VCU 76, Akron 75, OT: Analysis/Reaction

Jim Swing
Sports Editor
Commonwealth Times’ Sports Twitter

For close to 40 minutes it seemed as if the VCU men’s basketball team couldn’t find a way to get over the hump and pull out a win at Akron. Shots weren’t falling on the Rams’ end, and all the while the rain was coming down in buckets for the Zips. But good teams always find a way to win, and that’s what VCU (10-3) did in a 76-75 overtime win over Akron (7-6) Thursday night.

Flip the script: Rarely do you watch a VCU game and see the Rams get outshot from long range. It was a weird feeling Thursday night when Akron lit the Rams up for 10-of-20 shooting from beyond the arc to the Rams’ 5-of-19. Of the 10 3-point shots the Zips produced, you could argue not one of them was contested. You know it’s bad when Zips big man Nikola Cvetinovic was getting in on the action. On the other end, the Rams were facing an Akron team that has the 29th best 3-point shooting defense in the country (.277). The Zips did a good job of sealing off the perimeter and limiting VCU to just over 23 percent shooting from long range.

Birthday boy: On the night of his 19th birthday, Briante Weber made a party out of it. Right from the get go the freshman guard entered the game in the first half and recorded two of his five steals only about 15 seconds apart from each other. Next to playing his usual role as a nuisance on defense, Weber was a big help on offense. He finished with 11 points and four assists and chipped in with his favorite midrange stop and pop.

Burgess-Theus connection: With just over 20 seconds remaining in overtime and VCU down by one, the Rams had one final possession to write out the ending of a roller coaster night. As time dwindled, Bradford Burgess spun around in the lane and hit Darius Theus with a beautiful scoop pass for an easy layup to give VCU a one-point lead with approximately three seconds remaining in the game. Burgess led the Rams with 19 points and seven rebounds, while Theus finished with 10 points and five assists.

Brandenberg.: Seconds after Akron loaded up a full court heave as time expired and VCU earned its seventh straight victory, Rob Brandenberg took the ball and cannoned it into the crowd. The sophomore guard was huge Thursday night, finishing with 11 points and three rebounds, including a deep two-point shot at the start of overtime to help VCU begin the new period on the right foot. Chris Kowalczyk of Around the Horns tweeted that head coach Shaka Smart had basically said that Brandenberg wouldn’t accept not playing Thursday night despite a badly sprained ankle. The guy is simply that passionate.

Getting it done at the line: When shots weren’t falling for the Rams, they got to the line. VCU went 21-for-31 from the charity stripe and did a great job drawing contact and getting to the line when things were falling apart on offense. Burgess went a hot 10-for-10 from the line, which helped out to say the least.

Paying dividends: VCU’s win over Akron goes beyond just winning seven straight games. It was also the Rams’ final game of the non-conference schedule (other than a Bracketbusters game in February) heading into league play. VCU will face a hot Hofstra (6-7, 0-1) team Monday, which is coming off a huge win over one of the nation’s top mid major competitors in Iona. Thursday night’s win over Akron could pay huge dividends for a young VCU team with a head full of confidence heading into conference play.