From news sources
Defense may win championships, but Wednesday night it got VCU out of the first round of the Colonial Athletic Association tournament.
The Rams held UNC Wilmington to 26.3 percent shooting from the field and earned a 53-40 win to advance to the second round of the CAA tournament.
The Seahawks 40-point performance was the lowest output in the conference tournament since James Madison held American to 36 points in 1999.
The Rams move on to play Delaware Thursday at noon.
The Rams win comes just six days after dropping a 65-59 decision to the Seahawks in Wilmington.
Senior Lauren Hogan, who earlier this week was named to the All-CAA third team, led the Rams in the previous outing with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Hogan came out Wednesday night and nearly repeated the performance, scoring a game-high 14 points and pulling down nine boards. She also pestered the Seahawks on defense, coming up with two steals.
“Taking advantage of turnovers was a focus for us coming into this game and we were able to take advantage of that tonight,” said Rams head coach Beth Cunningham.
UNCW missed 13 of their 15 3-point attempts, and made just two shots from the floor in the final eight minutes of the game.
Laura Barry and CAA Rookie of the Year Meagan Samis both scored 11 points for UNCW, and Megan Withrow added 10 points and nine rebounds.
Withrow said he team felt VCU’s defensive pressure all game.
“Tonight, our shots just weren’t falling,” Withrow said. “They packed that zone in and they have a 6’8″ girl (Kristina Cesnaviciute) in there, so it’s hard for us to penetrate when that’s what you’re going at. Forty-points just isn’t going to do.”
Freshman LaKea Jones added 10 points for the VCU and senior forward Maria Giovannetti flirted with a double-double, scoring nine points and grabbing nine rebounds.
The Rams now have the task of knocking off No. 1 seed Delaware, but it’s not like the haven’t done it before. The Rams stunned the Blue Hens, 68-65 in Delaware on Feb. 13.
That win, Giovannetti said, will give the team confidence for their meeting on Thursday.
Said Giovannetti, “We have the mindset that given the opportunity we can go out and beat anybody.”