NORTHEASTERN WINS BATTLE IN THE TRENCHES, DEALS GUTSHOT TO VCU
By Chris Kowalczyk
1-4-09

It’s not just football games that are won in the trenches. VCU’s 62-57 loss to Northeastern before 5,741 at the Verizon Wireless Arena was exhibit ‘A’ that basketball contests can be decided in much the same way.

Plodding and methodical on offense, while gritty and physical on defense, the Huskies were able to exploit one of the Rams’ greatest strengths, post play, on the way to a victory on VCU’s home floor for a second straight year.

Rams’ junior Larry Sanders entered the game on a dominant seven-game stretch in which he averaged 16.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and shot .518 (43.-of-80) from the field. On Monday he struggled with the Huskies’ tough, physical defenders and finished with 12 points on 6-of-16 shooting.

VCU’s troubles down low were not limited to Sanders. The Rams’ post players, Sanders, T.J. Gwynn, Terrance Saintil, Kirill Pishchalnikov and Jamie Skeen combined to shoot 10-of-31 from the floor.

“You have to give it up to their defense on that half of the court,” Sanders said. “They just D’ed up. They squared up real good. They’re a very physical team, we knew that going in, but we just didn’t handle it real well.”

Without a post presence, the Rams were left with rushed 3-pointers and awkward prayers. VCU (9-3, 1-2 CAA) hit just six of 21 from beyond the arc. At times, they appeared frustrated.

Perhaps more frustrating was the Rams’ inability to get to the free throw line. VCU attempted a grand total of four free throws on the night, all by Skeen.

“What that tells me is that we were soft,” Smart said. “We’ve got to go harder to the rim. We’ve got to get into the lane. We’ve got to force the officials to make those calls. I thought there were some plays that could have gone either way, but we can’t leave it up in the air. We’ve got to force the issue.”

Meanwhile, on the other end, 6-8 Northeastern forward Manny Adako was busy gashing the Rams for 23 points and seven rebounds. Adako used a lethal series of baby hooks and low post moves to knock down 11-of-14 field goals.

Monday’s loss also puts the Black and Gold in a precarious spot. On Wednesday, they’ll go to Philadelphia to play a Drexel team that is every bit as physical as Northeastern. At 1-2 in the Colonial Athletic Association, VCU cannot afford another conference loss this early.

“We’ve got to turn the page quickly,” Smart said. “It’s more mental than physical. We’ve got to learn from the mistakes that we made tonight. Drexel’s a very good physical team. We’re going to see more of the same in terms of how they’re going to defend us. We’d better get used to it, in terms of that physicality.”

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