Recap: VCU dominates Illinois State

#14/15 Virginia Commonwealth University looked improved on both ends of the court as they handled Illinois State Friday night 96-58 in the Stuart C. Siegel Center.

November 8, 2013; 9:16 PM • by Aaron Williams

#14/15 Virginia Commonwealth University looked improved on both ends of the court as they handled Illinois State Friday night 96-58 in the Stuart C. Siegel Center.

Recap

VCU forced a 10-second violation on their first defensive possession and never looked back as they dominated the Redbirds. Illinois State struggled to score in the half-court and they had little success stopping VCU’s transition offense. The Redbirds were outmanned at every position and it showed from the tip until the final buzzer.

When they shoot like that, [VCU] is a top 10, 5 team.Coach Muller

The Rams scored early and often on the inside. Juvonte Reddic had the hot hands early and VCU found him under the basket for multiple dunks. After working the inside, the Rams started lighting it up from range. The Rams hit seven of their first nine 3-point attempts including one from Jarred Guest who saw his first action since dislocating his ankle in August. Melvin Johnson also channeled some Troy Daniels and drained three 3-pointers in 48 seconds.

The Rams led 52-22 at halftime but they pulled off the accelerator in the second half prompting Briante Weber to comment, “the whole second half was wrong.” Slowing down in the second half after leading 30 points is natural, but it’s not what Coach Smart wants, “It’s understandable, it’s not acceptable.”

It’s early, but it may be time to stop worrying about point guards. Briante Weber finished with 9 points, 5 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 turnovers, and 5 steals in 25 minutes of action with an incredible +36 in the plus-minus. His 3-point shot is improved and he was able to get into the lane to score and to pass.

JeQuan Lewis had three quick turnovers in his first stretch when he tried beating his defender one-on-one, but he settled down and showed why he will see plenty of minutes as the back up point guard.

On paper this is a really good team and every time HAVOC! 5.0 has been available for public consumption, it has delivered. It’s too early to get caught up in the hype, but the season looks promising. VCU will learn a lot about themselves when they face #24 UVA on Tuesday.

Loudest Moment: 108 dB. With 8:48 remaining in the first half, Melvin Johnson drained his third 3-pointer in 48 seconds.
Coach Smart’s Jacket: 20 seconds into the first half.

Getting Stops

We just have to remember within our program, because there is a lot of attention paid to our style of play particularly on defense and turning people over, that the primary goal on defense is to get a stop. It’s not to turn the other team over.Coach Smart on Monday

Coach Smart sayeth, and his team delivereth. VCU’s press was effective and the Redbirds turned over the ball, but it was VCU’s suffocating defense that rendered Illinois State’s offense useless. The Redbirds started the game 1-16 from the field. VCU led 52-22 at halftime but both teams had 9 turnovers and both teams had 10 points off of turnovers.

Half-court defense was a weakness of the Rams last season. Hopefully Friday’s first half is a sign of things to come this season. The Rams played plenty of zone defense, something Coach Smart said this team will do more and is better at than last season. More importantly, the addition of players like Mo Alie-Cox and Terrance Shannon has added muscle and length to the interior.

Top Performer: Terrance Shannon

14 points on 6-8 shooting, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals

Briante Weber had a fantastic night, but Terrance Shannon gets bonus points for being the new guy. Shannon adds a new dimension to VCU and it was felt on Friday. The senior has the perfect balance of strength, length, and speed to be successful in HAVOC!. He is a more outgoing leader than his fellow seniors Juvonte Reddic and Rob Brandenberg and he is one of the most vocal defenders on the court; a skill that is particularly useful being the center in a 2-3 zone. He finished the night with an impressive +34 plus-minus.

Five Stats

• VCU finished 9-20 from 3-point range. They also finished 9-20 from 3-point range in their exhibition victory over California (Pa.).
• 38 points is the Rams’ biggest home victory since defeting Towson 112-53 on January 27th, 2010.
• Eleven Rams scored and five Rams scored in double figures.
• The Rams finished with 82 possessions. The fastest team in the nation averaged 72.8 possessions per game last season.
• The Rams’ top six players in minutes only combined for 7 of VCU’s 21 fouls.

Box Score

Illinois State

Player	Min	TP	2FG	3FG	FT-FTA	OR	DR	PF	A	TO	Blk	Stl
Daishon Knight*	20	9	1-6	1-4	4-7	1	2	0	1	2	0	0
Bobby Hunter*	17	3	1-4	0-0	1-2	0	0	2	2	1	0	0
John Jones*	23	3	1-3	0-0	1-2	5	2	1	0	0	0	0
Zach Lofton*	22	12	2-5	1-6	5-6	1	1	0	0	3	0	0
Michael Middlebrooks*	14	6	3-4	0-1	0-0	2	1	5	1	0	0	0
Kaza Keane	19	3	1-3	0-0	1-2	0	0	2	2	3	0	0
Paris Lee	26	9	2-5	1-6	2-2	0	3	3	2	9	0	6
Jamaal Samuel	15	9	3-3	1-3	0-0	0	5	3	0	0	0	0
Tony Willis	10	0	0-4	0-1	0-0	1	0	1	1	0	0	0
Nick Zeisloft	19	0	0-0	0-2	0-0	1	6	0	0	1	0	0
Reggie Lynch	15	4	2-3	0-0	0-0	0	0	5	0	2	0	0
	200	58	16-40	4-23	14-21	14	21	22	9	22	0	6

VCU

Player	Min	TP	2FG	3FG	FT-FTA	OR	DR	PF	A	TO	Blk	Stl
Briante Weber*	25	9	3-7	1-2	0-0	1	4	1	8	2	0	5
Terrance Shannon*	23	14	6-8	0-0	2-5	2	4	2	1	1	2	2
Rob Brandenberg*	18	12	2-3	2-4	2-2	1	1	1	4	2	0	2
Juvonte Reddic*	18	13	6-8	0-0	1-5	1	7	1	2	0	0	0
Treveon Graham*	25	14	4-6	1-5	3-4	5	1	1	3	2	0	0
Jairus Lyles	2	0	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
JeQuan Lewis	13	6	2-2	0-0	2-3	0	0	4	2	4	0	1
Doug Brooks	10	3	0-1	1-2	0-0	1	0	2	1	0	1	0
Mo Alie-Cox	12	2	0-0	0-0	2-2	0	2	3	0	1	1	0
Torey Burston	1	0	0-0	0-0	0-2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
Jordan Burgess	19	7	2-4	0-1	3-3	0	4	1	3	1	0	3
Jarred Guest	16	5	2-4	1-1	0-0	2	5	2	0	2	0	0
Melvin Johnson	17	11	1-2	3-5	0-0	0	4	1	2	1	0	1
Emerson Burk	1	0	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	200	96	27-45	9-20	15-26	13	33	21	26	16	4	14

Looking forward

VCU travels to Charlottesville to face #24 Virginia on Tuesday night at 7:00 PM. The game will be on ESPN2. It promises to be a clash of styles between VCU’s high-octane HAVOC! and UVA’s slow Wisconsinesque style. The game is probably the biggest battle in the Commonwealth since VCU faced ODU in the finals of the 2011 CAA Tournament.

Photos by: Will Weaver

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Related

• What to expect: VCU opens season against Illinois State
• Recap: VCU dominates Illinois State
• PHOTOS: VCU vs. Illinois State

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November 8, 2013 9:16 PM 0