VCU outlasts Hofstra

VCU Head Coach Anthony Grant: “At this point our team is moving in the right direction.” In a game that got a little rough in the second half, as VCU gradually established a working margin lead, the Rams defeated Hofstra before 5,876 at the Siegel Center. The Pride committed some hard fouls trying to intimidate the […]

January 10, 2009; 3:22 PM • by FTRea

VCU Head Coach Anthony Grant: “At this point our team is moving in the right direction.”

In a game that got a little rough in the second half, as VCU gradually established a working margin lead, the Rams defeated Hofstra before 5,876 at the Siegel Center. The Pride committed some hard fouls trying to intimidate the Rams. It didn’t work: VCU 68, Hostra 60.

Eric Maynor, last season’s CAA Player of the Year as a junior, led all scorers with 21 points and he also dished out four assists.

Of Maynor’s contribution to the team, Rams head coach Anthony Grant said, “[Maynor] could be one of the best defenders in the country.”

Sophomore Larry Sanders, who seems to be improving with each game, scored 16 points and pulled down 13 rebounds. Junior Kirill Pishchalnikov and sophomore Joey Rodriguez both scored 10 points.

Since losing at Delaware on Jan. 3, VCU (11-5, 4-1 in CAA) has won three straight games. Hofstra (10-6, 2-3 in CAA) has lost all seven games it has played at the Siegel Center.

“I’m proud of our guys, the way they’ve responded this week,” said Grant.

Defense dominated the afternoon as Hofstra hit 39 percent shooting from the field; VCU managed to connect on just 40 percent. The difference in the score was at the charity stripe, where the Rams hit 23 of the 32, and the Pride made good on 11 of their 14 attempts.

“We were missing shots we normally make, but our guys never got frustrated,” Grant said. “They continued to guard, continued to do the things we needed to win … that’s showing me maturity for our basketball team.”

Next up for the Rams, is a road game with Towson (7-10, 2-3 in CAA) at 7 p.m. on Wed., Jan. 14.

January 10, 2009 3:22 PM 0