VCU men’s basketball falls short against Flyers, drop third straight

Ryan Grube, Staff Writer

The pilot light was lit ahead of men’s basketball’s matchup against No. 5 Dayton on Tuesday night as Rams fans packed the Siegel Center for VCU’s much-anticipated date with the Flyers.

But, not enough gas followed for the Rams. Although the crowd brought an uptick in energy following their team’s loss to George Mason last week, the noise was not sufficient.

VCU fell 66-61 to ex-Rams coach Anthony Grant and his crew Tuesday, despite freshman guard Bones Hyland’s 18 points. 

Dayton entered Tuesday’s contest as the highest-ranked opponent VCU has ever welcomed to the Siegel Center. The previous high came when the black and gold took on then-No. 7-ranked Virginia on Nov. 17, 2017 — a game the Rams lost 76-67.

VCU fell behind in the early going Tuesday, as the Flyers opened the game on a 6-0 run after 3-pointers by Obi Toppin and Ryan Mikesell found the bottom of the net.

But the Rams responded with a quick 7-0 run of their own, finished off by a layup from Hyland, and the Siegel Center was ignited.

The Wilmington, Delaware, native started in the place of redshirt-senior guard Marcus Evans, who was active for the game but didn’t receive any playing time.

He put together a strong showing before the halftime intermission, dropping 13 points on 5-for-9 shooting, 2-for-4 from three, to pace the black and gold in scoring.

Following a deep three pointer by Hyland, Dayton went on a 7-2 run to take a 7-point lead with three and a half minutes to go before the break. 

Senior guard Malik Crowfield drilled a 3-pointer to trim VCU’s lead to 1 with two and a half minutes remaining in the first half of play, but 5 straight Dayton points swung the Flyers’ lead back to 6. The Rams trailed 36-29 at the break.

 VCU kickstarted the second half with a 7-2 spurt to bring the game within 2, aided by a three from Hyland. He connected on three triples for the game.

Junior forward Marcus Santos-Silva had high praise for Hyland, who recorded a double-digit scoring output for the second time against a tough Dayton defense.

“He’s not a freshman. His mentality, his maturity — he doesn’t play as a freshman,” Santos-Silva said. “The whole team and the coaching staff, we trust him, and we just let him go off when he’s feeling it.”

Santos-Silva notched his ninth double-double — 12 points and 17 rebounds — of the season.

The Rams kept the margin within striking distance down the stretch, cutting their deficit to as close as two on a three-point play by sophomore forward Vince Williams with just over six minutes to play.

VCU didn’t inch any closer, as the Flyers pulled away with free throws to seal the victory. 

The result marks three straight losses for coach Mike Rhoades and company for the first time since the 2015-16 season.

Rhoades said the mentality moving forward is “no excuses,” adding that his team just needs to find a way to win the next one.

“It stinks. It’s no fun. It’s driving me crazy,” Rhoades said. “But I want it to drive our guys crazy, and let’s do something about it. Today was a step in the right direction against a great team, but we’re not making any excuses around here.”

The Rams will face Saint Louis on the road on Feb. 21 at 9 p.m.