VCU Rides D Into JPJ For Snowy Sunday Tilt

Posted on Saturday, Dec. 8, 2018, 11:39 pm

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By Jerry Ratcliffe

All VCU coach Mike Rhoades said he wants is a “snowball’s chance” when he brings his 7-2 Rams to Charlottesville on Sunday for a battle with No. 4-ranked Virginia.

A strong believer in the old axiom that defense travels could provide VCU a snowball or two inside John Paul Jones Arena on a day where plenty of snowballs are forecast outside the facility.

Surely, Rhoades’ Rams have a monumental challenge today when they take on the unbeaten Cavaliers. Fresh off a win at Texas against old mentor Shaka Smart, it was defense that not only kept VCU alive but enabled it to win.

Pulling off another upset on the road won’t be easy for a couple of reasons. While VCU boasts the eighth-ranked field goal defense in the country (opponents shoot an average of 36 percent), and ranks third in 3-point field goal percentage defense, Rhoades’ worry must be on the other end of the court.

As good as the Rams have been on defense, they have been equally bad on offense, ranking 326th out of 353 Division I teams in shooting the ball (39.6 percent).

Amazingly, they beat Texas on the Longhorns’ own floor by shooting only 28 percent. How does that happen?

It won’t on Sunday if VCU can’t convert a higher percentage of its shots. The problem is, the Rams will be going up against a pretty good defense in UVa’s Pack-Line defense, which leads the entire nation in scoring defense, surrendering a mere 51.5 points per game to opponents. Tony Bennett’s defense is building its own legend, having led the ACC in scoring defense for the past six consecutive years.

The Cavaliers have been impressive the past couple of weeks, beating then-24th ranked Wisconsin (the Badgers have climbed higher after losing to Virginia) in the Bahamas, then knocking off 25th-ranked Maryland in an intimidating atmosphere at College Park in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge.

VCU, which missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time in seven years last season, has aspirations of rekindling that streak. If the Rams have designs on making a resurgence on the national college scene, then back-to-back wins at Texas and Virginia would be a huge statement.

Certainly the Rams will rely heavily on its pressuring defense, one of the most efficient in the nation the past few years in creating turnovers and Havoc, which it has nicknamed its frantic, suffocating coverage.

Bennett’s Wahoos have won the last two games, including last year’s contest in Richmond when UVa’s Kyle Guy lit up the Rams with a career-high 29 points. Virginia has won six of the last seven in the series and is 12-2 overall.

While the outcome of the series has been lopsided, many of the games have been tightly contested and has created interest in the state, something that Bennett likes. He has scheduled games, both home and on the road, against several state opponents.

In fact, UVa and VCU are in talks about future games between the two programs.

The Cavaliers, 8-0, would like to win this game before exam break. They won’t play again until Dec. 19 at South Carolina, which lost an 89-78 road game at No. 5 Michigan on Saturday. The Gamecocks are 4-5.

Virginia is coming off an easy win against Morgan State in which the Cavaliers shot a season-high 65.2 percent (15-23) from the field in the first half and a season-high 91.3 percent from the foul line (21-23), all while holding Morgan State to 25.9 percent shooting, the lowest of any UVa opponent thus far this season.

Bennett and his team will not take VCU lightly. While the numbers may suggest the Cavaliers could run away with this one, UVa’s coach knows how hard the Rams always play against his program.

Not only is it a chance to knock off the No. 4 team in the nation, but it’s a good rivalry between teams only 72 miles apart.

Clearly the Rams haven’t faced a defense like Bennett’s Pack-Line this season and that could be trouble for them. VCU doesn’t have a lot of size, as in height, which could weigh heavily in Virginia’s favor as well.

The Cavaliers’ coach has a lot of versatility on his team to play big or small, and can put four ballhandlers on the floor at the same time in Guy, Ty Jerome, De’Andre Hunter, and freshman point guard Kihei Clark, the surprise of the season.

Maryland tried unsuccessfully to pressure Virginia at the end of the game as Clark and his fellow guards broke the fullcourt pressure.

Havoc vs. Pack-Line.

Maybe a snowball’s chance.