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.

VCU Women Shine in 72-42 Victory Over LIU

(Richmond, VA) VCU Women's Basketball concluded their non-conference slate on Saturday with a dominant 72-42 victory over the LIU Sharks. The Rams' defense was stellar, holding the Sharks to just 30% shooting from the field (16-52), including an astonishing 0-14 in the third quarter. Janessa Williams led the Sharks with 18 points, while Mary-Anna Asare paced the Rams with 14 points.

The Rams jumped out to an early lead, with Mary-Anna Asare’s layup at the 7:37 mark in the first quarter putting them ahead 8-0. The Sharks got on the board with a jumper from Sirviva Legions, trimming the deficit to six. However, VCU extended their advantage with contributions from Cyriah Griffin, who nailed a three-pointer, and Lucia Sotelo, whose layup made it 23-5 with 2:35 remaining in the first quarter. Jennifer Ezeh added a layup with 1:23 left, pushing the Rams' lead to 25-7. VCU was highly efficient in the opening quarter, shooting 76% from the field (10-13) and going a perfect 100% from beyond the arc, ending the period with an 18-point lead.

In the second quarter, Grace Hutson’s three-pointer at the 8:11 mark gave the Rams their largest lead at the time, 30-9. The Sharks responded with a 6-0 run, fueled by three-pointers from Estie Varga and Candela Garcia-Escribano, cutting the Rams' lead to 15. After Mary-Anna Asare ended the Sharks’ run with a layup, Janessa Williams hit a layup and a three-pointer, bringing LIU closer. Williams’ three-pointer with 2:51 left in the quarter narrowed the gap to 35-23, the closest the Sharks would get. Mykel Parham’s layup with 1:05 remaining sent the Rams into halftime with a 37-23 advantage.

The Rams carried their momentum into the third quarter, going on a massive 22-0 run that spanned nearly the entire period. Following Parham’s layup to close the second quarter, VCU scored 20 unanswered points to extend their lead to 57-23 with 1:03 remaining in the third. The Sharks’ offensive struggles continued, as they missed all 14 field goal attempts in the quarter. Sirviva Legions managed to hit one of two free throws in the final seconds, giving the Sharks their first point of the period, but the Rams ended the third quarter with a commanding 57-24 lead.

Isabel Whitelaw’s three-pointer with 1:25 left in the fourth quarter gave VCU their largest lead of the game at 72-36. The Sharks closed the game on a 6-0 run, but it was far too late, as the Rams secured a decisive 72-42 victory.

What’s Next?

The Rams (6-6) will open Atlantic 10 conference play on the road against Saint Joseph’s at 2 p.m. on Sunday, December 29th.