RICHMOND, Va. – The Old Dominion men’s basketball team (5-3, 0-0 C-USA) fell to VCU (5-3, 0-0 A10) by an 82-75 on Saturday night at the Siegel Center in front of 7,637 fans.
The Monarchs started the second half on an 18-7 run to claim an eleven-point lead, 59-48, capped off by an Ahmad Caver three-pointer, forcing a VCU timeout at the 13:45 mark. It took the Rams 4:12 (14-2 run) to reclaim the lead, 62-61, with 9:33 remaining in regulation. VCU ultimately ended the game on 34-16 run to defeat the Monarchs by seven in the 93rd all-time meeting.
Randy Haynes paced the Monarchs with 18 points, to go along with five rebounds and three assists. Ahmad Caver (six assists and three steals) and Trey Porter (two blocks) each scored 14 points. Brandan Stith also scored in double-figures for ODU, finishing with 10 points, eight rebounds, four steals and three assists.
Old Dominion finished the contest holding advantages in points in the paint (48-30), points off turnovers (18-11), second chance points (11-5) and fast-break points (8-2). For the game, ODU shot 50.0% (32-64) from the floor, 41.7% (5-12) from three and 85.7% (6-7) from the free-throw line. VCU shot 49.1% (26-53) from the floor, 52.6% (10-19) from deep and 20-25 (80.0%) from the charity stripe.
Justin Tillman poured in a game-high 28 points for the Rams on 10-13 shooting from the floor, 4-5 shooting from three and connected on all four free-throw attempts.
In a first half that experienced eight ties and seven lead changes neither team led by more than five points, as the score remained tied, 41-41, at halftime. The Monarchs were led by Randy Haynes’ 13 points (6-9 FG), while Brandan Stith followed with 10 points. ODU shot 56.3% (18-32) from the floor in the first half and 50% from three (3-6), while the Rams connected on 57.1% (16-28) from the floor and 50.0% (5-10) from deep.
Old Dominion will return the hardwood on Wednesday, Dec. 6, when the Monarchs welcome Richmond to the Ted Constant Convocation Center for a 7:00 p.m. tipoff. The game will air on ESPN3.