AROUND THE HORNS BLOG ARCHIVE Because You Like Us. You Really, Really Like Us.
JANUARY, 2010 Friday, Jan. 29, 2010
BREAKING BBQ NEWS
Because of the impending snowstorm, Buzz and Ned's will not be providing the media meal for Saturday's VCU-Georgia State game. Talk about a kick in the teeth. I haven't been this disappointed since I found out there was no Santa Claus.
KITA WALLER, KILLING THEM SOFTLY
Maybe its those teal road uniforms UNC Wilmington was wearing last night, but VCU's Kita Waller flipped a switch. Waller, a senior, dropped a career-high 35 points on the Seahawks, who are quickly becoming a female version of, well, UNCW. Waller's 35 tied the Rams' single-game record, held by four other players (Becky Crow, Brenda Smith, Kelly Hoover and Anna Pavlikhina). Don't think for a second that Waller didn't go to bed and dream about that one free throw she missed (she was 7-of-8).
Waller entered the game averaging 11.6 points, which makes her performance surprising, to say the least. It's kind of like Mark Whiten hitting four home runs in a game or Scott Skiles (really, Scott Skiles) owning the NBA single-game assist record with 30. Both Whiten and Skiles were very good players, but those performances kind of came out of nowhere. Waller's previous career-high was 23 points.
I've got to give it to Waller. She's playing on a left knee that is being held together by duct tape and paper mache. Almost every night there's a moment where Waller goes down in a heap and a we all hold our breath. Kind of like the scene in Karate Kid, where the Cobra Kai kid takes out Daniel's leg and everybody cringes. But Waller keeps getting up and crane kicking people. On an aside, the upcoming remake of Karate Kid makes me want to kick a poodle. Tre Smith? Jackie Chan? Are you kidding me? The original should run on a continuous loop at the Smithsonian. That's how good it is. Remaking it is like dancing on Ralph Macchio's grave. Wait, what's that? Ralph Macchio's not dead? Huh, who knew?
VCU is now 7-1 and in first place in the CAA. Holler, Waller.
THE LINKS
• This may be the least surprising coaching move of the year, although the timing caught some people off guard. UNC Wilmington axed Men's Basketball Head Coach Benny Moss last night. As recently as 2006, UNCW won the CAA Tournament. But Moss was just 41-74 overall and 14-39 in the CAA since he replaced Brad Brownell prior to the 2006-07 season. VCU will travel to Wilmington to face the Seahawks on Wednesday, coincidentally. UNCW is 7-14 overall and 3-7 in the league.
• VCU gets a lot of play in this recent ESPN.com article, which details NCAA coaching trees. Good mentions of Rams' Coach Shaka Smart and VCU Athletic Director Norwood Teague in there.
• Plenty of good recent nuggets on Tim Pearrell's VCU Basketball blog in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
• Georgia State, VCU's opponent on Saturday, took on Old Dominion last night. It did not go well.
• The Shaka Smart Coaches Show was last night at Home Team Grill in the Fan. If you couldn't make it, you can recreate the experience by listening to the show here. You'll have to find your own wings and beer, however.
THIS DATE IN VCU HISTORY
January 29, 2008: In a meeting of the CAA's preseason No. 1 and No. 2 teams, favorite George Mason ran away from VCU, 63-51, at the Patriot Center. The game, broadcast nationally on ESPN2, was the only meeting of the year between the CAA's premier squads. The Rams led, 39-33, with 11:30 remaining, but watched as Mason used a 24-10 burst to take a 53-43 lead. Will Thomas led the Patriots, who pulled within a game of VCU in the CAA standings with the win. Senior Jamal Shuler led VCU with 21 points.
TRIVIA
Which player owns the VCU single-game scoring record? How many points? Feel free to e-mail me at aroundthehorns@yahoo.com.
NOTHING SAYS, "BRING THE NOISE" LIKE TWEET
I think I need Twitter. I've looked around what we've got going on, departmentally, and I figure that nobody has more opportunity and less conscience than me. I'm perfect for Twitter. Besides, some of our VCU Twitter feeds go dormant for weeks at a time. I have random thoughts all day long. Look for that next week. Just don't say I didn't warn you.
Thursday, Jan. 28, 2010
DON FRANCO AND THE NETS
ESPN The Magazine recently proposed the idea of having a fan draw up a play for an NBA team. The trick was to find someone who was willing to listen and run it in a game. They found a suitor in the New Jersey Nets. Hey, they're 4-40, why not?
Enter VCU alum and former Ram basketball player Don Franco. Franco played for VCU from 1983-87. He appeared in 108 games and averaged 2.5 points. Hard to believe, but Franco has been a Nets fan most of his life. That's something I wouldn't wish on anybody. I'm a Cleveland Indians fan and every October I die a little inside. If I was a Nets fan, I'd probably take a long walk off a short pier.
To check out the whole story (with video), click here. And yes, the Nets DID run the play in a game. Pretty cool.
FUN WITH NUMBERS
VCU demolished Towson last night, 112-53. It was a historic beating to say the least. There is some math involved here.
• VCU set a school record with 20 3-pointers last night (20-of-33), shattering the previous mark of 17, established in a game against William & Mary on Feb. 19, 2003. Those 20 treys also tied the CAA record, set by Navy against Mount St. Mary's on Nov. 26, 1990.
• Those 20 treys are also tied for the most in the nation this season.
• The Rams had 30 assists on 41 field goals.
• VCU's 112 points were the most by the school since dropping 120 on Southeastern on Dec. 9, 1978 - before any of the Rams' current players were born.
• The Rams' 57 points scored in the second half were the second-most in a period in Siegel Center history. VCU dropped 62 in the second half of a Dec. 15, 2003 rout of North Carolina A&T.
• The 59-point margin was the second-largest margin of victory in school history. VCU has beaten two opponents by 60: 116-56 over Southeastern on Feb. 5, 1971 and 120-60 over St. Mary's on Jan. 21, 1975.
• VCU hit seven consecutive 3-pointers to end the game.
• Joey Rodriguez's 13 assists are a career high and are the most in the CAA this season. It's the most assists by a Ram since Eric Maynor dished out 15 in a 100-71 victory over Georgia State on Feb. 3, 2007.
• Speaking of that game, the last time VCU crossed the century mark was in that 100-71 win over the Panthers. It is also the 70th time VCU has scored 100 in a game.
• VCU's 112 points were also the most scored by a CAA team in 14 years and the most in a game between two CAA teams in 15 years.
VCU, A THREEOCRICY
A big thanks goes out to Mike Voyack, who has thrown together this video of all 20 of VCU's record-setting 3-pointers. That's tied for the most 3-pointers in one game in the nation this season. Enjoy.
GAMEDAY, PEOPLE
It's Towson and the Fightin' Pat Kennedys tonight at the Siegel Center at 7:30. The Rams look to get back on track against a Towson team that is...slightly below average. Les Tigres are 4-15 overal and 1-8 in The Association. History is also on the Rams side. VCU is 15-1 all-time against their Maryland foes, including 7-0 at the Siegel Center. That doesn't mean the Rams should take Towson lightly, mind you.
I'm looking forward to this game for two reasons. First and foremost, I want to watch Kennedy go to work. This is a man who once used all of his timeouts in the first half of a game a couple of years back. He's an excitable dude. He's not quite on the level of Bruiser Flint, but he's no slouch. My only regret is that I no longer work statistics during men's basketball games. It's always the best seat in the house. I would sit right next to the opposing bench and soak it all in. I do miss those days.
The second reason I'm looking forward to tonight's game is Towson senior guard Josh Thornton. Thornton is capable of taking any shot on the floor at any time. He has zero conscious when it comes to shot selection. Basically, he's the second coming of Nick Van Exel. I'm pretty sure he costs Kennedy sleep every single night. He is shooting .414 from 3-point land this year, so watch out. Just don't be surprised if a couple of those treys come from the scorer's table.
THE OFFICIAL PREVIEW OF VCU BASKETBALL, OR SOMETHING
Here's a look at Rams' Radio Broadcasters Robby Robinson and Mike Ellis breaking down tonight's VCU-Towson game.
THE LINKS
• VCU Notes: Rams are Seeking Fresh Motivation (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
• VCU Men's Basketball Gameday (Us. Holler)
• VCU-Towson Live Blog (Around The Horns)
• Biggie Smallls Starts Part Deux (CAA Hoops: Life as a Mid Major)
• Kyle Welliston of MidMajority.com was at the VCU-Northeastern game on Saturday. It's not so much basketball related as it is entertaining. Check it out here. Additionally, Welliston also thinks VCU Men's Basketball SID Scott Day is some other dude he knows. I guess Scottie didn't have the heart to burst Welliston's bubble. Hilariously awkward conversation ensued.
THIS DATE IN VCU HISTORY
January 27, 2007: Senior B.A. Walker scored 24 points and Eric Maynor kicked in 17 as VCU dealt a very good Drexel team a 75-68 defeat at the DAC in Philadelphia. The VCU victory was the Rams' ninth straight and improved them to 18-3 overall and 10-0 in the CAA.
THROWBACK OF THE DAY
Today, a little tribute to Phil Stinnie. In all the talk of Kendrick Warren, Eric Maynor, Calvin Duncan and others, I feel like Stinnie gets lost in the mix. He's the Rams fourth all-time leading scorer (1,645) and averaged 23.6 points during the 1987-88 season. Could Stinnie dunk? I don't know, why don't you ask Virginia's John Crotty, who's looking for cover in this 1987 photo. There's also this and this.
Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2010
FAMILIAR FACES
I'm not sure how many Ram fans pay attention to the coaching staffs of other schools, but they may recognize a familiar face during Wednesday's VCU-Towson game. Allen Edwards, who was an assistant coach here at VCU the last three years, is now with the Tigers.
Allen is a super guy, but more importantly, he can still ball. Edwards, who was a point guard on two Final Four teams at Kentucky, used to play staff basketball with us during the summers, on occasion. Clearly, he was slumming it. It's kind of like McLovin dating Miranda Kerr. We were completely overmatched.
Basically, Edwards would let us hacks beat on each other for a while, then he'd turn on the jets and just start destroying people. It's pretty disheartening, actually. You hang around for a while, think you're in the game, and Boom! Game over. Anyway, it will be nice to see AE on Wednesday.
KIDS ON CHRISTMAS
When I walked into to work this morning, I ran into Men's Basketball Strength and Conditioning Coach Daniel Roose. He was standing outside the new/old basketball weight room, where a crew was unloading a tractor trailer full of brand new weight equipment. Roose looked like a kid on Christmas. All kinds of new shiny weights. He was downright giddy. At the beginning of this semester, VCU completed renovations on Cary Street Gym and moved Rec Sports out of the Siegel Center. It was a fortunate situation for VCU Athletics, which inherited the East Wing of the Siegel Center, including an additional weight room, office space and auxiliary basketball court. It couldn't happen a moment too soon. The space, especially an additional weight room, was sorely needed. Now, the old weight room will be primarily for men's and women's basketball, while the larger weight room, in the Siegel Center, will serve the Rams' other athletic programs.
WAKE UP WITH SHUUUU
Congrats to former Ram and all-around good guy Jamal Shuler, who won the BBL Slam Dunk Contest. The BBL is the top German basketball league, where Jamal is plying his trade these days. When it mattered most, Shu went to the old, T-shirt-headwrap-soccer-scissor-kick-and-get-chased-by-a-polar-bear dunk. Works every time. Thanks to VCU Ram Nation for the link.
Ah, but we're not done. More Shu. If someone can explain what's going on with his head, you win a prize. Dude could always dunk though.
Bonus Dunk. Here's former Ram Dom Jones, who is with EnBW Ludwigsburg, throwing one down. Looks like they have a generous interpretation of traveling in Germany.
Monday, Jan. 25, 2010 THAT EMPTY FEELING
Quite a frustrating weekend. No, I'm not talking about Brett Favre. Both the VCU men's and women's basketball teams dropped games. On Saturday, the Rams ran into Northeastern for the second time this year and came away with a 74-62 loss. Northeastern Finishes Sweep of VCU (Richmond Times-Dispatch). We can dissect the game all day long, but the simple fact is that Northeastern is a very, very good team right now. They should be considered the favorite in the CAA at this point. Maybe things are different in March, but winning 11 in a row is no joke. Hats off to them. The Rams are back in action with a pair of home games this week, Towson on Wednesday and Georgia State on Saturday. Lots of season left.
The VCU women's team saw its eight-game winning streak come to an end with a 55-53 loss to Drexel in Philadelphia, Pa. Drexel's Gabriela Marginean, the reigning CAA Player of the Year, hit a jumper with two ticks left to give the Dragons the 'W'. VCU, which is now 13-6 overall and 6-1 in the CAA, has no reason to hang its head. Drexel was the coaches preseason No. 1 pick. Hopefully, the Rams will get another shot at the Dragons. The VCU women also have a pair of home stints this week, with UNC Wilmington (Thursday) and Georgia State (Sunday) headed to the Siegel Center.
Friday, Jan. 22, 2010
First and foremost, huge win last night by the women's basketball team. Even huger (probably not a real word) shot by D'Andra Moss to beat Delaware, 60-59.
THE LINKS WBB: Moss has really become the leader of this team. Heck, I even wrote about that last night. Check it out here. MBB: Allen, Sanders Lead Race for CAA Player of the Year (Star News Online).
MBB: According to the ESPN 950 website, this is now called the Shaka Smark Coaches Show. You may know it as the Shaka Smart Coaches Show, however. Listen to the podcast from last night's show from Home Team Grill right here.
ON TAP
As nice as last night's men's basketball win over William & Mary was, there's another huge game in the Siegel Center tonight. Elena Delle Donne, the nation's No. 1 recruit two years ago, leads the Delaware Blue Hens into the Stu this evening. Delle Donne, a freshman, originally committed to UConn, but left after a few days. A Delaware native, Della Donne took last year off, but has returned to play hoops this season. Rather fortuitous for Delaware, right? This has to rank up there with Trent Green blowing out his knee in a St. Louis Rams' preseason game in 1999. The Rams were forced to use their backup that season, some bum from the arena league named Kurt Warner. A decade later, Warner is headed to the hall of fame, while Green is on the side of a milk carton.
Delle Donne is killing it, by the way. The 6-5 "guard" is averaging 25.1 points, 9.4 rebounds, shooting .502 from the field, .427 from three, and blocking 1.9 shots per game. It was funny when the All-CAA Preseaon Teams came out in October. Delle Donne was on second team, which is nice for a kid who hasn't played a college game, but ludicrous. She was the number one recruit IN THE COUNTRY - not Belize or Coasta Rica, mind you - this country. When was the last time the CAA had a kid like that? Ticha Penicherio? Nancy Leiberman? If Delle Donne flopped, it would have been on par with Ryan Leaf and Akili Smith (paging JaMarcus Russell...).
Thus far, nobody has found a way to defend her, mostly because she's a matchup nightmare. Put a post player on her and she'll put it on the floor and go right by you. Throw a guard and her and she'll post you up faster than you can say, "The Dutch were the first Europeans to settle in present-day Delaware by establishing a trading post at Zwaanendael, near the site of Lewes in 1631." The Rams take pride in their defense more than anything, and this is one of their tallest challenges to date.
VCU (12-5, 5-0 CAA) has won seven in a row and sits in first place in the CAA.
RADIO GAGA
Happy hour anyone? Tonight at Home Team Grill in the Fan, it's The March and the Madness from 5-6 p.m., followed by the Shaka Smart Coaches Show from 6-7 p.m. You can also listen on your radio at ESPN 950 AM.
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2010
• Wednesday's William & Mary/VCU men's basketball game is such a big deal, that I actually started this blog a day early. It's hard to understate this. If VCU wants to contend for a their fourth straight CAA regular season crown, they have to win this game. Additionally, William & Mary is still has a top 30 rpi, so a win could give the Rams' NCAA profile a shot in the arm. The Tribe already owns a 75-74 win over the Rams earlier this season and has won 14 of its last 15 games overall. Payback week begins now.
• The aforementioned Tribe have been turning heads. If you weren't aware, William & Mary is one of five schools that have played at least 50 Division I seasons and not reached the NCAA Tournament. The others are Northwestern, Army, The Citadel and St. Francis (N.Y.). Sports Illustrated writer Bill Trocchi, no stranger to the CAA, recently examined the revival going on in Williamsburg.
• Some other press related to the game: This entry by Melissa Waldrop in the Daily Press suggests that the Tribe could use 6-6 Quinn McDowell to guard 6-11 Larry Sanders in spots. Can we get that in writing? Look, McDowell's a very good player, but I'll take this matchup all day and twice on Sunday.
• First Time a Fluke? Rams and Tribe Will Find out Soon (Richmond Times-Dispatch).
• W&M's Schneider Looking for First Win at VCU (Daily Press).
Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010
• Welcome back to the daily blog. I would've posted more updates on this page, but the system we use to manage our website was invented by Thomas Edison or something. I couldn't get on the page all weekend. No matter. We're back, better than ever.
• I enjoyed myself yesterday at the Oklahoma City Thunder-Atlanta Hawks game. Good win for the Thunder and our boy Eric Maynor. Eric had two points and four assists in about 15 minutes of play. You can read my entire blog from yesterday by clicking here.
• VCU will be holding a silent auction, beginning at Wednesday, to benefit victims of the Haitian earthquake. Check here for more info.
• Here's a few basketball links you'll enjoy:
-- MBB: VCU Men's Basketball Notes (Richmond Times-Dispatch).
-- MBB: VCU Changes Defensive Scheme to Down Georgia State (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
-- WBB: VCU Weathers Storm, Turns Back W&M, 85-77 (Richmond Times-Dispatch).
• I wanted to post this interview with Larry Sanders a couple of days ago, but technical issues prevented me from doing so. Either way, Larry's answers still have relevance. Some of you may have caught this on the VCU Athletics Facebook page or elsewhere too.
Friday, Jan. 15, 2010
• Did you miss last night's Shaka Smart Coaches Show? Not a problem. You can access that, as well as podcasts of a bunch of ESPN 950's other programs right here. I was not at the show last night, but I did catch it on the way back from my racquetball game. Tell you what, this year's show is a vasts improvement over last year's. Coach Smart is actually a pretty interesting interview. I'm not just saying that because VCU signs my checks. It's better than your run-of-the-mill coaches show, in my opinion.
