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2017-2018 VCU Rams

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#1 · (Edited)
VCU to A-10 Billboard

 
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#124 ·
We just needed better shooters. We're very good at handling pressure. We practice against ourselves after all. We are great against teams that try to out-athlete or speed things up. We're much worse against teams that try to beat us up inside and slow down the game. That was a recipe for success against VCU last year. Commanding the offensive glass and forcing us to play half-court offense, because we didn't have a strong shooting team. If we're missing shots, we can't set up our press, and we did that a fair amount. Points off of turnovers allowed us to set up the press off those baskets and we are very effective in the press. A good percentage of our offense came off of our defense since the shooting was so poor. Shaka says that we are improved on the offensive end this year, so we'll see if that changes.

We were pretty young and inexperienced last year. Our starting 2 guard averaged less than 5 mpg the year before. Our leading returning mpg guy from the year before other than Brad Burgess was back-up PG Darius Theus who got about 15 mpg. We had 2 freshmen play 16 and 18 minutes a game last year. Our shooting was pretty inconsistent as a result.

Brad Burgess was the only 1 of our top 5 scorers from the Final Four year that was one the team. He really did not adjust well from being a role player to the go-to option. He had several awful games and only shot 36.5% from the field after shooting no less than 48% in any of the 3 prior seasons. He dropped from 43.4% from 3 as a junior to 36.7% as a senior. No matter how you cut it that's a significant drop-off and he was the guy taking a lot of the shots for us and considered our go-to guy.
 
#126 ·
Yeah a guy like Frease would have given us trouble. The strength of our team is in the back court. Our bigs to this point have been a bit on the soft side. Reddic at 6'9 is very skilled, athletic, and has high upside but he's more of a natural 4 that ends up playing the 5 in our system on several possessions. DJ Haley has been raw and doesn't play much more than 15 mpg despite his size at 7 feet, 250 pounds. We'll see if he can contribute more as a junior. Hinton is a walk-on who has never played more than a couple of minutes a game and Jarred Guest and Justin Tuoyo are both unknown commodities. Guest played a very limited role as a freshman and Tuoyo is just coming into the program.

If we have a weakness it is in the front court. Big bruising teams that pound the glass and get 2nd, 3rd, and 4th opportunities and are great at junking up the game are kryptonite for VCU a lot of the time, especially if we're not hitting shots. If we are, it's extremely difficult to beat us regardless.
 
#127 ·
http://aroundthehorns.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/theus-bullish-on-2012-13-season/
The expectations swirling around the 2012-13 VCU Basketball season are higher than probably any point during the last 25 years. This week alone, The Sporting News, CBS Sports and Sports Illustrated all tabbed the Rams a preseason top 25 team. Although none of those entities are responsible for either of the “official” polls, it’s notable because VCU hasn’t been ranked during the regular season since 1985.

Despite the potential for unwanted scrutiny, senior Darius Theus says the Rams aren’t running from the attention.

“I think that the same expectations they have, we have for ourselves,” said Theus, who averaged 8.5 points and 4.7 assists per game last season. “We’re going to try our best to meet them all. But Coach [Shaka Smart] wants us to stay humble, stay level-headed. Whatever we can control on the court is what we can control. But we’re setting high expectations for ourselves.”
Theus’ conclusion? The sky is the limit.

“We can be real good if everybody is bought into the plan that Coach Smart is trying to get us to do,” Theus said. “We can do some great things this season. It’s about everybody just being 100 percent about VCU Basketball. If we can have that, then however many goals we set, we can reach them.”
Theus believes Johnson and Tuoyo can integrate with an already experienced VCU roster that returns starters Troy Daniels (10.0 ppg), D.J. Haley (3.2 ppg, 3.9 rpg) and Juvonte Reddic (10.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg), as well as notable bench contributors Rob Brandenberg (9.0 ppg), Treveon Graham (7.0 ppg) and Briante Weber (4.9 ppg, 2.1 spg).

“We’ve got some real good guys on the team,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of weapons. I just feel like our depth this year is very, very good. We could have maybe a nine-man rotation.”
 
