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CBI Championship Game 2 Recap – Saint Louis vs Virginia CommonwealthVirginia Commonwealth University 71, St. Louis 65 Virginia Commonwealth wins best-of-three CBI championship series 2-0
Trailing 33-24 at halftime, Virginia Commonwealth found another gear on both ends of the court, getting critical stops on defense and timely shooting from Brandon Rozell, Jamie Skeen, and – who else? – Joey Rodriguez to overcome a game Saint Louis Billiken squad, 71-65. The key stretch in the second half began with 5:19 remaining, when Rodriguez converted a layup following a Jamie Skeen steal in the St. Louis frontcourt, staking the Rams to a 58-57 lead. That bucket started a game-ending 15-8 VCU spurt, with Skeen finishing off the Billikens on back-to-back layups that put the Rams up 65-61 with 1:05 left to play. VCU made six of eight freebies in the final minute to win the game, and claim the 2010 College Basketball Invitational championship. The Rams were led in scoring by Rozell's 27 points. Rodriguez – named the CBI MVP - chipped in 13 points, nine of which came in the second half. Sophomore big Willie Reed paced the Billikens with 16 points. Reed also grabbed 6 boards and swatted 3 shots. Needless to say, no Atlantic 10 coach is looking forward to seeing Reed next season. The Big Picture: Shaka Smart's squad became the first team to win the CBI championship in two games (not three) due in no small part to junior guard Brandon Rozell's career game. With Larry Sanders in foul trouble, and Rodriguez struggling to find the range for most of the game, Rozell pumped in 27 points, a career high. Rozell scored 17 points in the second half, a major reason why the Rams outscored the Billikens 47-32 in the second half. Similar to the first game of the CBI championship series, VCU's quickness and length forced St. Louis into taking too many rushed three-pointers. The Billikens finished 2-of-18 from downtown, making exactly one triple in each half. In a game where Willie Reed shot 7-of-11 from the field, and gave future NBA player Sanders fits, the decision making by Billiken guards Kwamain Mitchell and Christian Salecich was, well, harebrained at best… although we're certain St. Louis coach Rick Majerus used several other choice four-letter words to describe Mitchell and Salecich's shot selection. The Good: Let's just give Shaka Smart's squad props for bringing its “A” game the entire CBI tourney. Despite an excellent season, which included wins over Old Dominion, Rhode Island, Richmond, and Oklahoma, the Rams were booted from Big Dance consideration because they had the temerity to go a less than perfect 11-7 in the highly underrated Colonial Athletic Association. Therefore, one really couldn't have blamed the Rams if they laid an egg in the CBI. But these Rams didn't run from adversity. Instead, they put together an inspired sprint to the CBI title that culminated with Wednesday's impressive road win over St. Louis. Beating the Billikens at Chaifetz Arena is no easy task – SLU was 18-3 at home going into Wednesday's game – yet, not only did VCU claim the CBI championship at Chaifetz, the Rams did so with a second-half comeback. That, my friends, takes some stones. VCU has them in abundance.
The Bad: As befits the least experienced team in all of D-I college hoops, the Billikens' execution with the game on the line was bad enough to make a full-length “don’t do this” coaching clinic for the offseason. If they weren't chucking up bad shots – St. Louis was 11-of-29 from the field in the second half – then the Bills were turning the rock over. VCU turned five St. Louis giveaways in the second half into 10 points. That may not seem like a big deal, but in the deciding half of a 71-65 game it is massive. The Ugly: We don't like to pick on a single player here, so we're fortunate since two Billikens players were on the Betty side of ugly on Wednesday night. Sophomore guard Kwamain Mitchell and his frosh backcourt mate Christian Salecich are full of potential, but they were just full of bricks on the final evening of March. For the season, Mitchell was 36.7 % beyond the arc, and Salecich 25 %. Why they decided to throw up 8 and 7 triples, respectively, on Wednesday is a mystery worthy of Encyclopedia Brown's attention. That they did so despite making but one three-pointer apiece is the stuff of youthful exuberance and indiscretion. Rick Majerus will live with that this season – at this point, he has no choice – but he'll except more restraint from both players next season.
By: Tim Coyne |