Rams’ 3-point barrage proves too much for Colonials The George Washington defense had committed, and Briante Weber was open for an easy layup. Instead, he launched the ball to the corner, where Darius Theus drained the last of a dozen Virginia Commonwealth 3-pointers that buried the Colonials in a 75-60 loss in the BB&T Classic at Verizon Center.
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Theus’ bucket ended a rally that allowed the Colonials (4-3) to get within six points with just over five minutes remaining. The Rams (5-3) had moved out to a huge lead with an outside-shooting barrage similar to the kind they unleashed en route to the NCAA tournament final last spring.
“I think we’re still learning each other,” said Rams coach Shaka Smart, whose squad features only one starter from last year. “We have a young team with a lot of new guys in new roles, still kind of figuring out who’s doing what. But we don’t have anyone who takes shots selfishly.”
Of course, Smart’s lone starter from last season is Bradford Burgess, who played Sunday with a poise similar to what he displayed in NCAA tournament, scoring a game-high 24 points, including four 3-pointers. But despite his pair of 3s from deep early and a plethora of needless GW turnovers, the Colonials had the game tied at 16-16 when David Pellom fed Jabari Edwards in the lane for a two-handed slam.
But the tenor of the game changed when Smart brought Troy Daniels (nine points) in off the bench. The junior guard, who had knocked down five 3-pointers in VCU’s previous game against South Florida, hit a trio of open jumpers from beyond the arc during a 13-2 run that gave the Rams a 29-18 advantage.
Rob Brandenburg (12 points) upped VCU’s 3-point total in the first half to nine on 15 attempts, stretching the lead to as many as 19 points as GW ran under screens and failed repeatedly to close on open shooters.
“We haven’t put two good halves together yet,” GW coach Mike Lonergan said, praising senior guard Tony Taylor (14 points) but criticizing the mistakes and lack of help from his teammates. “The good thing is I think it’s more a lack of effort than talent.”
The Colonials came back in the second half, using a three-point play from freshman forward John Kopriva and a step-back 3 from Taylor to force Smart to call a timeout with the Rams’ lead down to 12. But after slicing that deficit in half, Theus (10 points) followed his crucial 3 with a three-point play as the Rams pushed their lead back into double figures.
