VCU Rams Going Dancing Again

There’s no arguing this year, the Rams are in the dance again after winning the CAA tournament championship 59-56 versus Drexel tonight.  The Rams were considered a bubble team with a small possibility of an at-large bid but they took all of the guess-work out of it this year by getting the automatic bid.  They beat a Drexel team that had won 19 straight games and 25 of 26.  After jumping to a 35-19 half-time lead, the Rams held on for dear life as Drexel made a run cutting the game to 1 point in the last minute of the game.

Do I think this year’s edition can make the same kind of run as last year?  Probably not, but this team could be a giant killer.  This is a totally different team than last year’s edition that made the run to the Final Four.  Gone are four of the top players from last years team.

Many think VCU doesn’t stand a chance because they haven’t played anyone.  Forget about the SOS, that argument is such garbage as the power conference teams will not play a very good mid-major like VCU.  Scheduling tougher games is next to impossible, so much so that UVA and Va Tech don’t ever schedule VCU (because they’d rather play weaker teams in Virginia).  Many point to the early season losses to Seton Hall and Georgia Tech as flaws, but what most don’t realize is that this team is the 9th youngest team in the nation.  They boast only 1 senior and 2 juniors – the rest are all sophomores and freshman.  This team is totally different than the team that lost to those teams in the 2nd and 3rd games of the season.

It was an awakening for the team when they traveled to Alabama (who was ranked at that time) and played the Crimson Tide very tough.  After that, they turned around and beat South Florida by 23 points – a team who won 12 games in the Big East.  This team has also won 17 of their last 18 games, with the only loss coming away to George Mason on a last second 30 foot buzzer beater.

The Rams have some serious flaws too as they came seem to hold a lead – they jumped out to 32-4 lead against GMU in the CAA tournament only to let GMU get back within 6.  They also led by 16 by Drexel and let them come back to 1 pt.  They sometimes struggle at the line at the most inopportune times.

On the other hand though, this team plays hard nosed defense and forces teams out of their style of play.  They force a lot of turnovers and are 2nd in the nation in steals.  They have a deep team that has several players that are capable of lighting it up.

I’m not sure what this year’s team will do, but I do know one thing – it is awesome to be back in the dance.  The odds were stacked against this team because of the youth, but they finished 28-6.  They are much further along than anyone would have thought at this point, in which was supposed to be a rebuilding year.  People are again saying Shaka Smart is leaving for a big school – you heard it here last year – I said no way and it isn’t happening again.  We got an extremely bright future here at VCU.  The potential of this program is so incredibly high!  There are a lot of even better years to come.  Even better than the Final Four – not likely, that was a dream, but it’s a strong possibility that VCU could become a household name like Butler and Gonzaga over the years.

GO VCU RAMS!

VCU Romps over Cross-town Rival

Everyone knows that I am a very big VCU basketball fan. Many don’t know that I am an alumni of both VCU and its crosstown rival UofR (University of Richmond).  While I would say that UR is a much better school, my heart still bleeds Black & Gold when it comes to basketball.  And VCU beating UR in basketball still gives me goosebumps!

VCU had the amazing run to the Final 4 last year – which I went to and experienced.  Then they turned around and pulled an amazing coup by keeping coach Shaka Smart in Richmond.  Shaka could have gone to NC State for much more money, but chose to stay and build off of the success – not many would do that.  Some would say he wasn’t smart – but there is something about loyalty.  I mean come on – the guy is getting a very good pay check from VCU.  It’s not like $1.21 million base pay is chump change.  To top it off – he has incredible job security, whereas at NC State, it would not be that way.  He has nice facilities and the opportunity to take a solid mid-major program to the next-level a la Butler or Gonzaga.  VCU has a great fan base that is snatching up tickets like crazy…they’ve sold out 7 straight home matches (and counting).  Twenty-seven since 1999 and twenty in the last 6 years.  Rivalry games with Old Dominion have already been sold out.

Recapping an interview with the Richmond Times Dispatch:  Several factors went into Smart’s decision, but essentially it boiled down to this:  He’s happy at VCU, happy with the people with whom he works and happy with the support the program gets.  “It was a really easy decision..for me, there really was no better job last spring in my mind than being at VCU.  I never felt any impetus to even strongly consider leaving because I feel like I just got here.  It’s been 2 1/2 years now.  We came here with a job to do and a plan.  You recruit guys like (junior) Darius Theus, like (sophomores) Rob Brandenburg and Juvonte Reddic, to coach them for four years and develop them.  I couldn’t really see myself going into the locker room and saying, hey guys, thanks for what you did, but see you later.  I forget the coach who said it, but they asked him why he didn’t leave.  He said, ‘I don’t like to make a policy of running away from happiness,’  I’m happy here.  I think that’s a good way to put it.  I wouldn’t want to run away from that.”

Talk about a great lesson.  Talk about a class act.  Talk about someone who is  very smart.  Shaka Smart is all of those things.