• In case you missed it, since I'm convinced the Richmond Times-Dispatch's website is designed to frustrate its readers into submission, Tim Pearrell recently had a nice CAA Notebook. Lots of good stuff in there, if you want to keep up with the Jones'.
• In other news, I did get a letter asking me to buy tickets to the 2010 CAA Basketball Tournament! Two words people, press pass. No idea why I have this letter. But if YOU would like to buy tickets to the tournament, just call 828-RAMS and lock those things up. I love those four days of the conference tournament. Despite the, uh, inferior condition of the Coliseum, it's really entertaining basketball. Last year, Towson kind of took on the cinderella role, the year before it was William & Mary. Back when I was in college we used to drive up to Cleveland to watch the MAC Tournament. Nothing quite like March.
• If you were wondering how the VCU Women's Basketball team would respond to losing to La'Tavia Rorie, we got a look last night. D'Andra Moss poured in 27 points and the Rams shot 52 percent in a 76-60 win over Georgia State. If you haven't seen this team yet, you should. They're all alone in first place in the CAA. The Rams are at Willilam & Mary Sunday, and then return to the Siegel Center on Thursday, Jan. 21 when they host Delaware, led by superfrosh Elena Della Donne.
• Nice article today at Delaware Online on VCU Men's Basketball Video Coordinator Mike Pegues. Pegues had an outstanding college career at the University of Delaware, and Kevin Tresolini had a chance to sit down with Pegues last week. Check it out here.
• Okay, this isn't really VCU Basketball related, but it's basketball related, and it'll put you in the right frame of mind. Mark Titus is a walk-on at Ohio State and his "Club Trillion" blog has already gotten almost two million hits. Basically, Titus' blog documents his life on the end of the Buckeyes bench. He just released a video to prove that he can, in fact, play basketball, and it's hilarious. I need to find out if I can get David Hinton to start a blog.
Thursday, Jan. 14, 2010
• Click here for VCU notes from the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
• I recently caught up with Courtney Hurt of the VCU Women's Basketball team. Courtney's been playing the best ball of her career the last few weeks, and I decided to find out why.
• Who says you can't do happy hour on Thursday. The Shaka Smart Coaches Show, and the March and The Madness will be taking over Home Team Grill in the Fan tonight. Come on down and have a couple of pops and talk everything Rams with us. The March and The Madess with Norwood Teague and Greg Burton gets underway at 5 p.m. Then, at 6 p.m. sharp, the Coaches Show takes off. Join us from 5-7 p.m. tonight.
• In the coming days, we'll have a button on the VCU website for fans to submit questions for the Shaka Smart Coaches Show. In the meantime, there's a thread on VCURamNation.com where fans can submit their questions for tonight's program. You can do so here, if you wish.
• The VCU Women's Basketball Team is in Atlanta, Ga. tonight where they meet Georgia State at 6 p.m. Atlanta-area native Courtney Hurt will look to continue her recent outstanding play for the Rams. I'm working on a feature on Hurt right now. I hope to have that up today at some point. The Rams need here more than ever now after the loss of La'Tavia Rorie. VCU is 10-5 overall and alone in first place in the CAA at 3-0. The Panthers are 10-4, but 1-2 in CAA play.
• Just had a nice sitdown with Brandon Rozzell for a feature I'm working on for the gameday program. We spent part of the time talking about some of the pickup games here in the city over summer. Not only does he toe the line with former VCU stars like Kendrick Warren and Bo Jones, but also with former NBA ballers Ben Wallace and Cory Alexander, as well as Tyrese Rice, Andre Ingram and others. That's insane. Basically, some of the pickup games in Richmond over the summer are better than the New Jersey Nets at any given moment.
• Hey look, highlights from Tuesday's win over Hofstra. I'll have you know that I'm also a big fan of Mike Voyack's use of the guitar riffs from a Third Eye Blind song called, "Fourth of July" here. Always liked that song. Here you go, dunks, etc.
Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2010
• Well hello, Mr. Sanders. That was some performance last night by Larry in the Rams' 81-68 win at Hofstra, eh? Easily VCU's best performance on the road this season. Here's your morning reading. There will be a quiz later. VCU's Sanders Rocks in Return (Richmond Times-Dispatch).
• Sorry for the brevity of the blog today. I'm working on a few different stories simultaniously. Speaking of, check out my look at the top 10 moments in VCU Athletics in 2009.
• Also, if you like dunks, and I know you do, check out these dunks. I show you this because No. 3 is Reco McCarter, a VCU signee for next year.
Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2010
• Gameday, people. If you haven't heard yet, the "official" viewing party for tonight's VCU-Hofstra game will be at T-Miller's Sports Bar and Grill. Tip is set for 7 p.m.
• Nice piece on Bradford Burgess in today's Richmond Times-Dispatch. Check it out here.
• This is off-topic, but I got a good laugh out of this today. In reference to Mark McGwire's steroid admission, here are the 11 most painfully obvious newspaper articles, ever.
• For those of you who were at the women's basketball game Sunday, you know that La'Tavia Rorie went down with a right knee injury with around five minutes left in the game. Well, the team has announced that Rorie, a senior, will miss the remainder of the season after tearing her ACL, meniscus and spraining her MCL. I've got to be honest, I'm sick about this. La'Tavia's a great, great kid and an absolute workhorse. Not only is she a senior, she's 16 points shy of 1,000 for her career. I know that the Rams have watched one of their players suffer a season-ending injury the previous two years, but neither Quanitra Hollingsworth or D'Andra Moss were seniors at the time. This is very, very unfortunate. I wish La'Tavia the very best and a speedy recovery.
• I know Kansas is good at basketball and stuff, but this is kind of ridiculous.
Monday, Jan. 11, 2010
• I recently had a chance to catch up with one of my favorite VCU athletes, Krystal Vaughn. You can see how she's doing these days by clicking here.
• VCU may have won Saturday's game with Delaware, but Blue Hens' Coach Monte Ross won the press conference. He's now officially a candidate for presser of the year, joining Jeff Capel. This thing could come down to Feb. 16, when Bruiser Flint of Drexel comes calling. Bruiser doesn't like to lose. Things are pretty pedestrian until around the 1:00 mark.
• Meanwhile, the VCU women's team rolls on. The Rams throttled Towson, 75-51 yesterday. Courtney Hurt, who was making her first career start, torched the Tigers for a career-high 26 points and 10 rebounds. VCU is 10-5 now and all alone in first place in the CAA with a 3-0 mark.
• This Date in VCU History: January 11, 1997. Marcus Reed and Patrick Lee each contributed 15 points in VCU's 75-53 win over UNC Wilmington at the Robins Center. Yes, that Robins Center.
• If you want a solid recap of Saturday's men's CAA action, check out Mike Litos' CAA Blog here. Reading it this morning reminded me that Old Dominion went 14-of-34 from the FREE THROW LINE. Kent Bazemore was 2-of-12 by himself. Naturally, ODU beat Hofstra by 11. Actually, all of the Monarch's shooting percentages in that game are brutal. 33 percent from the field, 3-of-14 from 3-point land and the aforementioned free throw debacle. ODU is so big and tough up front, they can just bludgeon teams into submission. So far, it's working.
• FYI, I'll be making this weekend's trip to Atlanta. I'll be coving VCU's game with Georgia State on Saturday, and then I'll be sticking around to cover Eric Maynor at the Thunder's game with the Hawks on Monday.
Friday, Jan. 8, 2010
• I know it was like A Night at the Roxbury last night at the Shaka Smart Coaches Show at Home Team Grill, so you can listen to the show here.
• In addition, you can also listen to The March and the Madness here.
• The VCU Women's Basketball team is rolling. The Rams picked up their fourth straight win last night 67-54 over UNC Wilmington. The Rams got 22 from D'Andra Moss, who's having a heck of a senior season.
• I played soccer from the first through fourth grades. I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off for an hour each week. My dad was our coach, but I'm pretty sure if we had more than 13 kids on a team that I wouldn't have played much. I didn't score a goal in four years. How is that possible? It wasn't uncommon to see games end 8-7. However, the deal was, if we won three games in a row, my dad would throw a pizza party for the team. Don't doubt the motivating abilites of pizza. When I was seven, I would literally ride my bicycle through a brick wall for a couple slices. Presumably, new VCU Men's Soccer Coach Dave Giffard will recruit better soccer players than myself. I caught up with him yesterday. Hopefully, there will be plenty of pizza parties in our future.
• Epilogue to my original soccer story. One of the father's of one of my teammates was a dentist. My last two years, he wanted to sponsor the team. But rather than just name it "So-and-so Dentistry" he decided to go with "Dr. D.K.'s Lil Molars". I swear to God this is true. The parents thought it was, "just the cutiest thing ever." I was eight, and even I was embarrassed. You know how hard it was to embarrass and eight-year-old?
• This Date in VCU History: January 8, 1994. VCU upsets 11th-ranked Louisville, 93-89, in overtime before more than 19,000 at Freedom Hall. Kendrick Warren led the Rams with 25 points, while Rodney Ashley added 24 points and 13 rebounds and Kenny Harris contributed 23. Prior to this season's win over No. 17 Oklahoma, this was the Rams' last win over a ranked squad.
Thursday, Jan. 7, 2010
• In case you missed it, the VCU men's basketball team dropped a close one last night at Drexel, 75-72. It went down to the wire and the Rams had a shot to tie it in their final possession. However, sitting at 1-3 in the CAA, VCU has some work in front of them. Delaware is coming to the Siegel Center Saturday at 2 p.m., hopefully that one will end better.
• Linkage:
--Drexel Drops VCU to 1-3 in CAA (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
--Checking the Meds (CAA Hoops - Life as a Mid Major)
--Kyle Whelliston of MidMajority.com was in Philly last night. This article has virtually nothing to do with last night's game, but it's Kyle, so you know it's good.
• Positive linkage. Nice story on VCU's La'Tavia Rorie in today's Times-Dispatch. Click here.
• The first Shaka Smart Coaches Show is tonight at Home Team Grill in the Fan. Join us for The March and the Madness from 5-6 p.m., followed by Smart from 6-7 p.m. You can also listen online, if you're good like that.
• This Date in VCU History: January 7, 2006. B.A. Walker scores 19 points and hits a game-winning, 15-foot jumper from the wing as time expires to beat Drexel, 62-60, at the Siegel Center.
• Don't forget. Women's Hoops tonight at UNC Wilmington. The Rams are rolling on the strength of three straight victories. UNCW is 5-7 overall and 0-1 in the CAA. Grab live stats/video and info here.
• In other news, it looks like former Ram Gonzalo Segares is leaving the MLS for Cypriot team Apollon FC.
• VCURamNation.com has released its top 10 men's basketball plays of December.
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2010
• The VCU men's basketball team is looking to get back in the win column tonight when they meet Drexel at the cozy Daskalakis Center. Check out Tim Pearrell's preview in today's Times-Dispatch. I'm hoping this year's game is much like last season's. If you don't remember, the Rams essentially laid an egg at Delaware the previous week. VCU responded by absolutely pulverizing UNC Wilmington and Drexel.
• In case you missed it in the most recent gameday program, I've posted my feature on Jamie Skeen in the features section of Around The Horns. You can check it out here.
• Looks like we're going to be shooting an interview with new VCU Men's Soccer Coach Dave Giffard tomorrow. I spoke with Dave yesterday, and he's ready to get down to business here. Seems like a nice guy. I'm also working on a "Catching Up With" feature on Krystal Vaughn. Hopefully, I'll be able to run that early next week.
• Don't forget, the first installment of the Shaka Smart Coaches Show, as well as the March and the Madness, with Norwood Teague and Greg Burton, will take place TOMORROW at Home Team Grill in the Fan. Things kick off at 5 p.m. and go until 7 p.m. I plan on being there, I hope you do too. If you can't be there, be sure to listen on ESPN Radio 950 AM.
• I think I'm going to cave in on Twitter. I think.
• This Date in VCU History: January 6, 2001. Bo Jones hits a 70-footer to stun East Carolina in overtime, 84-81.
• Throwback of the Day:Check out this cover from VCU's 1975-76 Holiday Tournament at the Richmond Coliseum, featuring Keith Highsmith (#14) and Tom Motley (#54). As for the tournament, the Rams thumped City College of New York (CCNY, for those of you in the know), 115-70, before topping Michigan State, 80-75.
Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2010
• Good tidings. Tough loss last night for the VCU men's basketball team. For the second straight year, Northeastern came into our house and walked away with a win. Home losses are so rare here, I always feel out of sorts when they actually do happen. It's like walking around with a hangover. Northeastern deserves all the credit in the world. They had a great game plan and imposed their will. Take a look at my Around The Horns piece from last night. Basically, the Huskies pushed VCU around in the post to pick up the win. The Rams need to regroup quickly for Drexel on Wednesday. As bad as this feels, I guess it could be worse. We could be William & Mary, who walked the tightrope one too many times and lost to UNC Wilmington last night, 62-61, at home. This is the same UNCW team the Rams beat by 34 on Saturday. Talk about a buzz kill.
• More linkage:
- Highlights, via VCURamNation.com.
- Huskies Control Tempo, Deal Home Loss to Rams (Richmond Times-Dispatch).
- Really, Did You Expect Anything Else? (CAAHoops.com - Great CAA Blog by Mike Litos)
Monday, Jan. 4, 2010
• Happy New Year Ram fans. It normally takes a few weeks before I can remember to use the correct year when writing checks or anywhere else. Today was no exception. I expect this to be a great year for the Around The Horns blog and all of its other entities, the Around The Horns Sports Bar and Grill (Coming in 2037), the Around The Horns Snuggie and the Around The Horns cologne (musky, with a hint dorm).
• Both VCU basketball teams picked up wins to kick off the New Year. The mens' squad absolutely decimated UNC Wilmington, 91-57. The Seahawks just didn't look ready to play. The game started 24-2, and later, 40-8. We were actually wondering if UNCW would reach double figures. The Rams led by as many as 46. I haven't seen a beating like that since my little league team got beat 25-1.
Meanwhile, the women's team is rolling. Winners of three straight, VCU never trailed in yesterday's 78-54 rout of Northeastern. The Rams have won their last three games by an average of 24 points. Woof.
• The ESPNU BracketBusters eliminates one conference weekend in February. That game has to be played sometime, and that's today. The men's team meets Northeastern tonight at the Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center at 7 p.m. in a rematch of last year's knock-down, drag-out contest, won by the Huskies, 68-63. Revenge Tour '09-'10 continues? VCU's depth will come in handy this week, when the Rams play Monday, Wednesday (at Drexel) and Saturday (Delaware). Read all about it in today's game advance from the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
• I'll also be blogging from tonight's game. You can follow along here.
• VCU Field Hockey keeper Megan Botteri is over in Denmark right now, competing with the USA Field Hockey National Indoor Team. You can follow along with that here.
• New Year's resolutions. I'm contemplating starting an Around The Horns Twitter page. I've never been a huge fan of tweeting, I assumed it would die out like Beta, eight-tracks and Lindsay Lohan's career. Plus, I would want to post really random stuff. So much so, that I can already see a reprimand coming down the pipe. We'll see. I'd call it 60-40 right now. Resolution No. 2: I've allowed other stuff (job as awesome internet blogger included) take precedence over my health long enough. I'm going to get down to 190 lbs by my birthday, June 10. Sounds like another lame New Year's resolution that will go nowhere, but I don't see it that way. It's been coming for a while, one cheesesteak at a time. If my high school cross country coach could see me now, he would probably weep. Resolution No. 3. Crank out as much content for this site as possible. Including more video for you visual learners. I want Around The Horns to be the most visited page on this website.
• The Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Basketball Polls are out. If you are a William & Mary fan, you have to start wondering what it will take to get some voter respect. The Tribe garnered 37 votes this week in the AP, and 19 in the ESPN/USA Today, good for 37th and 35th, respectively. William & Mary is No. 3 in the RPI. Wake Forest, which the Tribe beat in Winston-Salem, is ranked above them in both polls. Of the top 10 RPIs, only William & Mary and Rhode Island are currently unranked. Meanwhile, VCU has picked up five votes in the AP poll. The Rams are 9-2 and beat Rhode Island, who, of course, has 52 votes. Makes sense.
• Speaking of videos, if you want visual proof of Saturday's mauling. Look no further. Hang around for T.J. Gwynn going all Harlem Globetrotters on UNCW with a behind-the-back bounce pass to Brad Burgess for a dunk.
DECEMBER 2009
Thursday, Dec. 31, 2009
• I hope everybody has a safe and happy New Year.
• Big news today. VCU has hired a new men's soccer coach, Dave Giffard. I'm excited about this hire. Giffard, who spent the last four years as an assistant at Akron, seems legit. Just the fact that Akron was able to reach the the national title game this season - AKRON - blows my mind. Anybody who has a hand in that has to know what they're doing.
• The VCU Women's Basketball team put the beat down on Coppin State last night, 70-40. To be honest, it wasn't even that close. The Rams spent much of the second half tinkering with lineups.D'Andra Moss scored 23 points for VCU in 23 minutes. She didn't even get off the bench in the last nine minutes. In two games since returning from Las Vegas, the Rams have won by 20 and 30 points, respectively. I'll take that.
• Eric Maynor hasn't been a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder for long, but he's already headed back to Utah, where he'll take on his former Jazz teammates tonight in Salt Lake City. On an aside, the Thunder's uniforms are CBA quality. You could tell that they didn't have much time to throw that together. The logo looks like something from the Arena Football League and the uniforms are so plain and boring they look like a YMCA squad out there. Somebody needs to step in and fix this. I'd be happy to serve as a consultant.
Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2009
• FYI, I'll be blogging from tonight's women's basketball game with Coppin State at 7 p.m. Click here for that.
