Pushed to the brink: Rams escape in OT against William & Mary
Reddic's 28 points and six steals on Thursday against William & Mary were both career highs.
Quinn Casteel
Assistant Sports Editor
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If anyone thought Thursday’s matchup with William & Mary (4-15) would be a trap game for VCU (14-5), they were right.
With the shot clock off and his team trailing by one in overtime, point guard Darius Theus wanted to get the ball to Juvonte Reddic, whose career-high 28 points had carried VCU all night—but when Reddic was double-teamed, Theus was forced to call his own number.
A couple hard dribbles and a spin move later, Theus hit the go-ahead layup with nine seconds left in the game. Reddic and Briante Weber teamed up for one final stop on William & Mary’s (4-15) last possession and the Rams survived a possibly crippling upset, 69-68.
The game-winning layup was Theus’ second this season, the first coming on Dec. 29 at Akron. The junior had 12 points and three assists in 39 minutes of playing time, but his contributions went well beyond the box score.
“Everyone knows he’s capable of big plays,” said Reddic on Theus. “And he proved that he’s a leader tonight.”
Reddic had more than a few big play of his own as well. In addition to the career night in points, he posted a career-high in steals with six and also went 6-of-8 at the free throw line.
“We didn’t want to double him but we had to,” William & Mary head coach Tony Shaver said about Reddic. “We tried to trap him some, and I thought did that effectively, but he’s a great player.”
POLL: Who was VCU’s MVP versus William & Mary?
Reddic’s six steals gave him some easy breakaway buckets, one of which was wasted on a missed dunk, but he had the full arsenal on display. He hit a variety of mid-range jump shots from all angles and had his way with William & Mary forward Tim Rusthoven in the post. Reddic scored VCU’s first 11 points and went on to play what was statistically the best game of his career.
“What helped me out was before the game, (head coach Shaka Smart) showed us a couple quotes and that really motivated me and got me more ready to play,” said Reddic. “I just kept those in the back of my head.”
Reddic said the quote that stuck out the most was one that said VCU is not an elite team in the CAA this season.
Beside the bright spots of Theus and Reddic offensively, it was another poor offensive output for VCU. As a team, they were 22-of-64 overall, and 2-of-22 from three. Minus the two leading scorers, the rest of the Rams were a combined 6-of-36 from the floor.
Starting with the first basket of the game, VCU led the entire way until there were less than five minutes to go in regulation. After William & Mary tied things up for the first time though, there were seven ties and 12 lead changes. For the final three minutes of regulation and beyond, there was never a lead larger than three points and for the most part it was bucket-for-bucket basketball.
Perennial all-conference player Quinn McDowell had 15 points for the Tribe, but fouled-out very early on in overtime. So instead, it was freshman guard Marcus Thornton who took the reins for William & Mary and led the team with 22 points.
“He’s a real good player,” said Theus on Thornton. “He stood us up a couple times and got to the cup at will.”
For VCU, it was the fifth straight game they have shot under 40 percent as a team, but despite the shooting woes they find themselves on a three-game conference win streak. They will look to extend that streak on Saturday afternoon when they host rival Old Dominion (11-8).
“We’ve got to turn the page quickly,” said Smart. “We’re going right into preparation mode for (Old Dominion). We don’t have time for rest or anything like that.”
