Quick hits: how Seton Hall housed VCU

Quinn Casteel
Assistant Sports Editor
Commonwealth Times Sports’ Twitter

The one and lonely:
Bradford Burgess was the only player to record double-digit points for VCU (1-1) on Thursday night against Seton Hall (2-0), scoring an underwhelming 11. He remains in search of his first three pointer this season having gone 0-5 in his first two games. Without Burgess carrying the offense on his back, the production has been disappointing so far. Through two contests, the Ram offense is averaging 58.5 points per game, a far cry from their average last year which was second in the conference at 70.

Reddic not a factor, big problem:
Against St. Francis (Pa.), Juvonte Reddic proved that he has embraced his leadership role this season. The sophomore forward went for career-highs in points (19) and rebounds (10) and showed that he wants to be the physical force on both sides of the ball that VCU has been lacking. But last night against Seton Hall he struggled mightily which proved costly for the Rams. Reddic fouled out with about a quarter of the game still to go and scored just three points in 16 minutes due to foul trouble.

Offense unable to click for second straight game:
Havoc was, in a word, sloppy on Thursday night. Turnovers on the wrong side of the court and in the post proved to be costly errors for VCU as Seton Hall went on a 16-3 run in the first half that set the tone for the rest of the game. The full-court offense struggled but the half-court offense was worse. Too many possessions consisted of passing around the perimeter, waiting for someone to get open, which usually never happened.

No answer for Pope:
Herb Pope dominated inside and out for Seton Hall, putting up 20 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. The six-foot-eight forward was too much for Reddic, or anyone else who tried to guard him, to handle. Without a defensive specialist like Toby Veal to shut down big-bodied scorers like Pope, VCU could be in for some long games this season against the CAA’s elite bangers like George Mason and Old Dominion.

Simply outmatched:
Pope wasn’t the only Pirate who torched the Ram defense. Fuquan Edwin and Jordan Theodore went for 18 and 20 respectively as the trio combined for 58 of Seton Hall’s 69 points. The Seton Hall bench did not record a point all night because the starters were having their way with VCU defense. It was no secret who was getting the ball, it was simply a matter of “Our best against your best” and Seton Hall was the better team.

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Photo by: Kyle Laferriere