• Welcome back folks. I spent the last 10 days in Ohio and pretty much headed straight to last night's game. It was my first time back in my home state in some time, and I got to do nearly everything I wanted. Spent some time at dad's, some time at mom's, had lunch at the alma mater, had an epic night of Tiger Woods Golf on the Wii with my cousin, enjoyed many of my favorite local eats (Sandwich Factory in Austintown, Ohio, FTW) and saw my brother get engaged. But now I'm back to blog your face off again. Stay tuned.
• The Rams kicked off the rust and defeated East Carolina last night, 82-74 before more than 7,100 last night at the Verizon Wireless Arena. Plenty of goodies from that. Enjoy the links!!
- Late Surge Propels VCU Past ECU (Richmond Times-Dispatch)
- Early Wins Could Pay Late Divideds to VCU (Yours Truly)
-
Video Highlights: VCUAthletics.com • VCURamNation.com
- Ramblings from ECU (Me again).
• Eric Maynor was up in Washington last night with the Oklahoma City Thunder. If it wasn't for the Rams' home game last night, I probably would have been up in D.C. No matter. Paul Woody of the Times-Dispatch was in the house to cover it for us. Nice column by Paul: Maynor Shows Thunder Poise and Promise.
• Speaking of Maynor, I didn't spend much time on the internet while I was away. So, it came as quite a surprise when I logged onto the internet on Dec. 24 and found out EMaynor had been traded two days earlier. Doh!
• VCU Video of the Day: The Siegel Center Experience
Saturday, Dec. 19, 2009
Friday, Dec. 18, 2009
• So, the men's basketball team is headed to New Orleans to play Tulane. The women's basketball team is already in Las Vegas for three games. Meanwhile, in 24 hours, I'll be driving to the entertainment capital of the world, Cortland, Ohio. Yay me.
• Scott Day will be blogging the whole trip from New Orleans, so follow along with the trip here.
• On Saturday at 5 p.m., distaff basketball out in the desert, as VCU teaks on host UNLV at 5 p.m. From there, eight teams will battle for the Duel in the Desert trophy. Other teams include Kansas State, Hawaii and others. This Duel in the Desert is not to be confused with the Duel in the Desert Duathlon and 5k run or the Duel in the Desert fencing tournament, which takes place Jan. 2-4, also in Vegas.
• Like a jilted lover, I'm going to spend the weekend watching sappy Las Vegas movies. Misery loves company. I watched The Hangover last night. Tonight, it could be Ocean's 11 or Casino, or both. Oh Vegas, how I miss you so.
• Congrats to Amanda Adams. She was named the CAA's Women's So.ccer Scholar Athlete. She joins recent VCU Scholar Athlete winners Ludmila Francescatto (Volleyball, 2006) and Viktoria Konstantinova (Women's Tennis, 2008).
Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009
• Big day. Working on a couple of stories for the web and game program, including one on Jamie Skeen. I'll keep you posted.
• In case you missed it in the gameday program Saturday, I've posted our feature on T.J. Gwynn. Read it or else.
• Caught about 15 minutes of UNC Wilmington's game with Wake Forest last night. The Seahawks look much improved.
The post play of John Fields really changes that team. He had 11 points and four blocked shots last night. They were picked last in the preseason CAA poll. No way they finish that low. I am, however, a little surprised by the attendance: 4,384 for Wake?
Gotta do better than that.
• Tall people beware! Europe is out to get you. Here's a couple of lines Renee Montgomery, a teammate of VCU-alum Quanitra Hollingsworth in Minnesota, as well as in Lithuania, where the duo is currently playing (via Montgomery's blog):
"I know my teammate, Quanitra Hollingsworth, is probably having a hard time adjusting (She's 6'5). I'm sure she can only fit one pair of sweats in the washer at a time because I can only fit in about four. Oh, and this is a true story; We were at this four star hotel in Russia, and Quanitra's legs were slightly hanging off the bed. I was being generous by using the word slightly. I guess Europe just isn't made for giants, aka people that are 6'5 and above. Hey, that's a giant to me."
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009
• Well, lookie here, it's Christmas in...er...December. These beauts rolled out yesterday on Eric Maynor's website. Too bad there's all those rules and regulations in the NCAA. He could've made a killing hawking these Dagger t-shirts in 2007, kind of like that guy who used to go through the dorms when I was in college, selling tees for every Ohio University-related street party. Palmer Fest, Halloween, ect. Usually, they were knock offs of the Absolute Vodka ad campaign or some scene depicting Calvin and Hobbs or the Peanuts characters rocking a kegger down on Palmer Street. Legal? Definitely not. But hey, for 10 bucks? Sure. Anyway, if you want to corral one of these Dagger shirts or any of the other apparel from this EM3 line, you can check it out here.
•
Hey, the women's basketball team picked up a 65-51 win over Winthrop last night. Cool, but Winthrop has some explaining to do. VCU shot 14 percent (4-of-28) in the second half and still won by 14 points. What is going on here?
Rams are now 5-2. D'Andra Moss with the double-double (19 points, 10 boards) to lead the good gals.
• I made mention of the Richmond Coliseum and CAA Commissioner Tom Yeager's letter to the city on Sunday. Mike Litos has an interesting take on his CAA blog. An interesting take and a worthwhile read.
• I've been a huge fan of the Mid Majority and its sister site The Basketball State (bbstate.com) for a couple of years now. If you love statistics, BBState is for you. My head almost exploded trying to process all the goodies. One thing that may interest some Ram fans is the Selection Sheet, which is a replica of the data the NCAA uses to pick the NCAA Tournament. It's a cool way to track VCU's NCAA prospects through the season. This Date in VCU History: Dec. 16, 1995. VCU drops a 68-63 decision at Rhode Island in Kingston, R.I. Bernard Hopkins recorded a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Black and Gold. Playing in its first CAA season after the fall of the Metro Conference, the Rams fell to 5-4 with the loss. VCU would also be defeated five days at Virginia later before ripping off a 19-4 stretch to collect its first CAA Crown.
Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009
• Our men's basketball notebook for this week is posted. Check it out.
• One item I forgot to put in the notebook. As many as six NBA scouts are scheduled to see VCU's game at Tulane Saturday. This season, representitives for 23 of the NBA's 30 teams have seen the Rams in action. The Toronto Raptors and Phoenix Suns, with four visits each, have been represented the most.
• Those of you who are dedicated readers of this and our in-game blogs (all five of you) may recall a mention of an Indiana Pacers scout who sat next to me at the William & Mary game. I also saw this gentleman at the Richmond game Saturday. What I didn't know at the time was that it was former Cleveland State Coach Kevin Mackey, who led the Vikings to an improbable NCAA run in 1986. Mackey's world came crashing down in 1990, but he's rebounded nicely. He was a nice guy when I spoke with him. He even asked me what kind of person Larry Sanders was (I said nice things, Larry).
• Congrats to T.J. Gwynn on winning the CAA's Player of the Week award.
• This Date In VCU History: Dec. 15, 2001. VCU defeated UAB, 82-76 at the Siegel Center to improve to 8-2. Willie Taylor scored 25 points and Antoine Willie added 20 to lead the way for the Black and Gold. The Rams jumped out to a 45-29 halftime lead on the strength of nine first-half 3-pointers.
• The VCU Women's team is at Winthrop tonight, sort of. Apparently, due to graduations, the Rams will be playing at some place called Lifepointe Community Center in Fort Mill, S.C. While you're there, you can buy tickets for some of Lifepointe's other fabulous programs, including, "Love & War: Finding the Marriage You Dreamed of with John & Stasi Eldredge" and the Charlotte Crossovers of the ABA.
Somehow, this ABA claims to share the history of the ABA of 1967-76. Not sure how that makes sense. Sorry, tangent.
• Many VCU fans know that Saturday's trip to Tulane will rekindle an old Metro Conference rivalry. The Metro, which was essentially the precursor to Conference USA may be gone, but many have not forgotten. Maybe you shouldn't either. It was actually a pretty good league. Check out this vid (thanks to DistrictBaller), which recaps the history of the Metro. Try to ignore the crappy music.
Can we agree that whoever created this video totally missed the mark on that song? At least give me something over-the-top, like Boyz II Men's "It's so hard, to say goodbye to yesterday." Have some vision, man.
Monday, Dec. 14, 2009
• Here's a nice tidbit from David Driver's blog, which discusses the friendship between former Ram Cla Meredith and Chris Ray, a William & Mary grad.
• Also worthy of a read is Mike Litos' CAA blog, which always has great observations from around the league, not just VCU. He recaps the action from the weekend today. Jump right in.
It's a great way to track what the other 11/12ths are doing.
• Also, some good VCU stuff over at Virginia Sports Now, which is run by former Richmond Times-Dispatch Sports Editor Mike Harris.
• Many of you may know that the VCU Men's Basketball team is expected to get a boost for Saturday's Tulane game, when Wake Forest transfer Jamie Skeen becomes eligible. I want to share part of a story a reporter shared with Scott Day, our director of athletic communications. Basically, it goes like this:
"After his high school team, North Mecklenburg, lost in the North Carolina state championship game in 2006, Jamie tossed his all-state team trophy into the trash. His coach had to fish it out. I remember he said something like, 'I only bring home wins.'"
Who doesn't want a guy like that on their team?
• Some observations from Saturday's men's basketball win over Richmond:
- Terrance Saintil looked better than I've ever seen him. Granted, he played sparingly last year, but he looked great. You can read more about that here. Last season, he looked pensive at times. Saturday, he was explosive and active. If he can come in and give the Rams energy in the post like that, especially rebounding and defense, I'll be very happy.
- Speaking of Big 'T', he needs to teach that drop-step spin move to VCU's other big men. That thing is dirty. Can you imagine Larry Sanders with a move like that? Unstoppable.
- Brandon Rozzell continues to mature into a leader on this team. His three 3-pointers were all huge. Major cajones.
- T.J. Gwynn is a tough customer. He really kept VCU afloat in the first half of that game. He had 12 of the Rams' 20 points at halftime and finished with a season-high 20.
• Two items you can plan on this week: No. 1, A feature on T.J. Gwynn. It ran in the game program Saturday, but that's the only time it will run there, so we'll get it on the interwebs for you. No. 2, another men's basketball notebook. Probably going to be working on a couple of other things, but those are two you're guaranteed to see this week.
• The VCU women's team also won Saturday, defeating a reeling Radford squad, 70-53. Senior D'Andra Moss had 23 points in 28 minutes. She could've had 40 if she wanted. Radford couldn't, or wouldn't, match up with her. I wondered how 'D' would respond to becoming the Rams' No. 1 option on offense this season. The answer is, very well. She's averaging nearly 21 points and shooting 55 percent. VCU is 4-2.
Friday, Dec. 11, 2009
• We're a little more than 24 hours away from the Black and Blue Classic. The trophy has been sitting in our office this morning. It had been resting comfortably in AD Norwood Teague's office for the past year. It feels a little like having the Stanley Cup. I kind of want to drive around town with the trophy riding shotgun, take it to Chuck-E-Cheese and stuff like that.
• I've exchanged a few messages the last few days with former Ram Krystal Vaughn, via the wonder of Facebook. It's going to be huge, that Facebook. Huge. Anyway, Krystal, who played one season with the Washington Mystics of the WNBA, is currently playing professionally in Spain. Hopefully, in the next couple of weeks, we can do a "Catching Up With" piece on her. In my five years here at VCU, she's one of my favorites. She's so tough. In 2007-08, Quanitra Hollingsworth tore her Achillies Tendon. Everybody pretty much figured the women were done. Nope. Krystal put that team on her back and got them to the CAA Championship Game. Krystal also overcame a bit of a rough childhood, growing up in Baltimore. Now she's got a college degree and plays basketball for a living. I'm glad I got a chance to get to know her and watch her play.
• Tim Pearrell of the Richmond Times-Dispatch has posted some VCU Basketball notes. Check them out.
Tim discusses Terrance Saintil's return, Larry Sanders' sickness and the Rams' second-half defensive issues.
• Completed a story on VCU Women's Basketball's Stephanie Solomon yesterday. Give it a look. Stephanie is a member of the ROTC program here at VCU and has joined the National Guard.
• The CAA announced its 25th Anniversary Women's Tennis Team. Check out the seven Rams who earned a spot on the team.
Olga Borisova
Martina Nedelkova
Andrea Ondrisova
Silvia Urickova
Tatsiana Uvarova
Marianna Yuferova
Barbora Zahnova
Probably a good idea to keep recruiting in Russian and Belarus, right? I think that's working out okay.
Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009
• Two days away from a showdown in the Capital City. Last year's game was a barnburner and this year's could be even better. I do want to put something to rest, however. Richmond appears to be a very, very good basketball team. But let's be clear, just because you receive votes, it doesn't mean you're ranked. It means you received votes. Most of these polls make it explicitly clear that the top 25 is ranked, and everybody else is receiving votes. Also, people don't strive to be in the top 40, they strive for top 25 (you like the rhyme? I feel a little like Jonnie Cochran.). Promoting "also receiving votes" seems like you're accepting that you're not a top 25 team. It's like getting an NIT bid and then saying that you almost got into the NCAA Tournament. It's been a reoccurring theme this week from the Richmond fans. Hey, we're "ranked 39th". No you're not.
• VCU Volleyball, coming off a 27-9 campaign, just inked four more recruits. Looks like an impressive class, from what I can tell.
• Also, the CAA's Silver Anniversary Men's Tennis squad was announced yesterday. Eight former Rams made the cut, which is what you would expect from a school with 11 CAA titles in 14 years.
• Yesterday's interview with Matt Doyon of VCU Insight went well. Once I get a link, I'll try to post it on here, unless it's terrible, in which case I'll suppress everything.
• VCU will be accepting donations for the Salvation Army's Holiday Cheer and Gear program at Saturday's game. Click here for more info.
• If you want to read up on Richmond before Saturday's game, you can check out some UR Basketball notes here.
• Sorry guys, I wasn't able to properly represent VCU yesterday. I dropped my racquetball match over at the Robins Center, 2-1 (15-11, 15-17, 15-4). I was able to rally from 8-5 and 12-10 deficits in game two to pick up a thrilling victory, but I ran out of gas at the end. Probably time to do some more workout videos.
• The annual Black and Blue Luncheon is tomorrow at the Home Team Grill in the Fan. VCU's Shaka Smart and Richmond Head Coach Chris Mooney will be in attendance. We hope to see you over there.
Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009
• Season's Greetings from VCU Basketball
• The Women's Basketball Notebook is now up. You can check on the status of Kita Waller's knee read up on D'Andra Moss' prolific scoring pace or find out what the price of gas in North Dakota is right now.
• I will be doing an interview about Around The Horns on VCU Insight today. It's only a matter of time before I'm inundated with media requests. This thing is going to be huge. Literally, huge. Maybe if I don't suck, I can get a copy of the interview and post it here. We shall see.
• The Farm Bureau Insurance Black and Blue Classic (i.e. VCU-Richmond) is Saturday. Sure, that's a big game, but let's not forget about the Banditos Black and Blue Racquetball Showdown tonight at the Robins Center. Yours truely versus one of UR's athletic department staffers. It's a tall order for me, but I'm ready to represent. A full report tomorrow.
• Make sure you pick up a game program this weekend. There's an Around The Horns feature on T.J. Gwynn in the back, amongst plenty of other goodies. T.J.'s had an interesting career at VCU. He's playing for his third coach in five years, but we're seeing his best ball right now. Ch-ch-check it out.
Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009
• In the words of former Monty Python great John Cleese, I want to thank you all so much for making the effort to be here today, when you could be at home enjoying yourself.
• Yesterday I talked (wrote? typed? scribed? scribbled?) about the single William & Mary fan who stormed the court Saturday. Well, lo and behold, what do I find this morning, but a photo of the perpetrator (left). I was literally fist-pumping in my office. On one hand, it's the saddest photo in the world, as you can see him pleading for help. On the other hand, it's hilarious. I mean, his own fans are laughing at him. Dude, whoever you are, if come to the VCU/William & Mary game an January, I'll buy you a frosty beverage. You're hardcore.
• You'll have to forgive me, somebody had the bright idea to organize a staff basketball game at 6:30 this morning. That 5:30 a.m. alarm was about the most unfunny thing to happen to me this week. In addition to being horrifyingly out of shape, I had to guard Women's Basketball Director of Operations Darren Guensch, who is eons better than me. Five-thirty wakeup? Check. Getting torched repeatedly? Check. Muscle paralysis? Check.
• If you didn't see it yet, former VCU golfer Ted Brown fin
ished the final stage of the PGA Tour's Q School yesterday. Brown placed 42nd, which earned him a Nationwide Tour card. The 25 finishers earned a PGA Tour card.
• Also posted a men's basketball notebook last night. Lots of good tidbits in there, if I do say so myself.
• Plenty still to come today. I'm going to sit down and bang out a women's basketball notebook shortly, so that we're all up to date on both teams heading into the weekend. Also, my boring sports information director alter ego will be releasing info on volleyball and golf signees in the near future. Heck, I might even flesh out this blog some more. It's still early and all.
• VCU video of the Day. Here's a clip featuring four budding actresses from the VCU Soccer team, June Hartman, Meaghan Dullea, Jessica McNamara and Amber Achesinski. Apparently, it was made for VCU's PRIDE Event earlier this year, which is a semiar for freshmen student athletes. The idea is to keep freshman on point - or be closelined with sheer, unadulterated force.
• I'll admit, I'm a little conflicted about this video. I mean, does anybody else feel like it's a bit of a rip-off of the greatest TV commercials of all time, the Reebok Terry Tate commercials? You kill the joe, you make some mo! You know that baby! Woo!
• VCURamNation.com has released its top 10 VCU plays of November, also known as, "Larry Sanders Dunks on Everybody."
Monday, Dec. 7, 2009 • What a kick in the teeth this weekend was. Don't know abou you guys, but I went 0-for-3. Men's Basketball lost to William & Mary, Women's Hoops fell to Richmond and my Ohio Bobcat football team lost in the MAC Championship Game. Excuse me, 0-for-4. My Pittsburgh Steelers lost to the Raiders. I'm going back to bed now.
• Men's and women's basketball notebooks are on the way. Plenty of good titbits to share.
