Feeling bullish? VCU Rams vs. South Florida Bulls preview

Commonwealth Times Sports staff
Commonwealth Times Sports’ Twitter

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Who: VCU (3-3) vs. USF (5-2)
When: 7:30 p.m.
Where: Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center
TV: ESPN3
Radio: WBBT 107.3 FM

Coaches:

USF: Stan Heath, fifth year, record of 56-79.

VCU: Shaka Smart, third year, record of 58-24.

USF projected starting five:

1. Sophomore guard Lavonte Dority, 4.2 PPG, 2.5 APG
2. Sophomore guard Blake Nash, 9.4 PPG, 1.7 APG
3. Sophomore guard/forward Victor Rudd, 12.9 PPG, 4.6 RP
4. Senior forward Ron Anderson Jr. 10.4 PPG, 7.4 RPG
5. Junior forward Toarlyn Fitzpatrick, 9.0 PPG, 7.7 RPG

VCU projected starting five:

1. Junior point guard Darius Theus, 8.0 PPG, 3.2 RPG
2. Sophomore guard Rob Brandenberg 9.7 PPG, 0.2 RPG
3. Freshman guard/forward Briante Weber 7.5 PPG, 3.2 RPG
4. Senior forward Bradford Burgess 12.3 PPG, 4.2 RPG
5. Sophomore forward Juvonte Reddic 8.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG

The storyline: Needing an 18 point comeback in last season’s match up versus South Florida after falling behind 28-10, VCU came all the way back and forced overtime but lost out from there to go down by one point, 60-59. VCU leads the all-time series between the two sides 25-12 and are 7-3 in the teams’ last 10 meetings and 14-4 at home all-time versus the Bulls. USF has already gone against a CAA side this season: ODU topped the Bulls 68-66 in overtime of their match up in the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame Tip-Off.

The line: As of Wednesday morning, the Rams are five point favorites for tonight’s match versus the Bulls.

Quick hits:

• VCU lost nearly three times as much scoring from last season as the Bulls: VCU lost 61 percent ; USF lost just 23.
• USF was picked to finish 14th out of 16th in the preseason Big East poll. VCU was picked to finish third in the CAA.
• USF returns four starers from last season. VCU returns one.
• Tonight’s game marks USF’s first road game of the season. The Bulls have played five at home and two on a neutral court.
• Tonight’s game marks the seventh time in Siegel Center history a BCS team will come to the Siegel Center and the second time a Big East squad has (VCU beat Pitt in 2000).
• Tonight’s game should mark the sixth consecutive sell-out at the Siegel Center, with less than 75 tickets remaining as of yesterday. VCU’s previous record for sell-outs was four, achieved twice and the CAA record is nine, achieved by UNC Wilmington in in 2002.
• With a start tonight, VCU senior Brad Burgess will move to 117 consecutive starts. The figure– which already represents the most in college basketball currently– would put him only five more starts away from breaking the all-time record at VCU of 121. (Burgess had 15 points and 13 rebounds versus the Bulls last year)
• After five-straight games on the road over the course of 19 days, VCU will play four of the their next five games at home, with the lone exception coming this Sunday when VCU travels to Washington D.C. to take on George Washington at the Verizon Center in the BB&T Classic.

Quote it: 

 Shaka Smart on USF:

“They’re better than the team last year that beat us by one point down there so we’re going to have to play really well to win. We’re going to have to play big and rebound well because they have a big team. We’re going to have to do a terrific job on the inside.

If we can battle on the glass for 40 minutes, we got a great shot. Then we’re going to have to do a great job defending their bigs.

We’ve got to make sure we come out with great intensity and make South Florida earn everything they get. Teams are going to find ways to score, you just don’t want to give them baskets, you’ve got to make them earn what they get.

The hard thing with our style of play is we’re extending ourselves because we want to turn people over and it’s been good for us, but then when they do break the press you’ve got to be sound in the half court.”

Bradford Burgess on USF:

“Rebounding … they killed us on the boards last year; every body is going to have to rebound (in positions) 1-5 in order to compete with them because they’re definitely a better team than they were last year. That’s the major thing that’s going to influence things: team rebounding.”

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Photo by: Chris Conway/The CT

A portion of the quick hits compiled from VCU Athletics’ game-day central