VCU will be around in March

NEW YORK - The team that showed up in Madison Square Garden tonight to take on Tennessee was not VCU.

Sure, it was the VCU players wearing the VCU jerseys running the VCU plays, but the product on the court was not the Ram team that many predicted to beat Tennessee. Part of that is a direct result of the Volunteers. This is a big, athletic group that can really get out defend when they put their mind to it.

"They switched everything so they made it hard for us to catch it," VCU big man Jamie Skeen said after the game. "When we would run our plays, we had places we wanted to be. They took us out of where we wanted to be. They made it a little bit hard on us."

But there was more to it than just the Tennessee defense, however.

VCU, despite the defensive pressure, was still able to get open looks. They were able to push the ball and get some open looks in transition. Their guards were able to penetrate, creating opportunities around the rim or spot opportunities on the perimeter. They just couldn't hit anything.

In the first half, the Rams shot 23.7% from the floor. They were 3-18 from three. For the game, VCU only shot 30.9%, and that is including the flurry of threes they hit in the final ten minutes of the game.

All this coming from a team that was shooting 49.5% from the floor and 38.8% from three on the season.

"We're a good shooting team," VCU head coach Shaka Smart said after the game. "And I know it was going to turn. It took a while. At the end it turned, we made some shots late."

"Obviously we didn't get enough stops to get it done."

Its not like early struggles were unexpected. This is VCU's first time playing in Madison Square Garden. Ever. They were playing on national television, something that CAA teams don't do too often. Can you blame them if they came in anxious or nervous?

"I did think that we didn't play as smart as we typically do," Smart said. "I don't know if that had to do with some nerves or being the first time in Madison Square Garden, playing on national TV."

The stats are even uglier if you take away Brandon Rozzell. Rozzell was really the only Ram that found a rhythm on Wednesday night, and he didn't get it going until VCU had dug a double digit hole. He finished with 23 points, hitting 6-8 from the field and 5-7 from three in the second half.

VCU's leading scorers looked like anything but stars.

Jamie Skeen, VCU's 6'8" center that came in averaging 16.0 ppg and 6.6 rpg, finished just 2-10 from the floor for just 12 points. Star point guard Joey Rodriguez was even worse, as he was just 1-10 on the night. A number of those misses came of shots that Rodriguez forced. He finished the game with five points, two assists, and three turnovers after coming into the game averaging 18.0 ppg and 10.3 apg.

Rodriguez wasn't at 100%, however, as he rolled his ankle in the first half.

"He reinjured an ankle that he had turned a couple of weeks ago," Smart said. "It certainly hampered him. It rook away from his explosiveness. He did such a great jon all year getting by his man and creating shots for his teammates."

"I think the injury affected him, but Tennessee did a good job guarding him."

Playing with a banged up star point guard, shooting in the 20's from the field for most of the game, and playing against a team that bigger, more athletic, and more talented, VCU fought and scrapped the entire game. They got 15 offensive rebounds, 13 in the first half. Their press turned Tennessee over 15 times. They held the Vols to 40% shooting on the night.

And while there's no doubt that this loss will hurt -- VCU is going to have a tough time earning an at-large bid, as they simply don't have a lot of firepower in their non-conference schedule.

But I can promise you this: if VCU does go dancing, no one will want to play them.