• This really won't be included in the notebook, but William & Mary's student section Saturday? I give them a C+. You get one letter grade for sticking it out with William & Mary for all these years, but chanting, "Watergate, Watergate" at Ed Nixon? Really? This could only happen at Bill & Mary. Maybe they'll debate foreign policy next game.
• William & Mary student section, Part Deux. If you're going to storm the court, storm the court. At the buzzer Saturday, ONE student leaped out of the stands, hurtled press row and rushed onto the court. He got to midcourt before he turned around and realized he was alone. Then he scampered back into the stands. Note to Tribe fans. THIS is how you storm a court.
• Speaking of William & Mary. They're off to a great start. If you're them, you'd love to keep playing, the only problem is that the Tribe doesn't have another game until Dec. 19th because of finals.
• Other thoughts from Saturday: W&M's David Schneider looked better than I'd seen him in four years. He's streaky as all get out shooting the ball, but against the Rams Saturday he was 6-of-14 overall and 4-of-9 from 3-point land. His shot selection was much better than in the past. It doesn't seem like he feels like he has to do as much as he used to...Quinn McDowell is a really nice player for the Tribe. W&M Coach Tony Shaver was gushing about him in postgame... Wake Forest, which lost to William & Mary earlier this season, beat #16 Gonzaga later Saturday. I was able to catch most of that game after the wife ran me all over that Williamsburg outlet mall. Methinks William & Mary is for real. Also, note to said outlet mall. Would it kill you to add a parking/traffic plan that made sense? Thanks.
• Bunches of stuff in the works, including something on women's basketball's Stephanie Solomon, who has joined the National Guard.
• Oh, and don't believe for a second that I was going to let you go a whole day without something about Eric Maynor. Motion pictures!
• After watching this video, is there any doubt why the Sixers signed Allen Iverson? There were more people at the William & Mary game Saturday.
Friday, Dec. 4, 2009
• The VCU men's basketball team could have its hands full tomorrow against William & Mary in Williamsburg (Noon). I'm fully aware that the Rams have beaten William & Mary in 14 of the last 15 meetings. Of course, that one loss was a heartbreaker. However, this game got scary in a hurry. The Tribe are 5-2 this year and have already beaten Wake Forest and Richmond. Their two losses are to UConn and Harvard, a game they lost in triple overtime on a 28-footer at the buzzer. I'm not saying VCU won't take care of business. I'm just saying that this William & Mary team isn't what you're used to seeing.
• VCU Men's Basketball Notebook, via the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Items discussed include William & Mary's 3-point shooting and Larry Sanders' long-range touch.
• Just put the finishing touches on a feature on T.J. Gwynn for the game program, which is apparently named Rams The Magazine. Make sure you pick one up before VCU's game with Richmond next week.
• Since VCU doesn't have football, maybe the force of the Ram Nation can get behind my alma mater, Ohio University, which will play Central Michigan tonight in the Mid American Conference Championship Game (8 p.m., ESPN2). My Bobcats haven't won a MAC title since 1968. That is not a misprint. One time please! OU is a 13.5 point dog.
• Also, this is just a general shoutout, but I hope all of you basketball fans have had a chance to check out MidMajority.com. It's dedicated to Mid-Major basketball and it's fantastic. Kyle Whelliston, who has also written for ESPN.com has shown us plenty of love in the past. He normally covers over 100 games EVERY YEAR, and is a regular at the CAA Tournament. He has also attended a number of VCU games at the Sigel Center over the years. Plus, if you're a stats geek (raising my hand), their sister site, The Basketball State, will literally make your head explode. Like that scene in Scanners.
Thursday, Dec. 3, 2009
• One up, one down for V-C-You last night. The men held off Rhode Island in a game that caused plenty of heart palpitations and made a few babies cry. There were 23 turnovers and plenty of action, but the Rams earned an 82-80 win. VCU had to overcome its own mistakes to get the win. You can read all about that here: Around The Horns: VCU Gets a Win the Hard Way.
• Also, you can catch up on Tim Pearrell's recap of last night's game from the Richmond Times-Dispatch here. There's also a cool slideshow, for the visual learners amongst us.
• As usual, tons of video from last night. Here's a highlight vid from VCUAthletics.com. In addition, you can watch VCURamNation.com's recap here. It includes an interview with the one and only Eric Maynor. I always like watching these vids, mostly for the Rocky-esque music montage value. Especially our own VCU version. Makes me think of, well, only the greatest movie montage. Ever. Although, this runs a close second in my book. I know what you're thinking. This means that Rocky IV was the greatest movie ever? Unequivocally, yes. I've probably referenced these before, and I'm certain to do it again.
• I've been asked this a couple of times already: Did we present Eric Maynor with his own jersey last night? Um, yes. I think we did.
• Another thing you saw last night if you watched the game was VCU in a zone for the first time all year. With the Rams getting gashed in the paint, VCU Head Coach Shaka Smart switched to a little 2-3. He cited that zone, as well as the play of Brandon Rozzell and Ed Nixon, as one of the main reasons for last night's win.
• Meanwhile, the VCU women's team dropped an 88-85 decision at East Carolina last night. The Rams sure made it interesting, rallying from a 20-point deficit with less than 10 minutes to go. D'Andra Moss had 27 in the loss for VCU. She's averaging 30.0 her last two games.
• It would be silly not to acknowledge that there are many VCU fans who would like to see the Rams field a football team in the near future. Apparently, there are other schools who have decided that it's just not worth it. Today, Hofstra announced it would be dropping football. Hofstra, which has produced NFL-ers Marquis Colston and Wayne Chrebet, joins Northeastern as the second CAA school in 10 days to drop football. Northeastern wasn't really a surprise. This caught me off guard. Strange times for CAA football. Two schools add football (Old Dominion, Georgia State), while two head in the opposite direction.
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009
• Gameday. VCU faces off with Rhode Island (4-0) tonight at the Siegel Center. The Rams, er, the VCU Rams will be looking to avenge a 92-86 loss at the hands of the URI Rams last season. Click here for all the gameday goodies.
• Tim Pearrell of the Richmond Times-Dispatch has a nice feature on Ed Nixon and his emergence this season in today's paper. Click here to read all about it.
• Had a nice sitdown with T.J. Gwynn yesterday. Look for something on him in the near future. We're big fans of T.J. around here. From his energy on the court, to his ever-changing hair.
• The VCU Women's Basketball team is down at East Carolina tonight. Click here for live stats, etc. Quick story. My first year at VCU was 2005-06, and I was the sports information director for women's hoops. Early in the season, we head to Greenville, N.C. to play ECU. Some of you may be aware that the smart lights that illuminate the court in most arenas need to warm up before they're fully lit. It's that way at VCU. During introductions, when the court goes dark, we're not turning the lights off, we're closing the shutters on them. Well, at ECU that night, somebody turned them off, instead of using the shutters. So, we spent the next 20 minutes sitting in the dark. And then we lost the game too.
• Also, Eric Maynor will be in the house for tonight's VCU/Rhode Island game. Try not to drool Ram fans.
• I will be blogging from tonight's contest. As always, you can check that out here.
• I really didn't listen to what this guy was talking about because I was so distracted by his sideways interview style.
• It's Rams vs. Rams tonight at the Siegel Center. You know it will be crazy because Rams don't take guff from anybody. Just ask this dog:
Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2009
• Happy December. Just promise me you won't be one of those people who always says, "I can't believe it's December already." December happens every year.
• On thing December does mean is all basketball, all the time. On Wednesday, the women's basketball team will head to the raging metropolis of Greenville, N.C. to face East Carolina. On the men's side, it'll be Rhoad Island here at the Stu. The Rhody game is near and dear to my heart, because it would give me bragging rights over one of my college roomates. Instead of him yammering about the glory days of Lamar Odom and Cuttino Mobley, I'd like to throw Eric Maynor and Larry Sanders back in his face. So, no pressure guys, but I could really use this one, okay?
• Working feverishly on a few things. One men's basketball piece, one women's. I'll try to get them to the light of day soon. Speaking of, I should remind you that there is a feature on VCU Stength and Conditioning Coach Daniel Roose running as we speak. Click here to read.
• If you're on Facebook, you can check out a photo gallery from the Oklahoma game. There's 172 photos to digest, so consume slowly and chew 25 times.
• Eric Maynor had 10 points and five assists in Utah's win over Memphis last night. He's now averaging a respectable 6.5 points and 3.3 assists per game.
• Throwback of the Day: Here's your 1988-89 VCU Rams. Highlights include, short shorts, the pink Mariott building on the left and a parking lot on the right. You may notice Assistant Athletic Director Mike Ellis standing on the far right. Many of you know that Mike was a longtime assistant basketball coach here. The more I look at this, the more I think Mike looks like former Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Hank Stram.
NOVEMBER 2009 Monday, Nov. 30, 2009
• Welcome back from the long weekend (for some). Raise your hand if you're wearing different sized pants than you did this time last week.
• Some people have suggested that by the end of the season, VCU's win over Nevada Friday may look better than it's defeat of Oklahoma on Nov. 21. That's looking like a safer bet every day. While OU struggles, with losses to San Diego and Houston, Nevada gave No. 11/12 North Carolina a run for its money yesterday.
• The VCU Volleyball team did not get into the NCAA Tournament yesterday. However, there are many things for the Rams to be proud of this season. VCU won the CAA's regular season crown for the first time and finished 27-9. That's the program's most victories since 1985. Impressive indeed.
• I'm hearing whispers that Eric Maynor will be in attendance at Wednesday's men's basketball game against Rhode Island.
• Just got word that Michael Reghi will be the play-by-play man for Saturday's men's basketball contest at William & Mary. This may mean little to Rams' fans, but for me, it's a big deal. Reghi used to be the TV voice of my beloved Cleveland Cavaliers for a number of years. So, if you will imagine the call below and how awesome it would be if you just replaced all the LeBron James' references with say...Larry Sanders:
• Scott Day just passed a great tidbit my way. In the last three men's basketball games, VCU has trailed for a TOTAL of 40 seconds. It's basically one possession. It's equivilent to the actual amount of singing that Britney Spears does on her new album. It's exactly five seconds longer than Bronson Pinchot's career. Actually, now that I think of it, Mark Linn-Baker had a much shorter shelf-life than Pinchot's Balki. At least Pinchot had this Pepsi commercial.
Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009
• I've been back in the office the last two days for plenty of volleyball and basketball. As I sit here reading the interwebs, I feel like it's my civic duty to post a link to the Times-Dispatch's story from last night's basketball win over Nevada. That's because somebody down there has made it almost impossible to find otherwise. Click here to read about Larry Sanders' double-double and Ed Nixon's breakout night. If you ever wanted to check things out from the other team's perspective, you can give a gander at Chris Murray's recap in the Reno Gazette Journal.
• Also, if you want to browse through my blog from last night's game, you can do so here. I look at it the same way I do my text messages after a long night out. I said whaaaat? It's that kind of feeling.
• Nevada has to go play No. 11 North Carolina now. Good luck with that. Just so everybody knows, Nevada's Luke Babbitt is legit. The dude has a light's out midrange game and mix it up inside as well. He's also only a sophomore. The 6-9 Babbitt finished with 27 points. If he plays a whole game like he played the second half (23 points), he's going to hang 50 on somebody one night.
Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009
• Absolute heartbreaker last night for the VCU Volleyball team. The Rams ran out to a 2-0 lead in the CAA Championship match, only to see George Mason rally for a 3-2 win. Thanks to all who came out. It was a great crowd. The Rams finish up their season Friday and Saturday with Pittsburgh and Liberty.
• I recently caught up with former VCU Basketball center Calvin Roland, who is playing professionally in Romania this season. I think it's an appropriate piece to send you guys into Thanksgiving. Click here to read all about Calvin.
• Happy Thanksgiving to everybody. You guys can have tomorrow off. See you Friday at the Nevada game. Bring the fam'.
Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009
• First things first. Tonight, your Rams of Vir-ginia Commonwealth University will meet George Mason for the CAA Championship at 7 p.m. at the Verizon Wireless Arena. So, round up grandma, collect your brothers and sisters, grab the 'rents and corral your buddies. Get down to the "Stu" tonight and help send the Rams to their first CAA title and NCAA berth since 2005.
• Former VCU golfer Ted Brown has qualified for the third (and final) stage of Q School for the PGA Tour. On Monday, Brown completed his four-round trial at -9 under par, which was good for 16th place. The final stage begins Dec. 2-7 in West Palm Beach, Fla. If Brown finishes in the top 25, her earns his PGA Tour Card. If he finishes 26-75, he earns a Nationwide Tour Card. If he finishes below that, he has to give me free golf lessons next spring.
• I'm mentioning this a couple of days late, but hats off again the the VCURamNation.com crew for their work at the Oklahoma game. Check out the video here.
• So, when Larry Sanders joked about not taking any more 3-pointers this year after the Oklahoma game, we were supposed to know he was kidding right? Larry tried another one last night in the Rams' win at Hampton. He missed and is now 1-of-4 this season. I'm not really shocked. It's sort of his natural progression as a player I guess. If Kirill Pishchalnikov starts jacking up 20-footers, I'll start taking notice.
• Women's basketball's D'Andra Moss was named CAA Co-Player of the Week on Monday. Moss had 33 points in the Rams' win over Morgan State Saturday. Somebody should do a story on her. Like, seriously. Oh, did I mention that yesterday? You bet I did.
• I see McGeorge Toyota is sponsoring our Twitter page now. Only a matter of time before I get my own sweet sponsor. I'm holding out for Penny Lane Pub. Hopefully, any sponsorship deal with the Pub would come with a sack of those wooden nickels they give out, which are good for eight ounces of "beverage", or something like that. Make is happen sales gurus. Make. It. Happen.
Monday, Nov. 23, 2009
• Soooo, how was everybody's weekend? Anybody do anything fun? Not much happened here at VCU. You know, just another standard, shock-the-world Saturday. Yawn. Of course I'm joking. Saturday's upset of #17 Oklahoma was as sweet as they come. Basically, VCU came out and hit OU in the mouth and never let up. I figured if VCU won, it would be close. Not so. The Rams led by as many as 17 points. As for the crowd? Rowdy. Rambunctious. Raucous. Rockin'. It was so good, I wrote a column about it.
• The Terry Sisisky Media Room was jammed after the game, eager to hear about the game from the players and coaches themselves. Now you can too. Click here for the post game presser.
• The CAA Volleyball Championship begins tonight at the Siegel Center. At 4 p.m., Delaware will face George Mason. Then, at 7 p.m., the main event, VCU vs. William & Mary. Come out and support VCU as it seeks its first league crown since '05.
• The VCU Women's Basketball also had a nice weekend. The Rams won a pair of games at a tournament with the longest, and worst name possible - The Anaconda Sports "The Rock" Seton Hall Basketball Classic. Just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it? In Saturday's championship, senior D'Andra Moss had a career-high 33 points and 10 rebounds as the Rams topped Morgan State, 75-68 in double OT. Wow, she must be good. Somebody should do a story on her. Maybe they can even use motion pictures too. Just sayin'.
Saturday, Nov. 21, 2009
• VCU/Oklahoma tonight at 7:30 p.m. If you don't have a ticket, it will be televised on MASN. Make sure you read my live blog here. You can get all of your other good time, gameday stuff here.
Friday, Nov. 20, 2009
• Things are a little nutty up in these parts. Our boy, Mitchell Moore, is basking in the sun, sipping pina coladas with his new bride in Cancun, so we're a man down. Plus, Scottie Day went and deep-sixed his laptop, so we've got that going for us, which is nice. Not really. Anyway, you may have heard, big game tomorrow. No. 17 Oklahoma is in the house. Also, we' just got word that the game is a sellout. About two hours ago, there were literally 23 tickets left, but those went in a hurry.
• Speaking of Oklahoma, this will be Jeff Capel's return to Richmond. You can read all about it here. In addition, Paul Woody of the Richmond Times-Dispatch also has a column on Capel running today. But I know you guys like like me. It's cool.
• To say this game has star power would be a bit of an understatement. OU's Willie Warren is a legitimate National Player of the Year candidate. In addition, Larry Sanders is garnering serious attention from NBA scouts. As many as 18 NBA scouts are expected tomorrow, including Detroit Pistons prez Joe Dumars. The maximum number of scouts to come to a game at the Siegel Center the last two years was five. There's so many scouts, that we legitimately had to come up with extra seating for them. That has never happened before.
• Fun with audio. Speaking of Jeff Capel, here's a clip from one of his postgame press conference's after a particularly ugly loss. A lot of Ram fans should remember. I believe it was a game in 2003, when VCU got absolutely spanked by UNC Wilmington, 81-50, at the Siegel Center. Thanks to John Tatum for the audio link.
• Women's basketball senior D'Andra Moss returned to the VCU lineup on Monday after her second ACL surgery. Moss had seven points and six rebounds in the Rams' 72-58 win over Virginia Tech. VCU expects her to be a big part of their success this season.
Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009
• A quick note before we get started. As of early this afternoon, there were only about 50 tickets left for Saturday's VCU men's basketball game with 17th-ranked Oklahoma. Get them while they last! Operators are standing by! Sort of. Just call 828-RAMS and get down to the Siegel Center for what promises to be a rockin' atmosphere.
• Got a bit of late start this morning. I was trying to get over the feeling of dread that last night's basketball game washed over me. If you haven't seen, the Rams shot an abysmal 26 percent in the second half and lost at Western Michigan, 83-67. Yuck. That's my in-depth analysis. Yuck, yucko, yick, blah. I feel like somebody just slapped me with a catfish. As bad as last night was, history tells us that we need to move forward. Remember the debacle at Hampton a couple of years ago? VCU comes back the very next game to beat Maryland. What about the inexplicable, I-would-believe-it-if-I-didn't-see-it-with-my-own-two-eyes, 81-72 loss to UNC Wilmington last season? You want to talk about quiet bus rides? I felt like any audible noise would be met with certain death. A couple of nights later, the Rams hammered William & Mary. Basketball season is long and is full of peaks and valleys. Let's be honest. Joey Rodriguez isn't going to shoot 2-of-16 again. Larry Sanders won't always have four fouls (hopefully). The Rams won't go 1-of-14 from 3-point range. Burn the tapes, forget it, move forward.