#130 ·
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/sport...1-vcus-graham-ready-for-spotlight-ar-2276882/
VCU heads into its first practice today with all of its top players back from a 29-7 team except guard/forward Bradford Burgess, who started an NCAA record 146 consecutive games and finished his career as one of three Rams to score 1,600 points, grab 700 rebounds and register 200 assists.

Replacing his multiple roles and positions would be a major concern without Graham, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound sophomore wing who showed promise as a scorer and rebounder last season. He averaged 7 points (with a high of 18) and 3.2 rebounds in 16.8 minutes.

"The guy can really, really score," VCU coach Shaka Smart said. "I'm as excited about him as I am about anybody. He's got a lot to work on . . . and he's got to get better. But he's made major progress, and I'm excited about what he's going to be able to do."

While Burgess impacted a lot of areas, Smart says Graham can score "in just as many ways" and is better at drawing fouls. He can absorb contact around the rim and finish, has a nose for scoring off rebounds and has 3-point range, although it was inconsistent (31.3 percent).

Graham was 3 for 23 from the floor in VCU's first eight games last season, which he attributed to nerves. By the end, he was an integral part of the rotation as VCU beat Wichita State in the NCAA tournament before losing to Indiana 63-61 in the round of 32.
"I'm not trying to take the spot of Brad," he said. "I'm just trying to come in and kind of do what I can do as a scorer. I'm trying to work more on my defensive game and just different aspects of the game that will make the team better.

"I want to be one of the key players on the team. I'll have a little more responsibility than I had last year. I want to try to do whatever I can to get my team wins this year. I'm trying to get back to the tournament and do the best we can in the tournament."

NOTE: Smart said last week that freshman guard Melvin Johnson has been hampered by a hip flexor injury, which he came in with during the summer. "If we can get him healthy and continue to get him understanding what we do defensively, he can really make shots," Smart said. "Right now, he's the second-best shooter on the team behind Troy (Daniels)."
 
#131 ·
http://www.collegesportsmadness.com/article/4982

VCU comes in at #27 in College Sports Madness Preseason Top 144, #2 in the A-10. Saint Louis is presumably #1.
The competition just got tougher…for VCU and the Atlantic 10. The Rams left the CAA and will join Butler as the newest members of the A-10. That turns an already underappreciated conference into one that will be right in the mix with the Big Six when it comes to the RPI. Despite all the scorers, it is point guard Darius Theus who is the extension of Coach Shaka Smart on the floor. Theus can score when he needs to, but it is his job to orchestrate the Rams offense and spearhead the havoc on the defensive end of the floor. Theus dished out 4.7 assists last year and tallied 2.0 steals per game. His senior year should be even better. Briante Weber is another pesky defender who creates plenty of fast break opportunities for the Rams. Weber is also the backup point guard, but do not be surprised to see Theus and Weber on the floor at the same time more in 2012-2013.
 
#132 ·
http://www.thehoopsreport.com/article.aspx?id=980

VCU comes in at #24 in The Hoops Report's Top 68 Team Previews.

The VCU Rams are one of the newest members to the Atlantic 10, helping the conference to replace the Temple Owls and the Charlotte 49ers. Head coach Shaka Smart brings back a veteran squad, and has also brought in a talented freshman class. Smart and his Rams will need to cause “Havoc” in the A-10 this season.

“Havoc” is the high-octane pace that the coach has installed at VCU. Smart’s teams apply full-court pressure on their opponents and look to score in transition. This style of play has been effective for the Rams, helping amass a .750 win percentage for their head coach. The team’s frenetic defense last season held opponents to 59.8 points per game.

While the Rams defense was strong their offense was lacking. VCU scored 68.4 points per game, which was good enough169th in the NCAA. Smart’s team will need to improve offensively if they plan to repeat as champions of the A-10. To do that they will need to replace last season’s leading scorer Bradford Burgess. The player to watch to fill the void left by Burgess is Juvonte Reddic. As a sophomore last season, Reddic was the team’s second leading scorer averaging 10.3 points per game. Junior guard Rob Bradenberg will also look to help Reddic handle the scoring load.
 
