TOWSON, Md. - Senior guard Joey Rodriguez connected on six of eight shots from three-point range and scored a career high 28 points as streaking Virginia Commonwealth University (16-5, 8-1) escaped an upset bid by the Tigers (4-15, 0-9), handing them an 80-76 Colonial Athletic Association loss at the Towson Center on Monday evening.
In a game which featured nine ties and 17 lead changes, the CAA co-leaders relied on their deadly outside shooting to hold off Towson. The Rams, who won their seventh game in a row, made 11 of 25 shots from three-point range to offset the Tigers' 53.7 per cent shooting from the floor.
Rodriguez, who scored 18 points in the second half, held off the Tigers with his long-range shooting. However, he may have scored his biggest basket with 35.3 seconds left when his driving layup gave VCU a 77-74 advantage. Freshman guard Ed Nixon helped VCU protect the lead by making three of four free throws in the last 19 seconds.
An All-CAA first team pre-season selection, Rodriguez came into the game averaging a modest 9.6 points per game. But, he torched Towson by making 9 of 14 shots from the floor while matching his career high with six three-point baskets. He made all four free throw attempts and had four rebounds and three assists in the win.
"Our guys played extremely hard and extremely well," said Towson Coach Pat Kennedy. "To play the number one team (in the CAA) like we did here tonight is a real positive.
"If you look at the game statistically, we shot 53 per cent and they shot 47 per cent," he added. "It came down to some foul shots and some three-point shots. As I told our guys, VCU beat UCLA on a neutral court and they beat Wake Forest handily. Our guys have come a long way. There's just not a lot to show for it in the win-loss columns."
With the score tied at 56-56 and less than 14 minutes left in the game, sophomore guard Troy Daniels drained a three-pointer that gave VCU a 59-56 lead. The Rams extended their lead to 64-58 with 9:25 remaining when freshman guard Rob Brandenberg scored on a fast break layup.
It was the largest lead of the game for either team.
But, VCU couldn't shake the Tigers. Over the final nine minutes, the Tigers would answer whenever the Rams tried to pull away. A three-pointer by Brandenberg with 4:41 remaining upped the Rams' lead to 74-69. But freshman Erique Gumbs scored on a layup, was fouled and hit a free throw to pull the Tigers to within 74-72. With 3:18 left, the Tigers missed an opportunity to tie the game when junior guard RaShawn Polk was fouled. But, he missed the second of two free throws and VCU held on to its 74-73 advantage.
With 2:30 left, Nixon gave VCU a 75-73 lead when he made one of two foul shots. The Tigers pulled to within 75-74 with 1:56 remaining when freshman guard Dre Conner nailed one of two free throws.
The Tigers missed a chance to take a lead with 1:03 left when Conner turned the ball over driving to the basket.
However, Rodriguez didn't miss his opportunity to extend the Rams' lead. With 35.3 seconds remaining, he drove the right side and scored on a layup in traffic to give VCU a 77-74 advantage.
After senior guard Josh Brown missed a three-pointer with 21 seconds left, Nixon was fouled and hit both free throws for a 79-74 lead. A fast break slam dunk by Towson's Isaiah Philmore with 11 seconds remaining pulled the Tigers to within 79-76. But, Nixon made one of two free throws with nine seconds left to settle the issue.
The upset-minded Tigers gave VCU all it could handle throughout most of the first half. Over the first 16 minutes of the game, there were seven ties and 11 lead changes. The Rams took a 16-10 lead on back-to-back three-pointers by Rodriguez. Moments later, the Tigers pulled even when Brown and Polk nailed back-to-back three-point shots.
A three-point basket by Brandenberg with 1:16 remaining in the half gave VCU a 43-39 advantage. Brown's jumper with six seconds left pulled Towson to within 43-42 at intermission.
In the high-scoring first half, the Tigers shot 55.2 per cent from the floor. Brown led all scorers with 14 points. Junior Braxton Dupree and Philmore each tallied ten points.
While Rodriguez led VCU with 28 points, junior guard Bradford Burgess, senior forward Jamie Skeen and Brandenberg each tallied 11 points.
Playing one of his best games of the season, Dupree led the Tigers with 22 points, a game high seven rebounds and three blocked shots. He shot 9-for-12 from the floor and made four of five free throws. Brown, who shot 7-for-11 from the floor, added 17 points, six assists and four steals for Towson.
Philmore also scored in double figures as he tallied 14 points on six-for-seven shooting. Gumbs added ten points in 16 minutes off the bench.
The win by VCU was the Rams' 17th victory in 18 games against Towson.
The Rams have won eight of their last ten contests overall.
The Tigers, who have lost eight games in a row, go on the road for the next three contests, starting with a visit to George Mason on Wednesday, January 26.