• VCU Volleyball Coach James Finley will be on "Hardly Workin" on 950 AM with Greg Burton today at 4:10 p.m.
• Field Hockey freshman Kelsey Scherrer was named Second Team All-South Region today. She's the first Ram to earn All-Region accolades since 2004. It's particularly significant, considering that the South Region basically consists of two of the best leagues in the country, in the ACC and CAA. Scherrer, who is a flat-out burner, scored 11 goals this season and was named Second Team All-CAA.
• Ronnie Price of the Utah Jazz may want to have his sprained big toe amputated or something, because at this rate, it's going to be like Mikey's wishing well speach in the Goonies. "The next time you see sky, it'll be over another different town. The next time you take a test, it'll be in another school." Eric Maynor scored 15 points, including 10 during the fourth quarter, to help the Jazz pull away from Toronto last night, 104-91. Maynor has averaged 17.3 points in Utah's last three games.
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009
• Gameday, woot. The VCU men's basketball team is up in Kalamazoo, Mich. to face Western Michigan tonight at 7 p.m. Other than WMU guard David Kool having one of the best (coolest?) names the Rams will face this year, I have little else to add. Be sure to listen in at 104.7, WBBT on on the interwebs. You can access that broadcast, as well as live stats, live blog and other goodies here.
• The word on the street is that Mulligan's in The Fan will be carrying the internet broadcast of the game tonight. Might be worth a look.
• I'll remind you tomorrow too, but VCU Volleyball Coach James Finley will be on "Hardly Workin'" tomorrow with Greg Burton at around 4:10 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009
• Nice win by the women's basketball team last night, 72-58, over Virginia Tech. Also, great crowd last night! I've really been impressed with the fan support at both the men's and women's basketball games. From an attendance standpoint, the men's crowds have been great for a couple of years, but the participation of the student section has increased exponentially in my five seasons. Last night, the crowd was 1,200+ and was into the game at every phase, even when things got ridiculous ugly in a couple of stretches. Let's keep it up.
• An important development in last night's game was the level of play of some faces fans might not be as familiar with. I'm speaking of players like Courtney Hurt, Stephanie Solomon and Ebony Patterson. In fact, I wrote an Around The Horns column on it. Go figure.
• Obligatory Eric Maynor news of the day. In this video from Jazz practice yesterday, Eric discusses his starts last weekend and his outlook moving forward. In other news, Deron Williams has returned to the team, which means Maynor's stint as Utah's starting point guard are over for now. Williams had missed the last two games to deal with a family health issue.
• Other goings-on... Working on a feature on men's basketball strength coach Daniel Roose for the gameday program... Also going to try and shoot a video package on women's basketball's D'Andra Moss today or tomorrow. 'D' is returning from a torn ACL, and is key to the Rams' hopes this season. Not sure when that will hit the web yet. Probably late this week or early next... Scott Day in the office next to me, working furiously to get ready for the men's basketball trip to Kalamazoo, Mich., where VCU will face Western Michigan tomorrow night. The Rams are chartering this trip, and will hit the friendly skies this afternoon after practice. Chartering is the only way to fly, let me add. If you charter once, you'll hate flying commercial more than you ever did. Bus straight to the tarmak, drop luggage, board plane, fly, land, get on bus. You literally save HOURS.
• We're trying to get VCU Volleyball Coach James Finley on Greg Burton's show, "Hardly Workin'" sometime this week. Looks like it might happen tomorrow, but we'll keep you posted. Holler.
• Here's a look at the types of basketball fans you'll encounter this season. How many of your friends can you spot here?
Monday, Nov. 16, 2009
• The Sporting News recently ran a Q&A with Joey Rodriguez. Have a look.
• Holler. Tonight, the VCU Women's Basketball team opens its 2009-2010 season against Virginia Tech at 7 p.m. at the Siegel Center. The Rams are coming off the best season in school history, a 26-7 mark and an NCAA bid. VCU has not faced the Hokies since the 1996-97 season, but has won two straight in the series. VCU WBB Gameday.
• I'll also be blogging from tonight's game. Make sure to stop by the Rams Blog and see us.
• VCU Volleyball locked up the CAA's top seed with a pair of wins over the weekend. The Rams will host the CAA Tournament Nov. 23-24 right here at the Siegel Center. VCU is 24-8 and is steamrolling through a nine-match win streak.
• Did I mention that Abby Redick, sister of J.J. Redick is on Virginia Tech's roster? I saw her play in high school a number of times. She was very good, however, this isn't exactly Class A ball anymore.
• More Around The Horns stuff flying into your living room. Posted on the web a feature on Larry Sanders and the hype that surrounds him this year. If you picked up a copy of the men's basketball game program, Rams The Magazine, on Friday, you'll notice it ran there as well.
• More linkage. LeBron gives props to Eric Maynor.
Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009
• It wasn't always pretty, but VCU still put the beat down on Bethune-Cookman last night, 77-51, in VCU's season-opener. One guy who finally got his feet wet was Jay Gavin, who scored 12 points and handed out four assists in the win. Gavin has been through quite a bit in the last year and look thrilled to be back on the court. You can read all about it in my column from last night.
• Also, big game for Eric Maynor last night. With the Jazz down to nine players, Maynor got his first pro start and scored 13 points with 11 assists in 112-90 win. Here's a nice writeup from the Salt Lake City Tribune on Maynor and fellow rookie Wes Matthews.
• Volleyball thumped Georgia State yesterday, 3-0, and moved within a single victory of clinching the CAA regular season title. The Rams go for the kill on Sunday at 1 p.m. at UNC Wilmington.
Friday, Nov. 13, 2009
• It's finally stopped raining in Richmond, at least temporarily. Somebody must've known it was gameday. Not much I can say, other than roll the ball out there and let's go. Check the VCU Gameday page for notes, links and all kinds of other stuff. More importantly, make sure you follow the live blog by yours truely.
• Volleyball's quest for the CAA regular season crown begins tonight in Atlanta. The Rams will take on Georgia State at 5:30 p.m. You can follow along here.
• More basketball stuff. The Paul Woody of the Richmond Times-Dispatch sizes up the CAA's chances for multiple NCAA bids here. But we're not done. All kids of coverage today in the RTD. Check out Tim Pearrell's preview here.
• Just finished up a Q&A with former Ram Calvin Roland for Around The Horns. Still trying to decide if I'll run that today or wait until after the smoke from tonight's men's basketball game clears. Calvin is a super-nice dude and an inspirational figure. If you need a refresher course, here's a fantastic piece that CBS did prior to the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009
• With his senior season fast approaching, I thought it might be appropriate to look at an area of T.J. Gwynn's game that has matured greatly over the years...his hair. Short, long, cornrows, braids and everywhere in between, Gwynn's hair has been there. Here's a tribute to his hair.
I'm not even sure this is a fair portrayal. There were definitely some stages we missed. There were also full-on cornrows at one point.
• Sorry for the late start. The torrential rain flooded some magic internet room here at VCU, so we were sans world wide web and phones for a while.
• Okay, so Eric Maynor didn't start last night. Deron Williams managed to overcome his balky back to play 33 minutes at the point for the Jazz in their loss to the Celtics. Maynor did, however, play a season-high 15 minutes and score six points and hand out four assists. Utah got thumped, 105-86, and most of Eric's P.T. was during the fourth quarter, but it's still an opportunity to make an impression.
• Just had a nice sitdown with Daniel Roose, VCU Basketball's strength and conditioning coach. I'm going to be working on a feature on Roose for the gameday program. Shaka Smart is really high on this guy and for good reason. He's a huge part of what VCU wants to do, as far as style of play goes. Trust me, I know first hand. Make sure you look for that in one of the future game programs. Also, look for two pieces (as well as plenty of other good stuff) in the gameday program for Bethune-Cookman and Oklahoma. There's a nice feature on Larry Sanders, as well as one on Jeff Capel's return.
Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009
• First and foremost, I'd like to thank all the veterans out there for their service to this country. God knows we don't say it enough. I'd like to offer a special thanks to my stepbrother Bruce, who is currently in Afganistan and also served in the first Gulf War. You're one brave dude. He's also scary good at Risk. VCU Athletics was able to put together its own 'Thank You' to the troops. You can watch that here.
• Let's link some stuff, shall we?
-- Barker Davis of the Washington Times wrote a nice piece on some mid-major standouts, and there's plenty of love for Larry Sanders. Give it a look here.
-- VCU's Student Newspaper, the Commonwealth Times, has stepped up its coverage of the Rams this season. Much of that credit falls on Taylor Howsmon, the paper's sports editor, who has been nearly everywhere this year, from soccer to volleyball, to field hockey and basketball. Here's a few things Howsmon will be watching for this basketball season. Also, I promise not to bust his chops for using the phrase, "very unique." Scout's honor.
-- Joe Lunardi of ESPN.com has released his first "Bracketology" of the 2009-10 season. As of right now, he's got Old Dominion listed in the sole CAA slot, by virtue of their preseason No. 1 pick, which is fine. Something to note, however. Buffalo is back in the mix as a first round host site for the first time since 2006-07, when VCU beat Duke. I'm just sayin'.
-- Also, if you want to read up on the Rams' first opponent, Bethune-Cookman, you can do so here. They've already posted their preview for the game.
• Oooo snap. Could Eric Maynor get his first NBA start tonight in Boston? The Salt Lake Tribune is reporting that Deron Williams is unlikely to play tonight against the Celtics because of a strained back. In addition, backup point guard Ronnie Price is also out with a sprained big toe. You couldn't give 'E' a tougher assignment for his first start. The Celtics are 7-1 and are giving up an NBA-best 84.4 points per game.
Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009
• If you've been through the Siegel Center of late, you may have noticed this video playing on the new flatscreens in the lobby. If not, here's a VCU
Men's Basketball highlight video to kick off the 2009-10 season, courtesy of Mike Voyack.
• Throwback of the Day. Here's a mid-nineties pic of Rams' Men's Track & Field Coach Julian Spooner. I can't help but think this photo looks strangely similar to Canadian reggae/rapping "legend" Snow. You know, the guy who did "Informer", the lyrics of which consisted of, "Informer! Sna bidu slama nada doo pha ma slee a licky boom boom down." It's alright, people give me grief about my skater hair from around the same time. Grunge, baby. By the way, please watch the video. This was a legitimate huuuge hit at one point and now I can't watch it without laughing hysterically. Although, this Jim Carrey spoof from "Living Color" was even better.
• Working on a couple of projects right now. At the front of the line is a "Catching Up With..." piece on Calvin Roland. Depending on his schedule (he's playing professionally overseas), I'd like to have it up today or tomorrow. I'm also going to be working on a women's basketball feature and will be live blogging Friday's men's basketball opener.
• Tomorrow is also National Signing Day, so we can start talking about all those players you know that we know that you know that we know are signing with VCU. More on that tomorrow.
• College basketball season began last night with a small slate of games, including Florida International and North Carolina. It's a nice appetizer for Friday, when the Rams open up against Bethune-Cookman.
• I'm an admitted uniform snob, which is why I've always loved Uni Watch on ESPN.com. The Rams made the most recent addition, the "Uni Watch NCAA Hoops Preview". Teams are listed alphabetically, hopefully, you can find VCU. That said, I like this version of the Rams' uniforms much better than last year's. However, I still think the 2006-07 versions are the best. Believe me, growing up as a Cleveland Cavaliers' fan, the bar is set pretty low. As long as a team avoids the baby blue swooshy horribad Cavalier digs of the pre-LeBron era, almost everything else is fine. How bad were those uniforms? I literally Googled, "Ugly Cleveland Cavalier Uniforms", and this is what came up. They were that bad.
Monday, Nov. 9, 2009
• Hey, in case you missed it, VCU Volleyball got good. The Rams won twice this weekend, including an absolute barnburner over George Mason Saturday and are essentially alone in first place in the CAA. VCU is tied with Delaware at 10-2 in league action, but since the Rams defeated the (Fightin'!) Blue Hens Oct. 30, they hold the tiebreaker. If the Rams can beat Georgia State and UNC Wilmington, the eighth and ninth place teams in the league, respectively, VCU would win the regular season and host the CAA Tournament Nov. 23-24. VCU has never won the CAA regular season.
• Gotta break up my volleyball points today. The volleyball team is 22-8 this season, the Rams' second 22-win campaign in five years under James Finley. As we mentioned previously, VCU is 10-2 in the CAA. Prior to his arrival in 2005, VCU had never had a winning season in CAA play. Seriously, that includes 1-11 CAA seasons in 1998 and 2001, as well as a 2-12 yuckfest in 2004. When the Rams went 7-9 in 2002, they must've had a parade down Broad Street.
• If I go through a whole day without linking something to this blog, I get a stern warning and no Jell-O Pudding Pop. Therefore, here's a nice interview by the Commonwealth Times' Taylor Howsmon with Shaka Smart from a few days back.
• I see Robby "The Voice of the Rams" Robinson is tossing shoutouts for Around The Horns via his Twitter page. Naturally, we like to see that. Robby tweets like once a month, so it's nice to have October/November reserved for ATH. Robby will also be tweeting on Christmas, Tax Day and the Summer Solstice. Mark you calendars. The Voice had me on the radio during the Virginia Union game, with promises of more guest appearances. It's exciting, we're carving out a multimedia juggernaut here. Make sure you listen to the Rams this basketball season on 107.3 WBBT (shameless plug of the day). Hopefully, I will have more opportunities to share non-basketball related gems like, the time I fell on my cat, how I gave plasma to pay bills in college, or my man-crush on Stephen Curry. Actually, that last one is kinda basketball related.
Friday, Nov. 6, 2009
• So it's the day after and everybody's forming an opinion about last night's 85-55 exhibition win over Virginia Union. All I'll say at this point is that it's going to be fun to watch. You can read my column on last night's game here.
• I wasn't the only media or pseudo-media member in attendance last night. Here's Tim Pearrell of the Richmond Times-Dispatch's recap from last night. In addition, here's some video from VCURamNation.com. Always a nice job by those guys.
• One thing I was happy to see was the turnout last night. The official attendance was listed as 6,545. There must have been a solid walk-up and/or student turnout, because we really looked like we were headed for a 4-5 thousand night on Wednesday. I also thought the east end of the stands was really into it. Solid form for the exhibition season. The west end? Meh, no idea what's going on over there. Still work to be done.
• It's also a huuuuuge (extra 'u' for emphasis) weekend for volleyball. The Rams have four CAA games left, including two this weekend against James Madison (Friday) and George Mason (Saturday). If VCU wins out, they will host the CAA Tournament. The Rams beat JMU, 3-0, earlier this season, but lost to Mason, 3-2, in Fairfax. Plus, Saturday's match is good for the Sixth Man Rewards program, pluuus, Qdoba (mmmmmm, Qdoba) is sponsoring the match and will be giving out burritos to the first 100 fans; pluuuuuuus, Qdoba will give two people free burritos for a year. You have no idea how bad I want to rig this contest. No idea. Considering how much Qdoba I eat, this would save me some serious cash. I would buy an official Eric Maynor Batman costume with the money I saved.
Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009
• Now my day is all turned upside down. I just rolled smack dabinto the Utah Jazz's Halloween photos, including Eric Maynor (right) as Batman. I literally spit water all over my keyboard. Check those out here. However, I think the real winner was Paul Millsap as T-Pain. No word on if he carried an Auto-Tune with him.
• It's gameday fellas. We'll be there, blogging courtside. I'll provide a link shortly, as soon as I get that puppy up and running. Here's a link to the VCU gameday page. One stop shopping. The blog link is in there too, but it's got some crazy Jack-O-Lantern picture going on right now. I'll have a preview up shortly.
• Tim Pearrell of the Richmond Times-Dispatch recently interviewed Rams' point guard Joey Rodriguez on replacing Eric Maynor in the VCU line-up. You can read all about that here.
Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009
• So, we went to men's basketball practice yesterday. We spoke with Shaka Smart, but didn't catch much actual practice action. In fact, we literally caught the guys shooting free throws for 15 minutes, then the team gathered to go over Virginia Union's personnel. Riveting stuff. Feel free to watch Smart's comments on the Rams' progress and tomorrow's game.
• So, we're on day two of no Diet Coke for me. In the famous words of the inebriated Joe Namath, I am stru-gl-ing. So, we're staying busy with the interwebs and other nonsense. Here's today's official "You're Getting Old Moment". From Joey Rodriguez's Twitter, before game five of the World Series: yankees about to handle cliff lee tonight and we become world champs. i was 12 the last time we won!! its been too long lets go YANKSS. You get that? Joey was 12 when the Yankees last won the World Series. That was 2000, the year I graduated from college. What a kick in the teeth. FYI, I hate the Yankees.
• Info on the VCU Men's Basketball bus trips for fans is out. Click here for the brochure, or if you just want to see a photo of a flexing Kirill Pishchalnikov.
• A new feature on Eric Maynor just hit the interwebs over at UtahJazz.com. Click here to give it a read. On an aside:
Dear Jerry Sloan,
A big DNP-Coaches decision last night for the ole' Dagger? Tsk, tsk. You are upsetting every VCU fan in the country right now. Clean it up. Give Maynor some run please.
Thanks.
Sincerely,
Around The Horns
Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009
• Recently uploaded to the interwebs, the CAA Basketball Preview Show. Give it a watch, eh?
• Throwback of the Day: No, it is not the picture on the left of Joey Rodriguez waiting for Stephanie Solomon's autograph, although that did give me a chuckle. As we prepare for the Seigel Center's 11th season in 2009-2010, it's getting hard for some fans to remember what VCU Basketball was like before "The House that Stu Built". Here's a photo dated June 30, 1997, taken during the Siegel Center's construction.
• So, we're officially two days away from the thrill of exhibition basketball. Today we'll be having a little local media soiree with the men's basketball team. Long Island's Finest, Mike Voyack, and I will be there to grab some quotes and shoot a little practice. We'll have a little preview up on this here website tomorrow.