#133 ·
The biggest question going into this season for VCU is rebounding. Burgess was the teams second leading rebounded avg. 5 boards a game coupled with 13.4 pts. Only Reddic had more boards. As a team VCU ranked (210) avg. 33.5 boards per game. Offense boards just under 11 and defensive boards around 20. VCU came in below 200 in these areas and filling Burgess's shoes will be a tougher task than people think. The backcourt I think will remain solid and equal or raise levels regarding steals (10.5 gm) and may even have a higher FG % as a unit, but Reddic and Haley will have to do an effective job inside with regard to rebounding in face of bigger, stronger opposition game in and game out in the A-10.
 
#134 ·
One thing that is lost in our weak rebounding numbers is the fact that we typically have more possessions than our opponents by forcing 17 turnovers a game. When manufacturing points through hard nosed defense you can take a rebounding deficit and survive. We've managed to win 84 games under Shaka despite sub par rebounding numbers.

I'm much more concerned about our ability to knock down shots.
 
#135 ·
Yep, all about making shots with this squad. VCU's rebounding numbers have always been lower because of our system.

If we can't score, we can't set up the press. It's a huge part of what makes us successful. We have to improve there.
 
#136 ·
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/rob_dauster/10/15/VCU-Midnight-Madness/index.html
There are still some programs that operate the old school way, using the first practice as, you know, a first practice, and would it surprise you in any way to find out that VCU is one of the teams that doesn't have Midnight Madness? For the Rams, it's all business, all the time.

"That's who we are. That's what we do," said senior point guard Darius Theus. "We're going to bring our style of play into the A-10."

That style of play is called 'Havoc', because, as head coach Shaka Smart likes to say, they try to wreak havoc for 40 minutes. More specifically, what VCU does is pressure full court, looking to force turnovers by getting their opponents out of a comfort zone, and use those turnovers to get easy shots in transition. While the style is much different from that of a team coached by Bo Ryan or John Beilein, the bottom line is that Smart is a system coach. And, like those two, he recruits players to the strengths of his system. His roster is loaded with quick, athletic guards -- Darius Theus, Rob Brandenberg, Briante Weber, Melvin Johnson, Teddy Okereafor -- that love defending in the full-court and playing at the top of VCU's pressure. With Troy Daniels and Treveon Graham out there to shoot the ball and Juvonte Reddic and D.J. Haley protecting the rim, Smart has an ideal roster for a team that wants to spend 40 minutes causing havoc.
From a purely basketball perspective, VCU expects Treveon Graham to fill the void left by Burgess. Graham, who stands 6-5, showed the ability to score in bursts as a freshman, averaging 7.3 points in just under 17 minutes last season. He also proved himself as a capable rebounder and defender. Graham only shot 31.3 percent from beyond the arc as a freshman, but Smart is hoping that with a larger role and more playing time comes more consistency.

"[Treveon] will benefit from Brad moving on, and I'm really excited about him. The thing I'm most looking forward to about him is he's going to have more opportunity," Smart said at Atlantic 10 media day earlier this month. "Last year he was at times stuck behind Brad. He played with him at times, but now it's his deal and he knows that."

"You're talking about a kid who's very young for his grade, he's still 18 years old and he's a sophomore in college. He's still shooting the ball well and he's extremely strong so we're excited about him."

Smart isn't the only person excited about Graham's potential; Luke Winn listed him as one of the sophomores he predicts will have a breakout sophomore campaign.

VCU is no longer a member of the CAA, but that doesn't mean that the Rams aren't going to be expected to compete for a conference title. They were predicted to finish third in the Atlantic 10, earning three first-place votes in the poll. They'll likely find a place is every preseason top 25 poll that is released. This may be a new conference, but this is the same VCU team. Expect to see them have the same level of success.
 
