Senior shooting guard Jamal Shuler (Jacksonville, N.C./Jackson-
ville) has gotten into the habit of calling himself and point guard Eric Maynor (Raeford, N.C./Westover) one of the best backcourts in the nation.
“I believe that in my heart . we compliment each other real well,” Shuler said.
Their ability to play well together did the trick in the second half of the game Saturday night. The duo combined for 32 of VCU’s 49 second-half points to lead the Rams past Drexel, 76-62, in front of a sell-out crowd at the Stuart C. Siegel Center.
VCU’s offense came out sluggish in the first half. The Rams shot only 30.4 percent from the f eld and made more free throws (11) than i eld goals (7). However, Drexel also came out cold, shooting 30.8 percent while also making more free throws (9) than f eld goals
Despite losing its best player, Drexel was able to hold off the conference-
leading Rams for most of the fi rst half. After Larry Sanders (Fort Pierce, Fla./Port St. Lucie) hit 1 of 2 free throws to give VCU a 5-4 lead with 15:28 remaining in the fi rst half, the Rams went scoreless for almost two minutes, allowing the Dragons to take the lead on a Scott Rodgers 3-pointer. The Dragons held the lead for almost 12 minutes before Franck Ndongo (Yaounde, Cameroon/Montverde Academy) and Shuler hit back-to-back 3-pointers with less than two minutes remaining to give the Rams the lead for good at 27-24. Drexel forward Randy Oveneke scored a basket with 12 seconds remaining in the half to close the gap to 27-26.
The second half was a completely different story from the fi rst. Shuler scored lay-ups on consecutive possessions followed by two lay-ups in a row by Maynor. Maynor’s second shot gave the Rams a 6-point lead, which would diminish back down to 1 after Rodgers and Oveneke made consecutive baskets, cutting the VCU lead to 37-36 with 14:24 remaining.
Oveneke’s shot didn’t spark a Dragons run, but sparked a run by Maynor. The junior guard scored 11 straight points – including two technical foul free throws – to give VCU a 12-point lead, 48-36, with 12:11 remaining.
“How are you going to lose Eric Maynor But we did it,” Drexel coach James “Bruiser” Flint said.
Maynor’s free throws were shot after Flint slapped and kicked the scorer’s table. However, Flint was not upset by a call made by an offi cial, but rather the play of his team.
“I thought we made two really bad plays in the heat of the game when we were right there, and by two of our better guys,” he said.
The Dragons were unable to get any closer than 8 points the rest of the way. The Rams led by double digits over the fi nal 6:21.
Maynor scored 18 of his game-high 20 points in the second half, all within a 9-minute span. Shuler added 17 points and 8 rebounds, including 14 points in the second half.
“I think great players respond to challenges. Both of those guys in the first half knew they needed to up their games on both ends of the floor,” said coach Anthony Grant of Maynor and Shuler’s performances.
Senior forward Michael Anderson (Virginia Beach/Landstown) finished with 10 points and five rebounds while freshman point guard Joey Rodriguez (Oviedo, Fla./Lake Howell) finished with 10 points and six rebounds. Rob Hampton led Drexel with 15 points and five assists.
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INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
Drexel (2-7 CAA, 9-12): Elegar 11, Oveneke 8, Hawthorne 9, Rodgers 8, Hampton 15, Colds 0, Formbor 3, Harris 2, Neisler 4, Tribett 2. Totals: 21 15-22 62. 3-pointers: Hawthorne 3, Rodgers 2.
VCU (8-1, 15-4): Sanders 9, Anderson 10, Maynor 20, Rodriguez 10, Shuler 17, Fameni 0, Smith 0, Rozzell 0, Pishchalnikov 2, Ndongo 5, Kearse 0, Brown 0, Gwynn 0, Nixon 0. Totals: 23 25-35 76. 3-pointers: Maynor 2, Anderson, Shuler, Ndongo.