Friday's VCU vs. Rhode Island game a clash of teams with depth
When asked what makes Rhode Island so tough, senior point guard Jonathan Williams of VCU said the team?s guard play.
He ticked off names of Rhode Island guards, from seniors Jared Terrell, E.C. Matthews, Stanford Robinson and Jarvis Garrett, to sophomore Jeff Dowtin and freshman Fatts Russell. Each have made important contributions.
And when Rhode Island (18-3, 10-0 Atlantic 10), the A-10 league leader, visits the Siegel Center on Friday night, VCU (14-8, 6-3) will be charged with keeping those guards at bay.
?They got a plethora of guys that can just do different things,? said Williams. ?And they all can play off each other.?
Terrell is leading the way with 18 points per game for Rhode Island, which has won 13 games in a row and is ranked No. 22 in the AP Top 25. Matthews, who missed some time early this season with a broken left wrist, averages 13.7 points. Robinson is 14th in the country in steals per game with 2.4.
Garrett is sixth on Rhode Island?s all-time list with 368 career assists. Dowtin is second in the A-10 with 5.6 assists per game behind Williams? 5.8 per game for VCU. Russell is averaging 6.2 points in 17.5 minutes per game.
As far as limiting players such as Terrell and Matthews on the offensive end, senior forward Justin Tillman said that VCU has to be aggressive.
?Pressuring them, pushing them out on the perimeter,? he said. ?Making them have tough catches to get the ball in their possession. And just making them take tough shots.?
VCU has also gotten contributions down its roster, from its ?army? as coach Mike Rhoades has called it. The team has had four players score in double figures in each of its past three games ? wins over George Washington, Saint Louis and George Mason.
?I think the one thing that we?re doing a good job of (is) finding different guys to score and make plays,? said Rhoades. ?And we?re scoring points, and we?re doing it through each other, it?s just not a one-man show.
?And, of course, Justin is doing a great job finishing and making plays and scoring. But I think other guys are contributing at a high level, and that?s really helping us.?
A big contribution last Saturday at George Mason was that of Khris Lane, a 6-foot-7, 245-pound senior forward, who had season highs of 25 points and 12 rebounds. The 6-8, 220-pound Tillman, who leads VCU with 18.2 points per game, said that play like that from Lane can take a lot of pressure off of him.
?It stops a lot of teams from double-teaming me, because they?re not as focused on me,? said Tillman. ? ?Oh, catch the ball, trap him.? If they trap me, I can dish it out to him.?
To keep the momentum that VCU has built in its three-game win streak going Friday, Tillman said that he, Williams and the rest of the starting five have to bring energy to start the game. VCU has found itself down at halftime in six of its nine league games, and that?s certainly not a position it wants to keep putting itself in.
?I feel like when we start off the game right, then the team follows,? said Tillman. ?So, as we do that, everything will be all right.?
When asked what makes Rhode Island so tough, senior point guard Jonathan Williams of VCU said the team?s guard play.
He ticked off names of Rhode Island guards, from seniors Jared Terrell, E.C. Matthews, Stanford Robinson and Jarvis Garrett, to sophomore Jeff Dowtin and freshman Fatts Russell. Each have made important contributions.
And when Rhode Island (18-3, 10-0 Atlantic 10), the A-10 league leader, visits the Siegel Center on Friday night, VCU (14-8, 6-3) will be charged with keeping those guards at bay.
?They got a plethora of guys that can just do different things,? said Williams. ?And they all can play off each other.?
Terrell is leading the way with 18 points per game for Rhode Island, which has won 13 games in a row and is ranked No. 22 in the AP Top 25. Matthews, who missed some time early this season with a broken left wrist, averages 13.7 points. Robinson is 14th in the country in steals per game with 2.4.
Garrett is sixth on Rhode Island?s all-time list with 368 career assists. Dowtin is second in the A-10 with 5.6 assists per game behind Williams? 5.8 per game for VCU. Russell is averaging 6.2 points in 17.5 minutes per game.
As far as limiting players such as Terrell and Matthews on the offensive end, senior forward Justin Tillman said that VCU has to be aggressive.
?Pressuring them, pushing them out on the perimeter,? he said. ?Making them have tough catches to get the ball in their possession. And just making them take tough shots.?
VCU has also gotten contributions down its roster, from its ?army? as coach Mike Rhoades has called it. The team has had four players score in double figures in each of its past three games ? wins over George Washington, Saint Louis and George Mason.
?I think the one thing that we?re doing a good job of (is) finding different guys to score and make plays,? said Rhoades. ?And we?re scoring points, and we?re doing it through each other, it?s just not a one-man show.
?And, of course, Justin is doing a great job finishing and making plays and scoring. But I think other guys are contributing at a high level, and that?s really helping us.?
A big contribution last Saturday at George Mason was that of Khris Lane, a 6-foot-7, 245-pound senior forward, who had season highs of 25 points and 12 rebounds. The 6-8, 220-pound Tillman, who leads VCU with 18.2 points per game, said that play like that from Lane can take a lot of pressure off of him.
?It stops a lot of teams from double-teaming me, because they?re not as focused on me,? said Tillman. ? ?Oh, catch the ball, trap him.? If they trap me, I can dish it out to him.?
To keep the momentum that VCU has built in its three-game win streak going Friday, Tillman said that he, Williams and the rest of the starting five have to bring energy to start the game. VCU has found itself down at halftime in six of its nine league games, and that?s certainly not a position it wants to keep putting itself in.
?I feel like when we start off the game right, then the team follows,? said Tillman. ?So, as we do that, everything will be all right.?
