Virginia Commonwealth flipped the script on No. 25 Davidson, using a 3-point splurge against one of the best shooting teams in the nation and snapping the Wildcats’ 15-game winning streak in a 70-68 road victory on Wednesday night.
VCU (12-6, 5-2 Atlantic 10) held a 15-point lead with five minutes left before withstanding a furious rally by Davidson (16-3, 6-1). The Wildcats twice whittled the deficit to one point and had a chance to win as Luka Brajkovic attempted a 3-pointer. However, Mikeal Brown-Jones blocked the shot and collected the loose ball with one second left.
Vince Williams Jr. overcame foul trouble to post 16 points and six rebounds while Ace Baldwin tallied 15 points and five steals to help VCU avenge a 63-61 loss to Davidson eight days earlier.
The Rams used a 3-point spree at the end of the first half to grab a lead that they never relinquished.
Playing after being ranked for the first time since March 2015, Davidson was led by Brajkovic, who scored 23 points and pulled down 12 rebounds.
But the Wildcats, who entered as the nation’s second-ranked team in 3-point accuracy at 41.6 percent, made only 3 of 14 shots from beyond the arc against the deeper, fresher Rams, who employed a 10-player rotation while Davidson stuck largely with its starting five.
The Wildcats’ top two scorers on the season, Hyunjung Lee and Foster Loyer, scored 13 and 12 points, respectively. However, most of those points came at the free-throw line as the Rams guarded tightly on the perimeter to limit the duo to a combined 3 of 10 from the floor.
The key stretch was the final 2:28 of the first half when VCU went on a 12-1 run fueled entirely by 3-pointers. Jayden Nunn made a pair and Baldwin and Williams added one each as the Rams turned a three-point deficit into a 37-29 lead.
Then at the start of the second half, Baldwin made a jumper and followed with consecutive steals that led to fastbreak baskets by Williams and Jalen DeLoach as VCU surged to a 43-30 lead.
Davidson suddenly came alive late as Loyer made 5 of 5 free throws and Brajkovic added four points. However, in the final 14 seconds, in addition to getting his 3-point try blocked, Brajkovic was called for an offensive foul.
–Field Level Media
