VCU men’s hoops took home a 75-67 win against Oregon State University in the first round of the NCAA tournament in Oklahoma City, denying the OSU Beavers a tournament win in their first appearance since 1990.
This is VCU’s sixth consecutive year playing in the tournament, but the first time the team has walked away victorious in the first round since 2013.
“Our guys played tough; our guys were pretty good from the jump,” said head coach Will Wade, who is making his NCAA tournament debut his first year coaching the Rams. “They deserve the credit for the win.”
VCU got it going early offensively after a poor shooting show-out in the Atlantic 10 Championship loss to St. Joseph’s. The Rams shot 48.2 percent from the floor including 46 points coming from scoring in the paint.
Junior Point guard JeQuan Lewis was a magician on the court in his third-straight NCAA tournament. The Dickson Tennessee native put on a show, leading all scorers with 21 points.
It wasn’t just scoring that highlighted Lewis’ performance, but his floor leadership that led VCU to victory. His speed and agility brought in eight rebounds and dished out seven assist, while only turning over the ball four times to claim a VCU victory.
“He is a heck of a player, lightning quick,” said OSU guard Gary Payton II. “He pushes the ball in transition, finds open players and he just made big shots late in the game.”
Payton II led his team with 19 points on 9-17 shooting. It wasn’t until the 10 minute mark in the second half that he made his presence known on the court.
The Beavers rattled off 10-straight points and gained the lead after Payton II executed a thunderous alley-oop and brought the score to 51-49 with 9:48 remaining. It was the last lead OSU would have in the contest.
Payton II’s father, Gary Payton Sr., was known for his scrappy defense and trash talking ability during his 19 year career in the NBA. Nicknamed “The Glove” Payton Sr. also attended Oregon State; unlike his father, Payton II can score the ball with the best of them.
“(Payton)’s a great player, but we’re all players at the end of the day.” Lewis said. “We just stuck to what we do. We weren’t really thinking about anything else.”
Initiated by Lewis pushing the pace in transition, senior Melvin Johnson cashed in on his only three of the afternoon — the biggest shot of the game.
That three gave VCU a 52-51 advantage with 8:27 to play. The Rams, much due to the credit of junior Mo Alie-Cox’s play downlow, catalyzed another late game surge to take a commanding lead.
“It was huge. It was a confidence booster,” Johnson said. “When JeQuan pitched it, he yelled, shoot, so I had no choice but to.”
The Rams have yet to find their stroke from 3-point territory, shooting an abysmal 4-20 on the contest. Wade accredited the inside play as a means of making up for not shooting the ball well at this point.
“We’re one of those teams that may shoot 4 of 20 today and shoot 14 of 20 on Sunday, that’s just the way we are out there,” Wade said. “So that’s a point of emphasis for us is being able to get that thing inside, whether it be off post feeds, the bounce, whatever.”
Wade said he trusted his guys not to call a timeout after the OSU run.
“We’ve got a good level of trust, good level of connectivity between our team and the coaching staff,” Wade said. “That helps you win in March.”
Alie-Cox feasted on a less-aggressive OSU frontcourt. His physical presence was the key for the Rams in out-rebounding the Beavers 40-28.
It wasn’t the best of outings for senior Korey Billbury in his return home to Oklahoma. The Tulsa native finished the game with six points and two rebounds, but that didn’t stop his family from showing their excitement throughout the game.
“Hopefully now he can settle in a little bit and be ready to go and put his best foot forward on Sunday,” Wade said.
VCU will play the winner of CSU Bakersfield and Oklahoma on Sunday at a time TBD. If Oklahoma were to win, VCU would be matched up with one of the most electric players in college basketball: Buddy Hield.
“That’s on the coaches,” Johnson joked in reference to stopping Hield. “You can’t necessarily worry about who you’re playing against — it’s basketball in March — so it’s more nameless, faceless.”
Potentially stopping Hield will be a tall task for VCU, but a tough win against a tested OSU team is a start.
Sports Editor, Bryant Drayton
Bryant is a sports advocate who’s always smiling. He is a senior print and online journalism major aspiring for a career as a professional or college football columnist. Bryant currently covers high school football games for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. // Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn
draytonbo@commonwealthtimes.org
Photo Editor, Brooke Marsh
Brooke is a senior pursuing a BFA in photography & film and a minor in media studies. Prior to her role as Photo Editor, Brooke was a staff photographer for the CT. Brooke’s work has been featured at a number of exhibitions and she previously interned at Candela Gallery in Richmond. Brooke has experience photographing for news, sports and entertainment. // Twitter | Facebook | Portfolio