By PAUL GOTHAM
BROOKLYN — When Webster’s Dictionary updates its edition, publishers should consider a photo of the VCU Rams in the margin next to the definition of momentum.
VCU’s Rams provide tangible evidence of the product created by a body’s mass and velocity.
“We talked about it when you play VCU, the 3‑point shot and the press and the crowd, can feel like eight points, 10‑points and it really isn’t,” said Dayton’s Archie Miller whose Flyers fell in the Atlantic 10 Championship to VCU. “We knew we would go through runs during the game.”
VCU’s Rams spent the better part of their four days along Flatbush running downhill.
After connecting on just 2 of 15 from the floor in the conference semifinals versus No. 1-seed Davidson, the Rams hit 10 of their next 13 attempts.
“When they went on that run, they kind of sped us up,” A-10 Player of the Year and Davidson’s leading scorer, Tyler Kalinoski commented. “We were taking some bad shots which led to them running out and getting some open looks and then they knocked them down.”
In less than ten minutes VCU turned a 12-point deficit into a 44-28 advantage at half. At any point during the 40-12 run, game officials could have stopped play to check the if the floor had tilted, and nobody would have questioned it.
“It is a game of decisions, not mistakes, and we made some quick decisions in that eight‑minute period,” Davidson’s Bob McKillop said. “As a result, they got out running, and there was nothing we could do to defend them in transition, and many of their shots occurred in transition.”
The Rams, who came into the tournament struggling from the floor, averaged better than 10 three-pointers per game at the Barclays Center hitting 42 of 93 (45 percent) over four contests. After VCU’s second round win over Fordham head coach Shaka Smart talked about having the patience waiting for shots to fall. The sixth-year coach got his wish.
“When you get high‑quality looks from outside, and it’s a good shooter, then, you know, you plan on those things hopefully going in a decent amount of times,” Smart said after VCU nailed 12 of 24 behind the arc in the 93-73 win over Davidson. “So that was probably why we were able to shoot 50 percent from three.”
VCU scored 10 straight midway through the first half in Sunday’s win over Dayton. They closed the first stanza with deep strikes from Melvin Johnson and JeQuan Lewis in the final minute.
“They were confident shooting the ball in the first half,” Miller said. “I think the last one in particular that went in was a dagger. Didn’t feel good going into halftime.”
Treveon Graham and Terry Larrier grabbed the baton coming out of the locker room and connected from long range on the first two possessions.
“I talk all the time about poise and having poise in response to whatever happens,” Smart said. “But I think one of the positives of that is when we do make big plays, our guys do get excited for each other, and it can lead to some momentum. Just you can’t get too high because you have to be focused on the details of the process, and I think the guys did a good job of that today.”
VCU opened the season ranked 15th in the nation. The Rams went 17-3. Then A-10 Defensive Player of the Year, Briante Weber, went down with a season-ending knee injury. VCU dropped five of their next nine.
“A lot of people started to say they weren’t this and they weren’t that,” Miller said. “I think they just needed to some time to re‑figure themselves out, get some confidence; and this tournament I really felt allowed them to do that and they really played fantastic.”
The Rams take a five-game winning streak into the NCAA Tournament and their second round meeting with the Ohio State Buckeyes.
*Updated.
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