Rams trounce Tribe

Sophomore Joey Rodriguez made good on six-of-seven three-pointers and finished with a career-high 20 points to spur Virginia Commonwealth University to a 66-50 victory over William. & Mary Saturday at Kaplan Arena. Rodriguez, a 5-10 guard, knocked down three of three treys in the second half, when the Rams were on a 30-8 run to pull […]

December 6, 2008; 9:40 PM • by FTRea

Rodriguez, a 5-10 guard, knocked down three of three treys in the second half, when the Rams were on a 30-8 run to pull away for the victory. Senior guard Eric Maynor added 15 points and dished out six assists for VCU. Sophomores Larry Sanders and Brandon Rozzell added eight points each.

“He’s worked extremely hard all season and all off-season, in terms of his shooting,” said VCU head coach Anthony Grant of Rodriguez’s performance. “It’s hard work, as well as being the beneficiary of his teammates getting him open looks.”

“But to judge whether or not Joey had a good game based on how he shoots the ball, I don’t think that’s fair. I’m more excited about the energy he brings. As we all know, sometimes shots fall, sometimes they don’t. It’s how you affect other parts of the game.”

Danny Sumner scored 18 points to lead the Tribe. But it was David Schneider who knocked down a 3-pointer to give W&M a 36-34 lead with 14:10 remaining. It would prove to be the Tribe’s last lead of the contest. On the ensuing play, VCU sophomore Ed Nixon buried a three-pointer to recapture the lead and spark a 14-0 Black and Gold run.

Notes: Maynor moved past Bernard Harris and into sole possession of 12th place on VCU’s career scoring list with 1,384 points. This was the Colonial Athletic Association opener for both teams. VCU has won two straight games to improve to 5-3 (1-0 in CAA) on the year. W&M is 3-6 (0-1 in CAA).

VCU plays next on Sat., Dec. 13, when they meet the University of Richmond at 2 p.m. at the Robins Center. That contest will be televised by ESPNU.

– The information above was provided by Chris Kowalczyk at VCU