Drew Thompson, Sports Editor
Almost a year ago to the day, VCU announced Phil Martelli Jr. as the new men’s basketball head coach, replacing Ryan Odom.
Martelli came from a long coaching pedigree but had a relatively short career to this point, only having coached at Bryant University for two seasons before coming to VCU.
VCU is among other mid-major giants, and its expectations reflect that. Many fans — myself included — went into this season anticipating some growing pains.
Martelli inherited a squad that housed zero returning starters from the previous season. Not only that, but the non-conference schedule Martelli crafted featured more heavy hitters than Ram fans may have been accustomed to.
VCU was voted the top team in the 2025-2026 Atlantic 10 preseason despite all of this. Early non-conference losses to Utah State University, North Carolina State University and New Mexico University left people worried about the remainder of the season.
Those worries only grew when VCU started A-10 play with a 2-2 record, however from this point on a switch flipped with the team. After the conference loss to George Mason University on Jan. 10, VCU ended the season winning 17 of its last 19 games.
Martelli careened through the A-10 conference tournament and secured an automatic bid after winning the title. Making it to March Madness would have been enough for many first year coaches, but he was not satisfied.
Not only did Martelli make it to the NCAA tournament, he led VCU to a historic comeback upset over No. 6 University of North Carolina — the Rams first NCAA tournament win in a decade.
Martelli did in his first year what no one else could for 10 years. This already makes him the best coach VCU has had in the last decade, and puts him on par with former coach Will Wade.
Truth be told this outcome shocked me, but looking back it shouldn’t have. Martelli’s two seasons at Bryant quickly displayed his coaching prowess.
In Martelli’s first season with Bryant, he led it to a 20-13 record, marking the first time a Bryant coach hit 20 wins in its debut season in over 50 years.
Bryant’s second season under Martelli saw it go to its second-ever NCAA Tournament and hit a Division I program record with 23 wins in a single season.
Martelli was primed to thrive in the A-10, and his personable coaching style brought the best out of his players. Multiple VCU players had career years under Martelli, most notably second-year guard Terrence Hill Jr.
Martelli instilled a confidence in his players that was second to none, and the results became obvious as the season went on.
His efforts proved most fruitful when the team chose to fight back instead of rolling over when it faced a 19-point deficit against No. 6 University of North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Although his debut season came to an end against No. 3 University of Illinois, Martelli fulfilled the goal he mentioned in his introductory press conference of protecting VCU’s legacy.
“VCU men’s basketball has been synonymous with excellence. You look around at all those banners, you see the trophies, and you recognize that you are upholding a longstanding legacy,” Martelli said. “I take that very seriously, protecting that legacy is always, always, always on my mind.”
Martelli did more than protect VCU’s legacy, he expanded it. His efforts rewarded him with a contract extension that will keep him with the Rams through the 2031–32 season.
The Rams are primed for even more years of success. Martelli’s commitment to the Black and Gold sends a clear message to the rest of the NCAA. Expect even more national recognition for VCU. This is only the beginning.