• Field Hockey has officially nixed its last two road games for health reasons. The Rams finished up at 8-9, their best showing since 2004. VCU is young and should be on an upward swing. Look for more good things in the future from Kelly McQuade, Shannon Karl and the crew. • I'm attempting to get through an entire day without a single Diet Coke, so I'm going to dig through the archives for a Throwback of the Day. I need to stay busy, so I might paint the Siegel Center stairwells, mow the lawn at the Diamond and wax Norwood's car. Plus it looks like I need to archive some of this blog.
Monday, Nov. 2, 2009
• Volleyball freshman Michala Kvapilova was named CAA Rookie of the Week Monday for the fourth time in six weeks. She's dominating this award the way Kevin Federline dominates a buffet.
• The NCAA Volleyball RPI just came out, and as expected, VCU got a nice bump of about 14 spots for their 3-0 week. The Rams are currently No. 84, which is the school's highest since, like probably the mid 80s. VCU is now 89-72 in five years under James Finley, which is fairly impressive considering the state of the program for, oh, I don't know, the 20 years prior. In 2004, the year before Finley's arrival, the Rams went 6-21. Yes, like an L.A. Clippers 6-21. Finley came in, scrapped the whole roster (save three players), went 22-12 in 2005 and never looked back.
• The CAA recently completed their CAA Season Preview video. The VCU portion of the program is currently available on the school's Facebook page. Click here to view it.
• I'm going to go ahead and bump this story on VCU Goalkeeper Kate Hudson one more time for good measure. We've received a very positive response, so I'd like to make sure it sees the light of day as much as possible. Click here for that story. It's quite an inspirational story. She's a tremendous and inspirational person.
• Hello VCU Volleyball. The Rams picked up a couple of huge wins over the weekend, including Friday's 3-2 win at first place Delaware. VCU is 8-2 in the league, technically half a game behind the Blue Hens. However, since the teams do not meet again in the regular season, if VCU wins its final four CAA matches, the Rams will win the regular season and host the league tournament. VCU has never hosted the CAA Tournament.
OCTOBER 2009 (More Like, Rocktober)
Friday, Oct. 30, 2009
• Just received word that Scott Day will be blogging both, count 'em, BOTH soccer games Saturday. The women host James Madison at 5 p.m. and the men will follow at 7. Almost zero chance they start at 7 p.m., fyi; 7:30 is probably more accurate. For that off-the-chain Saturday of internet soccer blog fun, click here.
• I recently completed a feature on VCU Women's Soccer goalkeeper Kate Hudson. Hudson is a cancer survivor and recently completed a marathon for a friend who had leukemia. Give it a read here. FYI, women's soccer will play their final game of the 2009 season on Saturday against James Madison at SportsBackers Stadium at 5 p.m.
• Tim Pearrell of the Richmond Times-Dispatch posted a handful of VCU Basketball notebook items today. Subjects include Jay Gavin, the Virginia Union exhibition and Terrance Saintil's injury. Soak it in here.
• Just think, this time tomorrow I could be knee-deep in a Snicker's coma. In the meantime, you can keep pace with the VCU Volleyball team, which will be essentially fighting for first place in the CAA this weekend. The Rams meet Delaware tonight in Newark, Del. at 7 p.m. The Blue Hens are in first place at 8-1, while VCU is a game-and-a-half back at 6-2. Mat Shelton threw together a nice preview for this here website. If you want to check it out, click here.
• We also made mention of the CAA Cross Country Championships this weekend, if you want to read up on that, feel free.
Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009
• Jesse Pellot-Rosa's professional team, Maccabi Haifa, will be airing its games on Jewish Life Television on tape delay. JLTV is available on Direct TV. Games will be broadcast every Thursday night at 8 p.m., beginning tonight.
• That Jerry Sloan, he's a sly one. After riling up the Ram Nation for weeks, dangling Eric Maynor out there for 15, 20, 25 minutes a night in the preseason, Sloan gave us three whole minutes of Maynor-Vision. Doh! No worries, it's just the beginning of what we hope is a long NBA career for 'E'.
• Speaking of Maynor, somebody showed me this today. Apparently he has his own theme song. Can't wait until the Siegel Center student section is singing "Maynor for Mayor". It's going to be huge. I wish I had my own theme music.
• I had about a 40 minute sit down with women's soccer goalie Kate Hudson this morning. She's really an inspiring story. I'll have a feature on her up on her as soon as I can.
• The pollsters have spoken. The ESPN/USA Today Coaches and Associated Press Polls are out, and Oklahoma is ranked 16th and 17th, respectively. That means the Sooners should be the first ranked team to meet VCU at the Siegel Center in the building's 11-year history on Nov. 21.
• Another packed slate this weekend in VCU Athletics, including the CAA Cross Country Championships in Harrisonburg, Va.
Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009
• Throwback of the Day: Here's the outside and inside cover of the 1990-91 Men's Basketball Media Guide. The outside cover is fly enough, with the team decked out in suits. However, the er, "Ram" mascot on the inside cover (playing the drums, no less) is downright scary. Looks like a mastodon or something.
• Hey, it's Eric Maynor Wednesday. Good ole' 'E' takes the floor tonight in Denver at 10:30 p.m. in the Jazz's first regular season game on ESPN. Fan-tastic. You'll notice I highlighted the most important information, kind of like the big button phone you got grandma last Christmas. I'm going to try to catch as much of the game as possible. What I will do with that information is anybody's guess. I do know that I will not be able to make any Goran Suton jokes, since Utah cut him the other day. Honestly, Goran Suton sounds like it's out of Flash Gordon or something.
• Kudos for VCURamNation.com for keeping up on the Dom Jones/Jamal Shuler matchup in Germany this weekend. Jones' ENBW Ludwigsburg team came out on top, 93-65. Jones scored 12 points, while Shuler was held to a season-low nine for TBB Trier. Following this German league, which also includes former Ram B.A. Walker, is challenging. My knowledge of German is about the same as most languages. I can order a beer (Ich möchte ein Bier, bitte), and I can tell people that I don't speak German (Ich spreche kein Deutsch).
Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009
• The USA Today ran its CAA Preview today, although they did use the life-tilt inducing Va. Commonwealth. FYI, "VCU" uses fewer keystrokes.
• Oh by the way, here's a nice piece on Eric Maynor and his transition from a go-to guy in college to a role player. He's in the NBA. We may have mentioned it once or twice on here.
• While you were away, VCU Volleyball decided to make the CAA race a little more interesting. The Rams went 2-0 over the weekend and vaulted into a second-place tie in the league, a game-and-a-half behind Dela-what? Delaware. And guess who the Rams will be visiting Friday, Dela-who? Dela-where.
• Speaking of Volleyball, this will be a volleyball-heavy blog, mind you. I wrote me a story on a volleyball player. Junior Mariel Frey is having a career year, click here to find out why.
• Volleyball III. VCU hosts Liberty tonight at the Verizon Wireless Arena. Live stats here. Live video here.
• Daily Eric Maynor update. Eric Maynor is in the NBA. Thanks, check back later for more in-depth coverage.
• Just kidding. Volleyball IV, the return. Freshman Michala Kvapilova won her third CAA Rookie of the Week award Monday. She flat-out tearing up CAA play. This weekend, the averaged 4.11 kills per set in two wins. She leads all CAA players in kills in league play. Ship the Rookie of the Year award?
• Men's Soccer is also in action tonight at Old Dominion. The Rams have won two straight and are unbeaten in their last three matches. ODU is 3-3-2 in CAA play.
Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009
• With Ronnie Price still nursing a hamstring injury, Eric Maynor is getting some serious run with the Utah Jazz. The Jazz closed out their preseason last night with a 95-85 win over the Sacramento Kings. Maynor scored 13 points and, more importantly, shot 5-of-8 from the field in 29 minutes. Utah opens its regular season on Wednesday, Oct. 28 in Denver on ESPN at 10:30 p.m. Watch it or relinquish your VCU fandom. Just kidding. No I'm not. Watch it.
• Larry Sanders was named one of college basketball's 16 most exciting players by SI.com. Check it out.
• So, it wasn't long ago we were talking about how the Tigers were going to give VCU-alum Scott Sizemore a serious look at second base. Call it the "Around The Horns Jinx" if you will, but Sizemore fractured a bone in is ankle yesterday in the Arizona Fall League. The Tigers do believe, however, that Sizemore will be ready for Spring Training.
• Okay, I don't know if you guys have seen this, but it's pretty cool. It's not a VCU event per se, but we're posting it here based on rule 103.2, section B of the Around The Horns rulebook, which states that any sibling of a current or former VCU player is blog-worthy. Therefore, I give you a 95-yard soccer goal, scored by SMU freshman Ryan Rosenbaum, the younger brother of former Ram David Rosenbaum.
Friday, Oct. 23, 2009
• TGIF and stuff. Another big weekend of VCU Athletics is in the que. Lets seeeee. Field Hockey hosts ODU tonight at 4 p.m. and William & Mary Sunday at 1 p.m. Volleyball rumbles with Hofstra tonight at 7 p.m. and Northeastern on Saturday at the Stu, same Bat Time. Golf is in Greensboro, N.C. Saturday and Sunday, their final action of the fall. Somebody needs to explain how golf is a spring sport, yet plays half of its tournaments in the fall...but I digress. On the pitch, we've got women's soccer at Hofstra tonight at 7 p.m., then at Northeastern Sunday at 1 p.m. On Saturday at SportsBackers Stadium, you've got men's soccer hosting Towson at seven. It sounds like a lot because it is. I'm actually out of breath saying....er...typing all that.
• On Sunday over at Cary Street Field, field hockey will be hosting "Play for a Cure" to raise money for cancer research. They'll be giving t-shirts to the first 100 fans and will also have a raffle, where they'll give away an iPod Touch, a gift certificate to Outback Steakhouse, a VCU Field Hockey polo and a NikeID Rams watch. If you do not show up and donate, I will take these items for myself. I will wear the watch and polo and drive over to Outback Steakhouse, where I will order a steak the size of my head, while I rock out on my iPod Touch. Again, Sunday, 1 p.m., Cary Street Field. Go support a great cause.
• RAM Spirit Fest is Friday (today). VCU Volleyball will be hosting Hofstra tonight at 7 p.m., but you can go as early as 6 p.m. and pick up one of 1,000 free t-shirts (assuming you're a VCU student). They'll be giving away a ton of stuff, free tuition, free books and naturally, an iPod Touch. iPod are like the new currency. Pretty sure it's going to replace the Euro soon.
-- patron: "I'll have a croussant and a bottle of water."
-- waiter: "That'll be an iPod Shuffle, please."
• Decided to move that Mariel Frey volleyball piece to Sunday or Monday. There's so much going on, I want Ramland to actually see the thing, rather than have it be the 14th item on the front page of the website by Saturday. Look for that. It's a real nice story. She's really come into her own this season for the VCU Volleyball team, which is a serious contender in the CAA right now.
• Technology rules. The VCU Men's and Women's Basketball Media Guides are now available online. Click here for the men's and here for the women's. It's not just your passe' PDF format either. It's a new online viewer, so they really pop.
Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009
• Also, in case you missed the GIANT headline story, men's basketball single-game tickets are on sale. I need to tell you guys that though, because you already have season tickets, right?
• The men's and women's basketball media guides were delievered today on two giant pallets. It was a solid morning workout. You can get a look at the covers here: VCU Men • VCU Women. Now in Technicolor! The PDF's are graphic intensive, so I apologize if they take a second to load.
• We're working dilligently over here. Currently putting together a feature on volleyball player Mariel Frey, who has really come into her own this season. We're going to tell you why. We're also trying to get the ball rolling on another cool video, i.e. one that will probably embarass me.
Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009 • We went to CAA Media Day on Tuesday. It seemed like a good time to catch up with VCU Basketball Coaches Beth Cunningham and Shaka Smart.
• Yesterday was CAA Basketball Media Day. Local scribe Tim Pearrell was there for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. You can read his recap here.
• Throwback of the Day: Here's a nod to those of you who fondly look upon the Metro Conference Days. Here's a handful of pages from the 1993-94 Metro Conference Men's Basketball Media Guide. Included is a handy dandy Metro Conference history, so you too can imagine the league imploding before your eyes!
• Eric Maynor had another solid performance last night in Utah's 108-97 win over the Portland Trailblazers. Maynor scored 11 points and dished out four assists, although he did have five turnovers. On an aside, I miss the old "Jailblazers" of the late 90's and early 2000's. It was so much more interesting to try to guess which guy was going to get arrested next. I can't name three current 'Blazers. The Jazz play their final preseason game on Friday when they meet Sacramento.
Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009
• Sorry chums. It was a 4:30 a.m. wakeup call in Ramland so we could head up to D.C. for CAA Media Day. The event went well, as usual. The VCU Men were selected third in the CAA Preseason Poll, behind Old Dominion and Northeastern. Larry Sanders was named preseason first team. Meanwhile, the VCU Women were selected fifth in what is supposed to be a very competitive year.
• Other random musings from Media Day:
-Shaka Smart is the only newcomer among 24 CAA basketball coaches this season
-Bruiser Flint is still a darn fine dresser.
-Delaware's Elena Delle Donne was named preseason All-CAA Second Team, even though she wasn't on the ballot. If she's half as good as she's been billed, Delle Donne will do much better than second team when March comes around.
-George Mason men's coach Jim Larranaga was walking with a cane following hip surgery. He says he's doing well, but had a setback lately. He also fully endorsed "Law Abiding Citizen" as a must-see movie. He also says "Capitalism", Michael Moore's new flick, contains a lot of interesting information.
-Despite the trouble that the economy is causing the media industry as a whole, the crowd seemed as good, if not better than last year.
• The VCU Field Hockey team will be hosting Richmond over at Cary Street Field tonight at 7 p.m. Get your hockey on, and stuff.
• The, AHEM, CAA Champion VCU Golf team received some cool local pub today. The Virginia Golf Report ran a cover story on the Rams' three seniors, Lanto Griffin, Rafael Campos and Vincent Nadeau. The guys look all serious on the cover, but they're really fine young humans. Click here for the whole magazine. The story is on page seven.
Monday, Oct. 19, 2009
• Happy Monday. Tomorrow all us SID types are going to pile into a clown car with Shaka Smart and Beth Cunningham and head to Washington, D.C. for CAA Media Day. The event will be held downtown at the ESPNZone. If we're lucky, I can challenge Smart and Cunningham to a winner-take-all pop-a-shot competition. On an aside, I've always felt that if I had an extra million bucks laying around to construct a man-room in my house, I would build an ESPNZone.
• There will be quite a bit going on during tomorrow's event, including a live chat with every men's and women's basketball coach. Shaka Smart will go on at 9:42 a.m., while Beth Cunningham will follow suit at 9:50. To submit a question, click here. There will also be video blogs and things of that nature. Check caasports.com for more.
• FYI, the league will also announce its Preseason All-CAA teams and predicted order of finish. That should give the fans something to chew on until early November.
• The NBA preseason is winding down, but Eric Maynor is just getting started. Maynor had seven points, four assists and a pair of steals in Utah's 110-103 win over Charlotte the other day. The good news is that in six preseason games, Maynor is averaging a respectable 7.7 points, 4.5 assists and two steals per game. The bad, ehh, 'E' is shooting .298 from the floor. Set your DVR's early. The Jazz open their season on Wednesday, Oct. 28 at Denver, which will be televised on ESPN. Hang on....10:30 Eastern Standard Time.
• Another semi-related CAA note. A nice story by the Associated Press last week on Elena Delle Donne. For those of you who don't know, Delle Donne was the No. 1 recruit in the nation two years ago and signed with UConn. Now she's at Delaware, where she could turn the CAA on its ear. Must be nice to have a 6-5, all-world guard fall into your lap. In case you're wondering, VCU hosts Delaware on Thursday, Jan. 21 at the Siegel Center. Story in print or:
Friday, Oct. 16, 2009 • Good times at T-Miller's Sports Bar & Grill last night for the VCU Barnstorming Tour. Probably too good. We're moving a little slow today. Come out and join us next week when the tour decends on Champp's Sports Bar at Stony Point on the Southside.
• Today is the first day of basketball practice. I wrote me an article about it yesterday. You should check it out. VCU beat writer Tim Pearrell of the Richmond Time-Dispatch also sat down with VCU Men's Basketball Coach Shaka Smart recently to talk about the start of practice. You can read that conversation here.
• We talked a couple of days ago about Scott Sizemore, and the possibility of taking over at second base for the Detroit Tigers next year. Well, Scott's going to try to convince the Tigers that he's ready. The VCU alum homered twice in the Arizona Fall League yesterday.
• Three home games on the slate today, I'll be at two of them. At 4 p.m., I'm going to watch field hockey as they host Appalachian State at Cary Street Field. Then, at 8 p.m., it's VCU Volleyall versus William & Mary at the Verizon Wireless Arena. If you prefer soccer, and don't want to see my ugly mug, you can get down to Sports Backers Stadium for VCU and William & Mary at 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009
• It may have snuck up on you, but basketball practice begins tomorrow. Hoo-rah. I spoke to Larry Sanders yesterday and he said he was excited and ready to get started. Meanwhile, Joey Rodriguez, in a Twitter post yesterday, said he 'can't wait' for practice on Friday. Nice to see that kind of enthusiasm.
• Tonight is also the first of two VCU "Barnstorming" stops. Shaka Smart will be down at T-Miller's Sports Bar and Grill tonight from 6-8 p.m. T-Miller's is the new sports bar at the Mariott on Broad Street, next to the Coliseum. There will be appetizers, beverages and a Q&A with Shaka and Robby Robinson. Ch-ch-check check it out.
• Golf's Lanto Griffin picked up CAA Co-Player of the Week honors last night. Congrats to Lanto.
• The VCU Volleyball team has a huge match tomorrow with William & Mary. Mat Shelton, who some of you may know from VCU Ram Nation, just finished a nice Q&A with Rams' Coach James Finley. We'll have that up on the website sometime later today.
Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009
• Happy Wednesday the 14th, the ugly cousin of Friday the 13th. In this day and age, there are few moments that represent fame for an athlete like getting your mug into a video game. NBA 2K10 was released last week, featuring VCU's own Eric Maynor. My man Eddie Johnson picked up the game last week and took some screen shots for your consumption. However, I feel like I've failed Maynor in one area. Dude still cannot take a headshot. I don't know if he's working on some Derek Zoolander pose or something, but THIS is just unfortunate. I thought we had turned a corner last year, but I guess it's back to square one. Anyway, you can check out some other screen shots here, here and here.
