-10 Tournament Semifinals for the ninth time in 11 seasons since joining the league in 2012-13

NEXT UP
VCU will face the winner of No. 4 Saint Louis and No. 5 George Mason on Saturday, March 11. The game will tip at 1 p.m. and be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network.