Rams prepare for conference showdowns

March – and the madness that comes with it – is only one month away, and every team in the Colonial Athletic Association is wondering who will finish on top.

For VCU’s men’s basketball team, the games coming up at the end of this week against two of the upper echelon teams in the conference will play a major factor in determining whether the Rams will be dancing this year.

VCU hosts conference-leading George Mason Thursday at the Stuart C. Siegel Center, where the Rams have yet to lose a game so far this season. They also host former CAA champion Old Dominion Saturday for homecoming, which will be broadcast nationwide on ESPN 2.

The Patriots (11-2 CAA, 17-5) are coming off a 67-62 win over UNC-Wilmington that gave them sole possession of first place in the conference. They have won 10 of their past 11 and 16 of their past 19 games.

Behind the strong play of senior forward Jai Lewis and senior point guard Tony Skinn, the Patriots have also earned recognition in national sports polls. ESPN/USA Today has the Patriots ranked 33rd in the nation as of Tuesday, and the team is ranked 40th in the nation in The Associated Press poll.

Despite the rankings, Rams senior guard Jesse Pellot-Rosa (Richmond/George Wythe High School) said he is confident about Thursday’s match up.

“I think we’ll come out, and we’re gonna play hard,” he said before practice Tuesday. “We’ll try to execute on offense and pick up the person defensively, and I think we should come out all right. We should come out with a win.”

The Patriots have a versatile offense that spreads the ball around and can score from different angles. All five of the team’s starters average double-digit scoring, led by Lewis and Skinn.

Lewis leads the team with 13.4 points per game and is a strong post player, standing 6-7 and weighing 275 pounds. Skinn is a quick slasher and strong defensive player, leading the team with 70 steals and scoring 13.0 points per game.

Rams senior guard Julian Capel (Fayetteville, N.C.) said he respects the Patriots’ players, but his team has a game plan to try and shut them down.

“They’ve got good guards and they’ve got good big men,” Capel said. “We might be able to contain (Skinn). We’ve been doing a good job on scouting reports trying to learn his moves and things like that. You know he’s probably going to get his (points), it’s just the other players we need to key in on.”

Pellot-Rosa said the focus is to stop Lewis, but Skinn is dangerous as well.

“I think it’s mainly Jai Lewis,” he said. “(We’ve) gotta contain him on the inside. Tony Skinn is a good penetrator, so we’ve got to cut down on his penetration and then we’ll do our thing.”

The Monarchs (9-4, 16-7) come to town Saturday having won the past three games against the Rams, including their last CAA tournament championship game in 2005.

VCU lost a close game at ODU this season 78-75 after losing the conference championship last year on a last-second layup by guard Isaiah Hunter.

With Hunter and former CAA player of the year Alex Loughton returning as seniors, the Monarchs came into the season heavily favored to repeat as conference champions.

The Monarchs have struggled to live up to their reputation this season, having lost back-to-back conference games against George Mason Jan. 28, and Hofstra Feb. 2, before beating James Madison, who is in last place in the conference. The Monarchs are also 4-5 on the road this season.

Regardless, the Monarchs pose a threat to the Rams with their strong post play and athletic big men.

Loughton, 6-9 and 240 pounds, is strong below the basket and can also shoot well from the field while hitting the occasional 3-pointer. Forward Arnaud Dahi is a strong forward at 6-7 and scores 11.7 points a game, while reserve center Sam Harris holds a giant size advantage at 7-3.

Capel recognized the need for the Rams’ post players to have a big game.

“We’re going to need them to step up because we’re playing probably the two best big men in our league. We’re going to need them to play hard and give us a good effort.”

Pellot-Rosa said forwards Sam Faulk (Fayetteville, N.C.) and Eric Davis (Philadelphia, Pa.) should do a good job doing just that.

“Yeah (Faulk) did a good job with (Loughton) the first time we played them, so as long as we stay out of foul trouble we should be okay. We’ve got Eric Davis coming in to stack ’em up.”

Pellot-Rosa added that the key focus against the Monarchs when trying to slow them down Saturday will be to limit their transition buckets. To do that, Pellot-Rosa and Senior guard Alexander Harper (Columbia, S.C.) must slow down Hunter.

With a national audience watching Saturday on ESPN 2, the Rams look to stay undefeated at home through the weekend to remain among the top teams in the conference.

“That’s the plan,” Capel said. “We really don’t have a choice (but to win) at this point if we want to get to where we want to be. We’ll see what happens. We’re definitely going to go out there and give 110 percent.”