• The CAA released its Women's Basketball Silver Anniversary team last night and Quanitra Hollingsworth and Kristine Austgulen made the list for VCU. I'm going to assume that Old Dominion, which won 17 straight CAA Championships from 1992-2008, just nominated everybody, literally everybody who wore a uniform during that time period. One interesting choice for the team is Drexel's Gabriela Marginean. Marginean, who will be a senior this year. It's not to say she's undeserving, Marginean is the 2008-09 CAA Player of the Year and is fantastic, quite honestly. She also plays on Drexel's tennis team, which makes her like the Dragon's Deion Sanders. Marginean should scare up a "Primetime" t-shirt and make friends with M.C. Hammer.
• As Shaka Smart reminded us in his Tweet the other day, havoc approaches. Men's and women's basketball practice begins Friday.
Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009
• Like fresh bread, a new Around The Horns feature hit the interwebs moments ago. Check it out here. Clicking the logo to the right works too.
• Judging from this Detroit Free-Press article, it's looking increasingly likely that Scott Sizemore will be the Tigers' second baseman next season.
• Just got off the phone with Jeff Capel. Classy guy as always. Look for that feature in the gameday program for the Bethune-Cookman and Oklahoma games.
• Busy, busy day in the office today. Going to try to talk to Jeff Capel and maaaybe Larry Sanders today for separate features for the Men's Basketball Gameday Program. Also going to knock out a feature on cross country runner Ariana Jones, who has been a big surpise on this year's team. Then T.J. Gwynn will come by and braid my hair (not true). I will do all of this while I rock out to the greatest hits of Asia (all two of them), as well as Sweet's "Fox on the Run" and Bob Dylan's "Man in Me" (fantastic in the Big Lebowski), which I downloaded last night on iTunes. Still looking for "Do You, VCU?" online. No luck so far. I'll have some other interesting items later in the day, including a throwback and some Eric Maynor NBA2K10 stuff.
Monday, Oct. 12, 2009
• Rain washed out the final round of the Brickyard Collegiate in Macon, Ga. today, so VCU ended up finishing fifth, while Lanto Griffin took third in the individual standings. Apparently the Rams got six holes in before the skies opened up. I only wish this would happen to me when I golf. Think of it as a sign from the gods. I'm better off in the clubhouse, where I do my best work.
• Michala Kvapilova picked up her second CAA Rookie of the Week award Monday. The 6-1 freshman is really playing well of late. Also, I'm taking suggestions from anyone who can construct snazzy headlines using all or any part of Michala Kvapilova. I have a feeling I'm going to need a few more.
• Throwback of the Day: These days, the Siegel Center is the epicenter of VCU Athletics. But back in 1995, it was just a blueprint, as you can see in this artist's rendering from the 1995-96 men's basketball media guide. The actual arena is actually pretty close to this mock up. The exterior shot shows a much shorter tower, and the interior features the Founder's Room balcony with rows of seats, but otherwise, they stayed pretty true to this design.
• Greetings and salutations. Happy Monday and all that stuff. Today's first item is from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, which features Nancy Thomas, who played volleyball at VCU from 1976-79 and is now the president and CEO of the local Retail Merchants Association.
• We've gotten a lot of good feed back on the workout video (below), but my favorite comment so far was from freshman field hockey player Kelsey Scherrer, who told me that I was psycho, in a good way, I think. Either way, we're going to try to do some more of these in the future, so stay tuned.
Sunday, Oct. 11, 2009
• The VCU Golf team is in the mix at the Brickyard Collegiate Invitational. The Rams are fifth after 36 holes, while senior Lanto Griffin sits tied for third at 4-under par. Follow Monday's final round by clicking here.
• Really nice pub for Eric Maynor at the Bleacher Report, where some dude named Shan thinks the Jazz have found themselves a quality back-up for Deron Williams.
• Get ready folks. Only five more days until basketball practice begins!
• The VCU Volleyball team went 2-0 this weekend after throttling UNC Wilmington and Georgia State. The Rams are 15-7 overall and 3-1 in the CAA. The win also sets up a nice rematch with William & Mary for sole possession of second place on Friday, Oct. 16 at 8 p.m. at the Siegel Center.
• Field hockey snapped a four-match losing streak with Sunday's 3-0 win over Davidson. Freshman Kelsey Scherrer picked up two more goals. She has 11 this season.
Friday, Oct. 9, 2009
• I'm going to cross-post this in 42 different places, so that I can be completely embarrassed. On Oct. 2, I was invited to work out with the VCU Men's Basketball team during one of their Friday conditioning sessions. Thanks to Mike Voyack to compressing over and hour's worth of footage into one five-minute bundle of shame. Enjoy.
• Women's soccer will be at Drexel (Friday, 7 p.m.) and Delaware (Sunday, 1 p.m.). Click here for Scott Day's live blog from both matches, where he'll likely try to convince you that he threw a no-hitter at York College in Pennsylvania. Don't believe him.
• The VCU Volleyball team will be donating proceeds from tonight's ticket sales from their match with UNC Wilmington to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The foundation raises money and awareness to fight breast cancer. Come cheer on the Rams tonight at 7 p.m. and help us fight this terrible disease.
• Over at Sports Backers Stadium on Saturday, the VCU Men's Soccer team will be hosting family night. From 5-7 p.m., prior to the Rams' match with William & Mary, VCU will host a barbecue that will feature giveaways, face painting and a moonbounce. Two things I love - a moonbounce and Buz and Ned's BBQ. Although together, I admit they can be dangerous.
• The field hockey team will meet No. 11 James Madison tonight in Harrisonburg, Va. It's the third ranked opponent the Rams have seen this season. The match starts at 7 p.m., and fans can follow the action via live stats.
• Need inspiration for the weekend? I think we do. I give to you, former VCU Basketball great, Rolando Lamb, America's character coach. Go Rams.
Thursday, Oct. 8, 2009
• Maybe he's out to prove he can knock down that NBA 3-pointer, but Eric Maynor posted THIS highlight this afternoon from the Jazz's game with Real Madrid. Good stuff. I hope we see a lot more of it. 'E' finished with eight points, seven assists and two turnovers in 24 minutes, his best game of the preseason so far.
• If you missed the great, great piece on Brandon Inge on the front page of the VCU website, please go here to watch it. Brandon works extensively with sick children in the Detroit area, and it could bring a tear to your eye. Click HERE to watch.
• Also, a couple of update. The video of me working out with the men's basketball team should be out later today. My man Mike Voyack has been editing down over an hour of footage into a 5-6 minute spot. Looking forward to that. Also working on a piece on women's cross country surprise Ariana Jones.
• It's been a few days since we had a Throwback of the Day, brought to you in part, by the fine people at Flexall. Today's pic is the game program from opening night at the Siegel Center, Nov. 19, 1999. Those of you who are tuned into the Rams' not-so-distant history will already know that VCU rallied for an 81-74 victory that night.
• Tough night for VCU Athletics in general last night. Men's soccer, field hockey and volleyball all fell by narrow margins. Please look away while we burn the tapes and deny any existence of Wednesday's schedule.
• We mentioned the CAA 25th Anniversary Men's Basketball team, which was released Tuesday. Well, Patrick Stevens of the Washington Times got a look at it and tossed out some nice praise for Larry Sanders in his blog.
Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2009
• While the rest of you were watching the baseball game of the year, I was at the Wizards-Grizzlies exhihbition. Basically, everybody I know keeps telling me that it was the greatest game of the millenium or something similar. VCU alum Brandon Inge played a big role, hitting an RBI double. Inge was also apparently hit by at pitch with the bases loaded in the top of the 12th, but home plate ump Randy Marsh felt otherwise. To read up on that, click here for an article, courtesy of the Detroit Free Press.
• The Free Press didn't take long to look ahead to next year. The paper breaks down the team's potential look next season, position-by-position, and includes a mention of former VCU star Scott Sizemore.
• Preseason game No. 2 is in the books for Eric Maynor and the Jazz. Utah dropped a 102-101 decision to Chicago in London, but really it's an exhibition game. The score is about as important as Kevin Federline is relevant. Maynor got 16 minutes of run yesterday and scored four points and handed out three assists. He did not commit a turnover, but he did shoot 1-of-7 (eesh) from the floor. Then again, so did Maynor's primary competition at Utah's back-up point guard spot, Ronnie Price. The Jazz play again Thursday, when they meet Real Madrid in Spain.
• The VCU Volleyball team returns to the Siegel Center tonight for a match with George Washington at 6 p.m. It's been 15 matches and nearly six weeks since the Rams played at home. To celebrate, we'll do what any reasonable person would do - throw a pizza party. The first 200 VCU students to tonight's match get a free slice and Pepsi, courtesy of Papa John's. Considering that when I was in college, we used to barter and make bets with each other, using Papa John's pizza as currency, I would do this in a heartbeat. I once ate for a week after a crazy Mario Kart heater. Those guys never knew what hit them.
Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009
• Hey, the live blog is up and running for tonight's game at the Siegel Center. Sorry, gotta pay the bills. I mean, the Verizon Wireless Arena. Click here for the blog.
• By far the best comment of the day. I'm watching the Utah/Chicago exhibition game live from London, which has a British broadcast crew. The play-by-play guy just said, "Apparently, the NBA has a different interpretation of what constitutes a travel." Obviously, this guy hasn't seen much NBA basketball. It's like saying, "Britney Spears has a different interpretation of what constitutes singing."
• The CAA released the league's Silver Anniversary Team today. Three Rams, Bernard Hopkins, Dom Jones and Eric Maynor, made the cut. David Robinson, who dominated the league like no other, is obviously on that list, as are guys like Johnny Newman of Richmond, Brett Blizzard from UNC Wilmington and Will Thomas of George Mason. The CAA has a rich history,
so I'm a little confused about Hopkins and Barea, who each played a grand total of one season in the CAA. Sure, each had a very good year, but it was one year. By that reasoning, I'd expect to see Cal Bowdler on this list too.
• It's a big day here at VCU. Tonight at the Verizon Wireless Arena at the Siegel Center, the Washington Wizards will open their exhibition season against Allen Iverson and the Memphis Grizzlies at 7 p.m.. I'm going to be blogging live from the game, so stay tuned to this blog and VCUAthletics.com for details. In the meantime, I'm super excited about this game, because it gives me an opportunity to use this (remix!):
• If you have NBA TV, you can see Eric Maynor and his Utah Jazz teammates today at 2:30 p.m. when they take on Chicago in London. From there, Maynor and Co. head to Spain to meet Real Madrid on Thursday.
• When I first heard that there would be a VCU Barnstorming Tour, I was really hoping it meant that we were going to pile the men's basketball team onto a big yellow schoolbus and head out to a bunch of farmtowns in Indiana. But yeah, having Shaka Smart discuss the upcoming season over food and drinks is a cool idea too. Click here for more info. FYI, only 10 days until men's basketball practice officially begins.
Monday, Oct. 5, 2009
• Shaka Smart and the men's basketball team visited Jacobs Road Elementary last week, where Bradford Burgess' mom, Myla, is the principal. Click here for photos.
• I tried to go see Surrogates yesterday to give you guys a review of VCU alum Boris Kodjoe's performance, but it didn't work out. I ended up fighting with the lawn mower instead. Hopefully, I'll have something to report on that front soon.
• Rams' Volleyball freshman Michala Kvapilova has been named the CAA's Rookie of the Week. Holler. Kvapilova averaged 3.75 kills per set and hit .295. Release here.
• Scott Sizemore has been named the Detroit Tigers' Minor League Player of the Year. I'm still trying to figure out how that didn't earn the VCU alum at least a September call-up, but I digress. Cool for Scott either way. It will be interesting to see what the Tigers do at second base next season.
• The VCU Men's Basketball team recently headed to Jacob's Road Elementary, where Bradford Burgess' mother is the principal, to visit and read with the kids. If you have Facebook (and if you don't by now, what's up with that?) there's a photo gallery available here.
• Apologies for today's late start. I had the opportunity to sit in on a lecture by Bill Rasmussen, the founder of ESPN. It was pretty inspiring. In summary, Rasmussen had the idea for ESPN. Everybody told him he was nuts. ESPN takes over the world. Rasmussen wins. Something like that. Makes me believe that I can do anything. Like ressurect disco.
• NBA TV is at the Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center today for Wizards training camp. They're running a live feed. Click here to watch.
Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009
• Pretty bumpy weekend in Ramland. Volleyball split, field hockey dropped two, men's soccer fell to Hofstra, women's soccer tied one and fell to UNC please-don't-hyphenate-us Wilmington today. Volleyball did have a 2-1 week overall, so they get the Bartles and James Team of the Week nod. I've been told to look for big things from freshman Michala Kvapilova, but nagging injuries limited her production early. Not this week. In three matches she averaged 3.75 kills and hit .295 (like baseball, but hitting .295 in volleyball is like hitting .350).
• Weird stat from this weekend. The Rams' Field Hockey team has lost six straight overtime matches. That can't be right, right? Unfortunately, it's true.
Friday, Oct. 2, 2009
• Shaka Smart and Sports Radio 910's Wes McElroy are teaming up to raise money for cancer research. Smart and McElroy are attempting to raise $2,000 by Saturday, Oct. 17. If they do, Smart will shave McElroy's head. For the record, McElroy has great hair. Click here for more information, or to donate.
• Be honest. Seeing Eric Maynor in a Utah Jazz uniform in the picture on the left (click for grande version) is kinda strange. Like seeing your high school sweetheart on Facebook years down the road, and she's married with three kids. Sure, you're happy for her, but you're still kind of weirded out. It's like that.
• Throwback of the Day. Just your good old standard rage coaching shot. Here's a nice pic of Mike Pollio absolutely losing his mind during a Dec. 14, 1985 game with Virginia Tech. Is he levitating? I think he's levitating. He should be, VCU lost, 67-65, at the Richmond Coliseum. You'll also notice a young Tubby Smith to the far left.
• Went through a conditioning workout with the men's basketball team this morning. It hurts to type. Literally, hurts to type. Those guys know how to get after it. New Strength Coach Daniel Roose is a task master. He really keeps the guys on point. Look for that video sometime next week, which is probably about the same time I'll be able to walk pain free.
• Eric Maynor played his first exhibition game with the Utah Jazz last night in Salt Lake City. Maynor scored four point and added an assist in 12 minutes to help the Jazz to a 103-87 win over the Denver Nuggets. You can tell it's early in the preseason, because 16 different Jazz players saw the floor last night. 16! Hopefully as cuts are made, Maynor will see more minutes and be able to distinguish himself a little. His main competition for Utah's back-up point guard spot, Ronnie Price, had five points and four assists in 14 minutes.
• It's 9:30 a.m., and I've already bumped into Gilbert Arenas twice today. The Wizards host Allen Iverson and the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday, Oct. 6 at VCU's own Verizon Wireless Arena. Click HERE for tickets.
• Big weeked for the VCU Field Hockey team, which plays at 11th-ranked Drexel tonight in Philadelphia, Pa. and at Hofstra on Long Island (Strong Island!) Sunday. Alison Bilbo recently sat down for a Q & A with Rams' Head Coach Kelly McQuade to discuss what lies ahead. Click here to read.
Thursday, Oct. 1, 2009
• NBA training camps are underway, which means eventually, somebody will stick a camera in your face. Eric Maynor was one of the lucky guys, and he spoke with NBA.com.
• FYI, Shaka Smart will be on 910 AM with Wes McElroy today from 4:30-5 p.m. Watch with your ears.
• I just met with VCU Men's Basketball Strength Coach Daniel Roose. Tomorrow morning, I'll go through a conditioning workout with the team. Don't worry, we're going to film it so you can revel in my misery. Frankly, I'm a little terrified. I haven't been this horrified since Brett Favre's performance in Something About Mary. Roose cracked a wry smile as he walked me though the workout. I wonder if he'll be smiling when I throw up on his shoes. I'm sure I'll be horribly embarrassed by my lack of fitness. Naturally, we'll put that video on the internet as soon as humanly possible.
• It's hard to believe that basketball season is still six weeks away, considering the Larry Sanders publicity machine is in midseason form. Steve Megargee of Rivals.com has a nice piece on on Senor Swat in today's notebook. Just noticed that Megargee wrote that Sanders is 6-foot-9. This of course is untrue. Everybody knows that Sanders is 28-feet-tall, carries a giant axe and travels with Babe the Blue Ox.
• I've gotta give it to the guys over at VCURamNation.com who recently put together a nice piece on VCU Basketball great, Pastor Calvin Duncan. It's a video that proves two things. First, Calvin Duncan is a man of conviction. Second, Calvin Duncan is a mighty fine dresser.
• It's possible we've been remiss. The VCU Men's Cross Country team is off to a fine start. They've won both of their meets this season, including the Greensboro Invitational over the weekend. Considering tomorrow's workout with men's basketball, I'm a little jealous of the cross country guys who can bang out eight kilometers in 25 minutes. Okay, a lot jealous.
• It's a sad day. I just saw this tweet from Joey Rodriguez, dated Sept. 28: just got done with tutuoring. shaved the goatee off today. its a sad day now lol. goin home to cheer against the cowgirls. Shaved the goatee? Call marketing. There goes the Joey Rodriguez goatee giveaway day promotion. Not a bad first effort, Joey, but you could learn something about facial hair from Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian.
SEPTEMBER
Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009
• Greetings and salutations from high atop the Sports Medicine Building. We're back in the office after a couple of days at the VCU Shootout. My apologies, I'll get back into the mix with the Throwback of the Day shortly. Golf makes me feel rather unfunny, so I didn't have much in the way of jokes to give you the last couple of days. The Rams placed seventh overall. It wasn't VCU's best performance, but the guys will bounce back, no doubt.
• Around The Horns is always working hard for you, the reader. This week we'll be featuring Kelsey Scherrer of the VCU Field Hockey team. Kelsey's just a freshman, but she leads the Rams in scoring and is helping to transform the program, seemingly overnight.
