By Kyle Soppe
The Richmond Spiders traveled 20 minutes on a bus to VCU, and returned home on cloud nine. The crosstown rivals played an intense back and forth game, and “claimed the city” with a 78-77 win. Richmond’s tremendous trio of Gen Okoro, Abby Oliver, and Rachael Bilney combined for 52 points, including netting all 15 of their free throws. The Rams led by as much as eight points late, but were unable to hang on as Richmond fought hard and simply would not be stopped.
The game opened true to form, as both teams’ top scorers came out firing. Inside buckets by VCU’s star Courtney Hurt sandwiched a deep three from Richmond’s lone senior, Abby Oliver. Versatile sophomore Robyn Parks overpowered the Richmond front line for two quick baskets, extending the Rams advantage to five. Okoro, however, wasn’t intimidated by the size and strength of the VCU bigs, and collected four points in succession to keep Richmond within striking distance.
The Virgina teams traded baskets until VCU’s Christine Carter and Hurt knocked down consecutive treys, pushing the Rams to a 25-21 lead. Their next possession, though, would change the pace of the first half. Hurt bullied her way to the interior of the Spiders defense, but was called for an offensive foul, her second of the half. She departed with her squad up 25-23, but that lead didn’t last long. A balanced dose of inside and outside shots spurred a Richmond revival, and they would jump ahead 33-27 before Hurt would return to the floor at the four minute mark of the first half. The rally was sparked by another Oliver three ball, giving the Spiders a lead that they would not give back in the first half. Take away the first five minutes, and Richmond felt like the better team, yet they only took a 40-35 advantage into the locker-rooms. Hurt and Oliver had matching 15 point halves, and Okoro chipped in a hard fought 10 points and six rebounds.
The beginning of the second half looked very similar to that of the first half for the Rams: a heavy dose of Hurt. While Richmond used a balanced attack (a bucket from Okoro, two tallies from Liz Brown, and a free throw from Miah Register), VCU got eight quick points from their workhorse inside. A seesaw game, the next eight minutes were played with neither team gaining as much as a two possession advantage.
Momentum was with the home team, as the Rams seemed poised to pull away after a Andrea Barbour deuce put them up by a count of 73-65 with 4:48 remaining in regulation. But those last four minutes, man o man did the Spiders come to play, and a fresh face played a big role. An Abby Oliver short range jumper was followed by a transition lob pass from one roommate to another, as Keri Soppe found Liz Brown for an easy layup. Another solid defensive possession, and the ball was back in the hands of the suddenly streaking Spiders. Rachel “Sass” Bilney ripped the ball across her body, took two left handed dribbles, and finished strong at the rim, cutting the deficit to two points.
Another one shot possession for the Rams, and Bilney was motoring down court with the intention to at least even the score the only thing on her mind. The teams second leading scorer, however, made a an unselfish play, and spotted a wide open Soppe on the wing. Soppe had struggled a bit to find the range, but launched the shot as she has done at least a million times in practice. The ball circled the rim and dropped through, completing the comeback, and giving Richmond a 74-73 lead with just over two minutes to play.
Barbour’s two free throws were offset by a back door cut by Oliver, on another precise pass from Bilney. The defensive stop of the game ensued, as the Rams failed to score, despite five attempts. Richmond kept VCU’s top scorers away from their most comfortable position under the basket, something they struggled with only minutes earlier. With ice in her veins, Oliver sunk two free throws (Richmond connected on 22 of 25 free throws on the night) to extend the Richmond lead back to three.
Courtney Hunt would add a quick layup against the passive defense, trimming the lead back to a single point. A Spiders turnover would hand the ball back to the Rams for the games final possession, with no room for error. However, as they had done for the previous three minutes, the Spider defense was aggressive but smart, fast but patient in providing the final stop of the night. The clock expired as the ball bounced harmlessly toward the sidelines after multiple errant VCU attempts came up empty.
The 6-1 Spiders will want to prove that they are the class of Virgina in their upcoming contest at 2pm on Sunday against Virgina University.
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