VCU ends 3-game losing streak, beats Fordham 69-62 in Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament

BROOKLYN — It wasn't the prettiest of games, and wasn't fully decided until the closing seconds, but the VCU Rams ended their three-game losing streak with a 69-62 win over Fordham in the second round of the Atlantic 10 tournament at the Barclay's Center.

That moves them into Thursday's quarterfinals with a renewed sense of accomplishment and belief in what helped them win 19 games during the regular season.

"It feels amazing," said senior guard Zeb Jackson who had 10 points for the Rams in the win. "Everything that happened during the regular season is over with. It doesn't matter at this point."

"We have high character kids," added head coach Ryan Odom who won his A10 tournament debut. "This group understands that their goals are still out there and their belief in their defense and their ability to score."

Max Shulga led the Rams with 15 points and added 7 rebounds. Tobi Lawal was the only other Ram to score in double figures (13 points) as the two teams went the final six minutes of the game without either scoring a field goal.

Fordham was led by Kyle Rose who had 19 points and Abdu Tsimbila who added 10. Both teams shot just under 41% from the field, and there were 43 total fouls called in the game, 24 on Fordham.

"They (Fordham) played zone for a majority of the game," Jackson said. "We haven't had too many teams do that against us. Over time, I think we adjusted better."

VCU now gets a chance to exact some revenge against UMass which beat them 74-52 during the regular season in a game that started with the Rams down 17-2.

"From this point on, it will be teams that have beaten us," Jackson added. "It was definitely out of character for us (the UMass loss). We knew the kind of game they would play and they just smacked us in the mouth."

"UMass provides a very stiff challenge," Odom said. "They played extremely well. We just have to get our guys ready."