• Tough loss for the men's soccer team last night, falling 1-0 in the 109th minute at 11th-ranked Virginia. However, volleyball kept rolling, defeating Georgetown, 3-1.
• The locks have been changed over at the Siegel Center, which can only mean two things, either the Washington Wizards are in town, or I need to find a new job. Lucky me, it's the former, as NBA training camps have kicked off. Out in Utah, Eric Maynor is looking ot secure as many minutes as he can this season (near the bottom of the page).
• I was so excited about today's Throwback of the Day, that I forgot to look what year it's from. Ah well, it's from a game program in the 80s, that I can tell you. Anyway, nothing is more fly than Gerald Henderson hawking Sea Dream leather coats.
• Comcast SportsNet is in town for the Wizards, so it only made sense to knock out a few VCU stories while they were here. Comcast interviewed Larry Sanders and is scheduled to shoot something with Shaka Smart tomorrow. Word is they'll run the stuff this weekend.
Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009
• We're out here at the Hermitage Country Club for the final round of the VCU Shootout. The ole' Rams went all Jekyll and Hyde on us yesterday, shooting 5-over in the first round and 5-under in the second round. Either way, yesterday's second-half wake-up call has VCU tied for third and 10 strokes behind leader UNC Wilmington. Ten strokes may sound like a big lead, and it is, but remember the Rams rallied from 12 strokes down to win the CAA Championship last spring, so these things do happen. Click HERE for live scoring, or click on Lanto Griffin's smiling face on the front page of the VCU website.
• Two other VCU teams in action today. The Rams' volleyball squad is in Washington D.C. tonight, and while it tries win a match over Georgetown, VCU will also try to figure out what the heck a Hoya is, exactly. Aside from a Hokie (Virginia Tech)and a Zip (Akron), a Hoya has to be the most obscure Division I mascot, right? Anyway, VCU and Georgetown play at 7 p.m.
• In addition, the men's soccer team is in Charlottesville this evening to play No. 11 Virginia. Live stats will be available, and we hope to have a link to share soon.
Monday, Sept. 28, 2009
• We're out at Hermitage Country Club for the VCU Shootout today and tomorrow. I'm going to try to pick a fight with Bob Barker. In the meantime, click HERE for live scoring from the event. Two rounds today, final round tomorrow. Excellent chance we exhaust every funny quote from Caddyshack, Happy Gilmore and Tin Cup by then.
Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009
• Amanda Adams scored on two penalty kicks, including one nine minutes into overtime as the womens' soccer team got back on track with a 2-1 win over George Mason Sunday. You think the game was a bit chippy? The teams combined for six yellow cards and a red. Save the Christmas cards this year.
• Nice win for the VCU Volleyball squad Saturday over William & Mary, 3-1. In what is expected to be a four team race between VCU, William & Mary, Delaware and Northeastern, this one was pretty big, especially on the road.
• Hard to believe, but for the third straight year, the VCU and Delaware Field Hockey teams went to overtime Friday. The only problem with that is the Blue Hens have won all three of those. Too bad, the UD win overshadowed a sweet goal by freshman Kelsey Scherrer near the end of regulation. VCU's Lindsay Jones intercepted a pass deep in the Delaware zone and found Scherrer streaking up the left flank. Scherrer is about five-foot-nothing, but runs like Joey Galloway. Scherrer ran onto the ball and made a diving stab with her stick to flip a shot over the UD keeper. Cool stuff.
• It's been a tough season for VCU alum Cla Meredith. Meredith has pitched okay, but he's been traded from one bad team, the Padres, to another, the Orioles. How bad is it? Of Meredith's last 45 appearances, 44 have come in losses. Yikes.
Friday, Sept. 25, 2009
• Welcome to the Boris Kodjoe edition of the Around The Horns Daily Blog. Big weekend for Boris, a former VCU Tennis star. Surrogates, in which Kodjoe co-stars alongside Bruce Willis, opens today. Huge for Kodjoe, since Willis is pretty much the greatest action hero that ever lived. Don't argue with me on this. You know it's 100 percent true. Watch 10 minutes, any 10 minutes, of Die Hard or The Last Boy Scout and you'll agree. Surrogates website.
• Throwback of the Day. Hopefully this will increase our female readership beyond my mother (hi mom). Before he was famous, Boris Kodjoe was a pretty good tennis player for the Rams from 1992-96. Truth be told, he's always been a handsome lad, as evidenced by this 1996 photo, which went on the cover of the media guide.
• The VCU Field Hockey squad opens conference play tonight with Delaware at Cary Street Field at 6 p.m. Too bad this match is at home. Who doesn't want to go to Delaware?
• The Rams' Women's Soccer team saw its four-match shutout streak end last night in a 1-0 loss at Towson.
• Is Larry Sanders one of the 10 best centers in college basketball? I don't know, but The Sporting News' Mike DeCourcy thinks so.
Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009
• The VCU Men's Soccer team has three brand-spankin' new goaltenders this year, and Head Coach Tim O'Sullivan says the Rams have never been this deep at the position. Around The Horns is here to tell you all about. Read away!
• Throwback of the Day. Today's throwback isn't so much a tribute to VCU, as much as it is a tribute to great hair. Ladies and gentlemen, Edmund Sherod.
• The Rams' volleyball team picked up win No. 10 last night at Winston-Salem State, 3-0. VCU's bus was an hour and a half late picking the team up, and the Rams throttled the, um, 'other' Rams in a tidy 1:09. So, VCU spent more time driving to Winston-Salem, than it actually spent IN Winston-Salem. My second note on Winston-Salem State: You know the economy didn't help, but after beginning the process to move up to Division I in 2004, the school announced recently that it will reverse course and remain D-II. Ouch.
• The women's soccer team heads to Towson today for a rare (and pretty random) Thursday afternoon match at 4 p.m. It's a big test for the Rams, who kick off conference play with today's contest, and put their four-match shutout streak on the line. Click here for Gameday Central.
Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009
• Things are looking up for the VCU Baseball squad. Collegiate Baseball rated the Rams' 2010 recruiting class the one of the best in the country. Georgia State, they of the Blue Panther, was the only other CAA to make the list. Big things happening down on the Boulevard, eh? That's right. This. Is. The. Way. We. Roll.
• Throwback of the Day. Sure, we spent six days in Buffalo in March, and temperature never crossed the, 'feels like Siberia' threshold, but Eric Maynor made us forget all that. Here are two cool shots of the VCU bench reacting to 'The Dagger'. One • Two.
• The VCU Volleyball team is in action tonight. The Rams (9-5) are traveling to Winston-Salem State tonight to take on the...um...Rams. The 'other' Rams, however, are not having a good year, given their 1-14 record. Winston-Salem State has won four sets (games) all season.
• I was on Delaware's athletics site today. If you go to bluehens.com, drag the pointer over the chicken, I mean Blue Hen, in the upper left corner. Interesting feature. Not sure what the point is, quite frankly. That, and it looks alot like this.
Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009
• Great photo sequence above. Click on the pic to see VCU junior Marle van Dessel score a backhanded goal while falling to the turf during Sunday's 5-0 win over Monmouth.
• Coming up this week. Going to take a look at at the three-headed goaltending situation with the VCU Men's Soccer program right now. Look for that later this week. Hopefully, we'll have at least one other project as well.
• Throwback of the Day. Actually, we've got multiple throwbacks from a 1973 program for a game with East Tennessee State. Frankly, it seemed like every page of this thing was gold, but I had to narrow it down to a few I knew you'd enjoy. Team photos are always fun and this one at least proves that the Richmond Coliseum was, in fact, once new and probably considered state-of-the-art. Also, who remembers JV teams? Fundraising is a big part of college athletics. You don't have to tell Rams' Head Coach Chuck Noe that, as evidenced by this letter.
• Mike Litos recently posted his preseason prediction for the VCU Men's Basketball team. Litos has the Rams slated fourth. Read all about it at CAAHoops.com.
• Just got back from the VCU Bookstore, which now has 'Ram This' t-shirts. I, for one, am thrilled. 'Ram It' used to be a sort of rallying cry and marketing slogan back in the day at VCU, and it's obviously underutilized. Just look at the 1985 Los Angeles Rams. This is how you do it. In all seriousness, did everybody just check their pride at the door on New Years Eve in 1979? It seems like people consented to pretty much everything in the 80s. Go ahead. Ask Larry Sanders and Co. if they want to replicate this video for this season. Seriously.
Monday, Sept. 21, 2009 • My apologies for the late start today. Manure truck jack-knifed on the Santa Ana. Down to business, Throwback of the Day. By all accounts, Sonny Smith was a super nice guy, which is probably why he agreed to this 1989 men's basketball program cover.
• Fellow CAA school Georgia State recently unveiled a brand new logo. Although the new marks replace the Saturday morning cartoon logo the school had been using, I can't get over the fact that I think the new logo looks way too much like the terror dog from Ghostbusters. You tell me.
• The VCU women's soccer team shut out Bucknell Sunday, 3-0. The Rams haven't allowed a goal since the Reagan Administration. Actually, more than four games. It's been 388:28 to be exact, approximately three times the length of Shaquille O'Neal's acting career. The school record is six consecutive shutouts and 568:28. VCU is 4-3-1 and heads to Towson Thursday.
• Here's a little pub from Sunday's games that appeared in today's Commonwealth Times. Field Hockey & Men's Soccer. There's also a nice little photo gallery attached with the men's soccer article. Enjoy!
• Taylor Howsmon is the hardest working college paper writer in all of Richmond. Also included in today's CT is a Q&A with men's socccer midfielder C.J. Gehin-Scott.
• The VCU women's soccer team may not be allowing any goals, but they are scoring some. Senior Jasmine Riley was name CAA Player of the Week tihs afternoon. Riley has five goals and five assists this year.
Sunday, Sept. 20, 2009
• The VCU Volleyball team beat Maryland and Howard, but lost to UMBC Friday and Saturday at the Terrapin Invitational. As Meatloaf says, two out of three ain't bad. VCU is 9-5 this year.
• The Big Gold Machine that is the VCU Field Hockey squad kept on rolling. The Rams thrashed Monmouth, 5-0 Sunday behind Marle van Dessel's hat trick and two scores from superfrosh Kelsey Scherrer. van Dessel has 18 goals the last two seasons, including six this year. I'm thinking she's earned nickname status. Something like, Cary Street Crusher, Dutch Destroyer or Ombudsman of Oisterwijk. Just a thought. Feel free to weigh in with your own.
• Speaking of Monmouth, here's your useless Monmouth University fact of the day. The school's Wilson Hall was used as Daddy Warbuck's Mansion in Annie.
• I'm not sure if the VCU Women's Soccer team is playing with Saran Wrap on one goal cage, but the Rams posted their third straight shutout Friday in a 2-0 win over Lehigh. VCU keeper Kate Hudson (not THAT Kate Hudson) hasn't allowe a goal in 318:28.
Friday, Sept. 18, 2009 • The Colonial Athletic Association has released its men's and women's basketball previews. If you're interweb savy, click on this link to check them out.
• Came across a feature on Quanitra Hollingsworth from the Virginian-Pilot a few days ago. It talks about Hollingsworth's first season in the NBA. Click here to read all about it.
• New feature this week at Around The Horns on men's basketball assistant Mike Jones (not the rapper). Click here or on the link on the right hand side to read all about it.
• Throwback of the day: A great photoshop job by Pete Wright of PW Photography, who caught Jamal Shuler taking flight in 2006.
• It's Friday, which means the VCU sports slate heads up. The Rams' volleyball squad is off to Maryland where it will face a Mid-Atlantic-centric field of Howard and UMBC, as well as the host Turtles. Click here for tournament central. Meanwhile, the VCU Women's Soccer team is on a Patriot League Pennsylvania swing, visiting Lehigh and Bucknell. It's not like the NBA's Texas Triangle (San Antonio, Houston and Dallas), but it is to be feared nonetheless. On Sunday, the men's soccer team will host Longwood at 7 p.m., while the field hockey squad hosts Monmouth at 1 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009 • The Commonwealth Times gave the VCU Field Hockey squad some nice pub today. Click here to give it a read. In addition, there's a Q&A with senior Lindsay Shacklette.
• Throwback(s) of the day: A tribute to former Ram and Slamball extraordinare George Byrd. Plenty of good George Byrd art lying around, including this player card from the Richmond Times-Dispatch. We also dug up this Feb. 24, 1997 game program. I know there's a segment of fans out there who loved those gray unis, so this is for you.Or there's Byrd throwing a pump-fake in the 1996 NCAA Tournament. • Men's basketball photo day was Tuesday. Seems like the guys had a good time working with photographer Skip Rowland (http://www.skippix.biz/). We've pulled a number of shots, some photoshopped, some not. These are all low resolution, but if you're interested in purchasing any of these in high res or otherwise, feel free to contact Skip Rowland at skipr@mindspring.com.MBB Photo Day Gallery.
• Congratulations are in order for VCU senior Rafael Campos, who is good at golf. After shooting a 3-under 210 to place third at the 54-hole Maryland Intercollegiate over the weekend, Campos earned CAA Player of the Week honors.
Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2009 • You may have heard by now that the Siegel Center is getting a new name, The Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. Just when you thought the name cound't get any longer, we throw this wrinkle at you. It does make sense, considering Alltel, the building's former sponsor, was aquired by Verizon recently. I hope this means we can all get new phones. Terms of the deal were not released.
• Taking a cue from Hotclicks at Si.com, I thought it would be great to hit the way-back machine and take a look at some of our old photos and clippings around here. Here's a feature on Calvin Duncan from the Dec. 12, 1983 edition of Sports Illustrated. I left the A.T.&T. ad in for kicks.
• I would be remiss if I didn't post this video. If they could only mesh this with the Kanye West clip in some way, it would be perfect. Anyway, I think the little girl has a future in the bigs.
• Big night Tuesday for Romario Blandon, who scored a hat trick to put the kibosh on Richmond in a 4-3 win at Sports Backers Stadium. Romario has five of VCU's nine goals this season. In his honor, feel free to watch this video of another guy named Romario. You can see highlights at VCUAthletics.com, or watch them via Facebook here.
Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009 • Tweet of the day. From VCU Men's Basketball Coach Shaka Smart on Sept. 12:
Here's an amazing stat: Jay Gavin has gotten up nearly 18,000 extra shots since school began on August 20th. Now that's work ethic! What he did not say is that it was 18,000 shots on a Pop-A-Shot. But seriously, I just got a cramp reading that. That's exciting to read. VCU could really use a sharpshooter this year to spread the floor out for Larry Sanders in the paint.
• This week's first Pulitzer-worthy Around The Horns piece focuses on the turnaround of the VCU Field Hockey program, which defeated Iowa, 3-2 Friday night. It's remarkable the progress that Kelly McQuade, Shannon Karl and Co. have made in just three years. Click here to read about it.
• The VCU Women's Basketball team released its 2009-2010 schedule Monday. In addition to its season-opener with Virginia Tech Nov. 16, the slate is highlighted by a trip to Las Vegas Dec. 19-21 for the Dual in the Desert, a tournament that will feature UNLV, Arkansas, DePaul, Florida State, Hawaii, Kansas State and Texas-San Antonio. I'm not wrong here, Around The Horns needs to cover this, right? Vegas, baby, Vegas! Monday, Sept. 14, 2009 • We've got several Around The Horns projects in the works, but in the next few days you can look for a feature on VCU Men's Basketball Assistant Mike Jones. No, not Mike Jones the rapper. Mike joined the Rams about three months ago and has played a big role in the turnarounds of troubled programs at West Virginia and Georgia. Stay tuned.
• Quanitra Hollingsworth closed out her rookie season with the Minnesota Lynx last night. 'Q' scored nine points and added nine rebounds in an 88-66 loss to Sacramento as the Lynx finished the season 14-20 and out of the playoff picture. Minnesota was expected to contend in the Western Division this season, but that pretty much ended when it lost Seimone Augustus and her 21 points per game six games into the year. It was, however, a respectable rookie year for Hollingsworth, who averaged 4.7 points and 3.2 rebounds after being selected ninth overall in the WNBA Draft in May.
Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009
•The VCU Field Hockey team scored its biggest win in recent memory with a 3-2, come-from-behind victory over 17-th ranked Iowa. Freshman Kelsey Scherrer scored two late goals to give the Rams the win. Scherrrer looks like the real deal. She has four goals this year and has already prompted a record number of 'can we nominate Kelsey for CAA Player and/or Rookie of the Week?', texts from VCU Head Coach Kelly McQuade. • VCU alum John Rollins fired a second-round 65 on Friday to get himself into contention at the BMW Championship, but then went 74-75 the rest of the way to place 38th. It's too bad Rollins couldn't hold on, but let's be honest, he wasn't catching Tiger, who was absolutely unconscious this weekend. Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009
• The VCU Volleyball squad faces seventh-ranked Michigan today in Ann Arbor, Mich. It's the fifth ranked opponent the Rams have met under fifth-year coach James Finley.
• Apparently, VCU and Stanford decided to meet in the middle of the country for a field hockey throwdown. The Cardinal and Rams are in Iowa City, Iowa, where they'll play at 8 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 11, 2009
• Sept. 11, 2001 changed America forever. More than 2,800 perished at the World Trade Center alone, including 343 firefighters. June Hartman's uncle, Glenn Wilkinson was one of them. Read here how her uncle's Bravery continues to inspire Hartman today.
• A nice documentary about the 2008-09 Findlay College Prep - a team that included VCU freshman Issiah Grayson was released earlier this year. Episode 1 • Episode 2 • Episode 3 (pt. 1) • Episode 3 (pt. 2). Thanks to some guy over at VCURamNation for the link.
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BREAKING BBQ NEWS
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009
• What a kick in the teeth this weekend was. Don't know abou you guys, but I went 0-for-3. Men's Basketball lost to William & Mary, Women's Hoops fell to Richmond and my Ohio Bobcat football team lost in the MAC Championship Game. Excuse me, 0-for-4. My Pittsburgh Steelers lost to the Raiders. I'm going back to bed now. 
Monday, Nov. 23, 2009
Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009
Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009
Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009
