Parham's career-high 17 rebounds & Asare’s 26 Points Propel Rams to Victory Over Hawks

(Richmond, VA) VCU Women secured their second consecutive win on Sunday afternoon, defeating the Saint Joseph’s Hawks 57-50. The Rams were led by Mary-Anna Asare, who scored an impressive 26 points, and Mykel Parham, who achieved a career-high 17 rebounds. The Hawks were paced by Laura Ziegler, who scored 19 points.

In the opening seconds of the first quarter, Mary-Anna Asare connected on a three-pointer to put the Rams up 3-0. Valentina Ojeda followed with another three-pointer at 8:38, extending the lead to 6-2. However, the Hawks responded with a 7-0 run, capped by Aleah Snead’s layup, giving them a 9-6 lead with 3:25 remaining in the first quarter. Ojeda cut the Hawks' lead to one with a layup at 1:36, making it 9-8. Gabby Casey’s two free throws in the quarter's final seconds put the Hawks ahead 11-8.

The Hawks extended their lead early in the second quarter with a jumper from Laura Ziegler, making it 13-8. The Rams answered as Mary-Anna Asare scored a layup and a jumper, narrowing the gap to 13-12 with 6:49 remaining. Mackenzie Smith’s one-of-two free throws and a layup pushed the Hawks’ lead to 16-12. Grace Hutson’s three-pointer brought the Rams back within one, at 16-15. Talya Brugler’s jumper put the Hawks up 18-15, but the Rams countered with Valentina Ojeda’s jumper and Mary-Anna Asare’s fast-break layup, giving the Rams their first lead since the opening quarter, 19-18, with 3:19 left. Talya Brugler responded with a layup and two free throws, putting the Hawks back up 22-19. The Rams trailed 22-20 at halftime.

Mackenzie Smith opened the third quarter with a three-pointer, extending the Hawks’ lead to 25-20. The Rams quickly responded as Zoli Khalil’s jumper gave them a 26-25 lead with 5:45 remaining in the quarter. The Hawks regained momentum with Talya Brugler’s free throws and Laura Ziegler’s three-pointer, sparking a 7-0 run and giving them their largest lead of the game, 32-26. However, the Rams reclaimed the lead in the final seconds as Mary-Anna Asare’s layup put them ahead 35-34 at the end of the third quarter.

The Rams extended their lead early in the fourth quarter. Asare hit one of two free throws, followed by Ojeda’s layup and another free throw, capping an 8-0 run and put the Rams up 39-34 with 9:14 remaining. The Hawks tied the game at 42 with 5:58 left, thanks to Laura Ziegler’s jumper. Zoli Khalil’s three-pointer with 2:01 remaining gave the Rams their largest lead of the night, 52-43. VCU held on to secure a 57-50 victory.

With this win, the Rams improved to 9-8 overall and 3-2 in Atlantic 10 play. They will face Rhode Island on Wednesday, January 15th, with the tip-off scheduled for 6 PM.

BOX SCORE

Mary-Anna Asare's Career Night Lifts Rams Past Duquesne in Thriller

Following the Rams’ A-10 opening loss to Saint Joseph’s, the Rams returned home on Thursday to defeat the Duquesne Dukes, 65-63. This matchup featured two of the best guards in the A-10 Conference: Mary-Anna Asare, who entered the game averaging 14.9 PPG, and Megan McConnell, averaging 19.5 PPG. Mary-Anna Asare led the Rams with a career-high 37 points, while Mykel Parham grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds. The Dukes were led by Megan McConnell, who scored 24 points.

The Dukes took the lead in the game's opening seconds as Jerni Kiaku’s layup put them up 2-0. The Rams responded with Grace Hutson’s three-pointer at 7:45 in the first quarter, capping a 10-0 run to take a 10-2 lead. Reina Green's jumper helped the Dukes cut the lead to six points, and Mackenzie Blackford’s three-pointer brought the Dukes within two, trailing 11-9 with 2:52 remaining. A layup by Nadia Moore with 1:18 left in the quarter further reduced the deficit, leaving the Rams with a slim one-point lead at the end of the first quarter.