#137 ·
Make no mistake I am a huge Rams fan, but I am no apologist for Ram Nation. I sat through games over the last two season with losses to Ga State and teams like Northeastern in large part because the shooting % were dredful at times. Its easy to downplay the lose of any player. Thats coaching 101, but the fact remains every Ram fans saw teams make runs when Burgess was off the floor. Burgess shot 36.7% from 3pt country and while Daniels shot 38.1 the team as a whole was 33.4% (#211). Compare this % to a Temple 39.7%, St. Joes 36.3%, St. Louis 36.6% and you find that the A-10 simply appear to have better shooters. As to turnovers, this can not even be addressed without talking about the guard play in the A-10 versus the CAA. I do not expect VCU to eclipse the 17.5 mark in the season ahead. The A-10 has much better point and shooting guards and if you compare the steals and turnover % to the CAA I think its fair to say that it will be more difficult this season than last for VCU to rely on the turnovers. Shooting and rebounding must improve, especially when you face squads like Umass (39.5) St. Joes (36.3) and Temple (34.8) who all also shoot at 50% clip. I know there is a big expectation, but as a fan who watched as many A-10 games at Robins Center as Rams games at Siegal.....the A-10 is a beast compared to the CAA in terms of regular season opposition.
 
#138 ·
I don't think anyone is disagreeing with you. The shooting percentages have to improve, I think that's what everyone is saying.

If you look at our performance against non-CAA competition, our turnover numbers are similarly impressive. There are definitely better guards across the board in general in the A-10 versus the CAA, but we didn't put up those numbers because we were playing in the CAA. We faced good teams in the OOC and turned many of them over just as effectively.

The key is not so much rebounding as it is hitting shots. Rebounding will help no doubt and front court play will be tougher in the A-10, but in Shaka's system we won't ever have dominating rebounding numbers because of the way we play.
 
#139 ·
That very well may be true, but Shaka may have to adjust to an new set of parameters given the defensive board %. These are what kept teams like GMU and Drexel in games against VCU. I do not think those games would have been nearly as competitive given the number of turnovers had they rebounded defensively. Haley and Reddic must step up, regardless of the "system" and increase the number of boards VCU gets in the A-10. I think if you review last season losses to Seton Hall, Ga Tech and the game to Drexel you will see how lossing by 5% basis points on the boards equals a loss, especially on the road or at nuetral site when the turnover margin % is tighter.Obviously, it becomes a non-issue on offensive boards when you are hitting shots, but the pressure on opposing backcourts contributes to missed FG's which will require us to rebound more effectively. When we don't on the defensive end we give up easy put backs like against GMU and Drexel last season as well.
 
#140 ·
- Word out of Richmond is that VCU power forward Juvonte Reddic has been a monster early in practice for the Rams — and that’s a great sign considering this program’s decision to join the Atlantic-10. If Reddic can take his game to the next level, it will greatly enhance VCU’s chances of finishing in the top quarter of their conference and making the NCAA Tournament. Last year as a sophomore, Reddic averaged 10.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/10/18/rothstein-files-this-and-that-around-college-basketball-22/
 
#141 ·
To recognize the arrival of VCU to our conference, the Xavier Musketeers have been experiencing serious "havoc" since last December. I think we will be well prepared for your visit to the Cintas center in February.
 
#142 ·
http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcspo...ew-new-additions-returning-talent-luh-oh-ded/

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a conference race that will be more entertaining to follow than the Atlantic 10.

For starters, there are now 16 teams in this conference, which, with a 16 game league schedule, means that each team will only be playing one conference opponent in a home-and-home. You need to make up a game or two in the standings? Don’t count on winning head-to-head. You’ll have to hope someone slips up on the road. That, in all likelihood, will happen quite often, however, because of the 16 A-10 teams, six — six!!! — received a first-place vote in the preseason poll. Those six teams didn’t include Xavier, Dayton or Richmond, who are three of the best programs in the league.

I hope they already have clearly defined end-of-the-year tie-breakers.
Predicted Finish

1. VCU: I believe in ‘Havoc’. VCU is really good at running their system, forcing turnovers and getting their opponents to play out of control. And the talent on the roster is good enough to succeed at this level.
 
