Recap: Davidson goes arthroscopic on VCU, obliterates HAVOC!

Davidson scored early, often, and gracefully in an 82-55 beatdown of Virginia Commonwealth University Thursday night in Davidson, North Carolina.

March 5, 2015; 11:38 PM • by Aaron Williams

Recap

Sophomore guard Doug Brooks started for Melvin Johnson, who had started every game this season, but the change did little to slow Davidson’s crisp attack. There is no nice way to put it: the Wildcats carved up VCU’s confused, flat, and ineffective defense.

Davidson started 5-of-5 from the floor and jumped out to a 19-6 lead before never relinquishing a double-digit margin. On play after play, VCU left Davidson’s 3-point shooters open. The sharpshooting rattled VCU and then the Wildcats started abusing the Rams on back-door cuts. The Wildcats’ offense was surgical. It was an arthroscopic performance.

On the offensive end, VCU struggled mightily against a team that simply isn’t a defensive force. The Rams tallied 16 turnovers, couldn’t buy buckets, and failed to find opportunities in transition. One reason Coach Smart gets paid so much is because he will have to watch this game over and over and over again on film.

Barring Richmond losing to Saint Louis in the Robins Center on Saturday, VCU will finish fifth in the Atlantic 10. After starting 7-0 in conference play, the Rams will likely fall short of the double-bye in Brooklyn which means they will have to play on Thursday while Dayton, Davidson, Rhode Island, and Richmond watch from the stands in street clothes.

Senior Tyler Kalinoski finished with 22 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals. Jack Gibbs added 15 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds, and 4 steals. Jordan Barham tallied 13 points and 14 rebounds.

Terry Larrier led VCU with 12 points (4-5 2PFG, 0-5 3PFG). Mo Alie-Cox finished with 9 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, and a block. Treveon Graham finished with 4 points (2-4 2PFG, 0-3 3PFG) and 5 rebounds.

5 stats

• Coach Smart has coached 215 games at VCU. This is the first time he’s lost three consecutive games.
• Davidson finished 11-of-26 (.423) from 3-point range.
• The last time Treveon Graham played a full game and scored 4 points was in VCU’s 77-53 loss to Villanova on November 24th.
• VCU finished 21-of-53 (.396) from 2-point range, 1-of-15 (.067) from 3-point range, and 12-of-25 (.480) from the free-throw line.
• Davidson tallied 20 assists on 29 field goals.

Looking forward

No rest for the weary. VCU returns home for senior night against George Mason on Saturday, March 7th at 5:30 PM. The game will be broadcast on NBC Sports Network.

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Related

• What to expect: Davidson and the gift of lowered expectations

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March 5, 2015 11:38 PM 3