Mary-Anna Asare’s second-quarter layup extended the Rams’ lead. Megan McConnell’s pair of free throws cut the Rams’ advantage to 17-16. At the 5:03 mark, Jennifer Ezeh’s layup gave the Rams a six-point cushion, leading 29-23. McConnell hit another pair of free throws to bring the Dukes within two points at 31-29. Asare responded with back-to-back layups, giving the Rams a 35-29 lead with 1:46 remaining. McConnell’s jumper to close out the second quarter cut the deficit to four, with the Rams leading 35-31 at halftime.

In the third quarter, Asare’s layup and jumper pushed the Rams’ lead to 39-31 with 8:10 remaining. Her three-pointer at the 7:48 mark extended the lead to 42-32. The Dukes answered as McConnell hit a three-pointer, a jumper, and a free throw to cut the Rams’ lead to 42-38. Grace Hutson’s jumper with 11 seconds remaining gave the Rams their largest lead of the game, 59-44, heading into the fourth quarter.

The Dukes mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Blackford’s layup with 8:13 remaining capped an 8-0 run, cutting the lead to five points at 59-54. Asare’s jumper extended the Rams’ lead to 61-54, but McConnell countered with a driving layup, narrowing the gap to 61-57. Kiaku’s layup brought the Dukes within one point, trailing 61-60. Asare hit a free throw to give the Rams a 62-60 lead with 44 seconds left. On the next possession, Kiaku’s three-pointer gave the Dukes their first lead since the opening seconds of the game, 63-62, with 34 seconds remaining. However, Asare’s driving layup with 24 seconds left regained the lead for the Rams, 64-63. A turnover by the Dukes with three seconds remaining sent Asare to the free-throw line, where she made one of two shots, sealing the Rams’ 65-63 victory. The Rams (7-7, 1-1 A-10) will face Dayton at home on Sunday, January 5th. The tip-off is scheduled for 1 PM.

Briante Weber’s Jersey Retirement Highlights VCU’s 90-70 Victory

(Richmond, VA) — The VCU men’s basketball team defeated the William & Mary Tribe 90-70 on Sunday afternoon, wrapping up their non-conference schedule. Before the game, the Rams honored former player Briante Weber by retiring his jersey. Weber, who played for VCU from 2011 to 2015, is the program’s all-time leader in steals with 374.

Joe Bamisile led the Rams with 20 points, while Gabe Dorsey paced the Tribe with 16 points.

The game opened with Max Shulga’s jumper at 18:23 remaining, putting the Rams ahead 2-0. The Tribe tied the game at 2 with a jumper by Chase Lowe. An 8-0 run by the Rams, capped by a dunk from Jack Clark, gave VCU a 10-4 lead. Luke Bamgboye’s layup extended the Rams' advantage to 19-11. However, the Tribe responded with a 9-0 run to take a brief 20-19 lead.

VCU regained control when Joe Bamisile’s layup put the Rams up 21-20. The Tribe’s Malachi Ndur hit two consecutive three-pointers to give William & Mary its largest lead, 26-21, with 6:42 left in the first half. The Rams reclaimed the lead for good at 4:01 remaining when Jack Clark sank two free throws, making it 36-35. By halftime, the Rams had extended their lead to 42-37.

In the second half, the Tribe briefly narrowed the gap to six points after Gabe Dorsey made 1 of 2 free throws, making it 49-43. However, the Rams responded with a 10-0 run, fueled by Zeb Jackson (a three-pointer and a jumper) and Joe Bamisile (a jumper and a three-pointer), to take a commanding 59-43 lead with 15:05 remaining.

Zeb Jackson’s three-pointer of the game, coming with 11:29 left, capped a 7-0 run that put the Rams ahead 68-48. His layup at the 4:16 mark gave VCU its largest lead of the day, 83-57. The Rams maintained control and closed the game with a 90-70 victory.

With this win, the Rams improve to 10-3. They will open Atlantic 10 Conference play on Tuesday, December 31, with a road game against St. Bonaventure. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.