#143 ·
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/ncaab...ler-strengthens-already-150816513--ncaab.html
If the ACC is basketball's biggest conference realignment winner because of the additions of Syracuse, Pittsburgh and Notre Dame, then the revamped Atlantic 10 certainly isn't too far behind.

This season, the league welcomes newcomers VCU and Butler, two of the nation's glamor mid-major programs the past few years. Add those two to an already improving league that won't lose Temple to the Big East for one more season, and the result is a particularly formidable Atlantic 10 that lacks a truly elite team but appears to have at least a half dozen NCAA tournament contenders

Trying to pick a preseason Atlantic 10 favorite is a fool's errand this year because any of consensus the top six teams could make a legitimate case.
 
#147 ·
http://www2.timesdispatch.com/sport...es-basketball-practice-facility-i-ar-2306557/
New Virginia Commonwealth athletics director Ed McLaughlin says the school is "in a really good place with a lead gift and in a really good place with a second lead gift" to help build a new basketball practice facility.

McLaughlin declined to name the potential donors at this point but said the privately funded facility is in the design stage. It was approved by the board of visitors in August of 2011 as part of the university's six-year capital plan.

The estimated cost then was $9-10 million, but McLaughlin said it could be more. He's not sure about a target date to begin construction, but is shooting for 2013, after this season ends.
A-10 teams' unfamiliarity with VCU's pressing, fast-paced Havoc style may create an advantage for VCU. Of course, the disadvantage for the Rams is they are unfamiliar with A-10 teams.

"I kind of like it that we're playing a bunch of new teams because they haven't played against our style," Smart said.

He noted that any time you play new teams, "there are just certain things you don't know. For instance, any team that comes into the Siegel Center that hasn't been here before, they don't have that experience. I'm sure they've played in tough arenas in front of hostile crowds, but there's just no substitute for having been there before.

"We will be in that situation when we go on the road. ... It's going to be really important for us, particularly in those road games, to take on that mentality of we're willing to go into the unknown and do everything it takes to succeed."
 
#149 ·
No that Rothstein tweet was not recent at all. Also from October 4th. If you go back in this thread it was already brought up, and your same question asked and discussed.

You may have missed it, but there were national articles written on it at the time.
 
#150 ·
Jon Rothstein was at VCU today for our media day. Here is what he had to say.

www.twitter.com/JonRothstein

Greetings from the Siegel Center. Here at VCU for for the day.
Strong buzz here around the VCU campus. Home games for the Rams feel like an NFL experience.
Treveon Graham is like a volcano --- he's just waiting to erupt. Would be shocked if he doesn't lead VCU in scoring.
Briante Weber will be one of the better defensive guards + 6th men in the country. An absolute menace on the ball.
So much Preston Knowles in Briante Weber...
Juvonte Reddic has the body of a BCS level big --- now can he play like one consistently? HUGE piece for VCU. Should avg 13 and 8.
So much Tyler Smith (Tennessee) in Juvonte Reddic.
VCU's perimeter depth is their greatest strength. Six or seven really good players. Versatile.
Small ball will still be a way of life for VCU. Going to the Atlantic 10 won't make the Rams play more traditonal. Plenty of 4G sets.
Before the Atlantic 10, VCU will play in the Battle for Atlantis and host Wichita State, Alabama, Belmont, + Lehigh. Arduous task.
Would expect Troy Daniels to slide down and play some undersized PF as well for VCU. Lethal shooter. Deep range.
Jared Guest has a chance. Really impressed with his energy --- especially on the offensive glass. Could be VCU's first big off the bench.
Early prediction on VCU starting five --- Darius Theus, Treveon Graham, Troy Daniels, Juvonte Reddic, D.J. Haley.....
Would put Troy Daniels up against most shooters in America. Dude doesn't even ripple the cords when he cracks his wrist.
Melvin Johnson has stiff competition for PT as a freshman but he's going to have a great career at VCU. Tailor made for the Rams.
 
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