Now Shaka goes from the Final 4 to a new team that has 11 players that are either freshman or sophomores.  He lost a huge nucleus of the team that carried them to the Final 4 in Jamie Skeen, Joey Rodriguez, Ed Nixon and Brandon Rozell.  He builds a bunch of young talent around Bradford Burgess, who is now getting looks by NBA scouts.  Seems pretty bleak, especially as the team started 1-2 with double-digit losses to both Seton Hall and Georgia Tech.

But since that time, VCU has won 5 of 6 games.  The only loss to #13 rated Alabama (at the time) on the Crimson Tide’s home court.  An interesting match, nationally televised, with former coach Anthony Grant now at the helm of Alabama.  VCU played Alabama extremely close the whole match but eventually lost 72-64.  After the game, VCU dropped to 3-3 and Grant said that VCU had to be the best .500 level team in the nation.

Since that time VCU has pounded South Florida and George Washington.  Granted, those two teams are not world beaters, but VCU dominated teams they would have had problems with in the past.  Now, they beat cross-town rival, University of Richmond by 22, leading most of the game.  Richmond is a good team at 6-3.  To beat them by 22 is very big for a team that is so young.  Keep in mind that UR beat us 72-60 last year (but led by as many as 30 in the 2nd half).  But now VCU has won 7 of the last 8 against the Spiders.  LOL

The jury is still out on this team and there is a lot of basketball left to play.  I’m sure that VCU will have some head scratcher losses this year, but I am still excited!  I was curious to see how the young team would react from the success of last year’s team.  I mean, many of the players didn’t really contribute to that great run.  But what we are learning is that Shaka Smart is the real deal.  We are also learning that success can be bred as an attitude.

Texas and Oklahoma Next?

The regents for Texas and Oklahoma have met and have opened the door for them to join the PAC12.  Both regents have approved the option of leaving the Big 12.  Texas has been trying to work out the details of how they could work the Longhorn Network into the plan for the PAC16 – no details yet on that.  But it is looking more and more like we will soon be hearing that Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma St will be joining the PAC12 soon to be PAC16.  It seems like they will be doing a pod system, with 4 teams in each pod.  Many of the teams want to be assured they will be able to go to California, so it looks like a possibility of splitting the California schools into different pods.  Rumor has it that each team would play the other 3 teams in their pod, then 2 of the 4 in each of the other pods for 9 games total.  It is also rumored they will take the top 2 teams from each of the 4 pods to the conference championship game.  If Texas does decide against the PAC16, then the PAC12/16 is likely to go after Missouri and Kansas.

There is now talk that the leftover Big East schools (South Florida, Connecticut, West Virginia, TCU, Rutgers, Cincinnati and Louisville) and the leftover Big 12 schools (Missouri, Baylor, Iowa St, Kansas and Kansas St) are talking about a merger.  That is twelves schools, but of course there are rumors of other teams like Connecticut and Rutgers to the ACC and Missouri and West Virginia to the SEC.  If the new conference were smart, they would try to invite Boise St to help solidify an automatic qualifier spot then take your pick of a handful of MWC or CUSA schools to get to 12.  It is pretty imminent that the football and basketball schools of the Big East are now going to part ways.

Other rumors – Apparently, I have heard the SEC is not interested in West Virginia at all and this seems to be a rumor that is confirmed by West Virginia officials.  I have also heard that the Big 10 is pretty much satisfied staying at 12 schools unless they can get Notre Dame.  There are still rumors of Notre Dame to the ACC but staying independent in football.  They would likely play 4 games with ACC football schools and all other sports would be in the ACC.  If this is the case, the ACC is rumored to take another non FBS football school with Notre Dame, such as Villanova or Georgetown.  There are still rumors of Texas to the ACC with either Notre Dame, or Texas Tech or Kansas, but that just seems very far fetched.

Big East and Big 12 about to Crumble

The ACC accepted Pittsburgh and Syracuse into the conference early this morning.  UConn is now pushing really hard to get into the ACC.  The rumors of the possibility of Texas and Notre Dame to the ACC for all sports but football is now about all dead.  So now the rumors are that UConn and Rutgers will be the next in the ACC.

There are also rumors of Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma St to the PAC12 being revived.  Seems like we will hear something soon about this being a reality because Texas will be able to work something out with the Longhorn Network.

This all means that the PAC12, soon to be PAC16 and ACC will be at 16 schools.  The leftovers from the Big East are TCU, South Florida, West Virginia, Louisville and Cincinnati.  It is likely that West Virginia will be moving to the SEC, leaving 4 schools that will need a home.  The Big 12 leftovers will be Baylor, Missouri, Kansas, Kansas St, and Iowa St.  Could Missouri be heading to the SEC or will they get an invite to the Big 10?  Will the Big 10 expand beyond 12?  Will we hear something about Notre Dame to the Big 10 soon?  Is Kansas an option for the Big 10 or SEC?  Will the Big 12 and Big East leftovers come together and invite other teams from CUSA or will some of these teams go to the Mountain West?  We shall find out very soon.