Score: VCU 90, North Illinois 63
Location: Richmond, Va. (Stuart C. Siegel Center)
Records: VCU 8-4, Northern Illinois 3-8
 
The short story: Eleven different Rams scored, led by redshirt sophomore forward Jamir Watkins' career-high 22 points, as the Black and Gold pulled away early and never looked back against the visiting Huskies.
 
OPENING TIP

• Watkins shot 8-of-12 from the field and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line on the way to his new career-high of 22 points, topping his previous high of 15 against Western Carolina in 2020. Watkins also crashed the glass to the tune of seven rebounds 
• Sophomore forward Jalen DeLoach scored 16 points, tying the career-high he set earlier this month at Temple. He also brought down nine rebounds, just one shy of a double-double
• Senior forward David Shriver got his first start of the season in place of graduate student Brandon Johns Jr., who was a late scratch due to a back injury. Shriver made the most of his turn in the starting five, notching a season-high 14 points and shooting 4-of-7 from the field, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc
• Junior forward Ace Baldwin Jr. was the fourth and final Ram in double figures with 10 points. Baldwin's biggest contribution came in distributing the ball to his teammates with eight assists
• Keshawn Williams and Zarique Nutter were bright spots on an otherwise dim night for Northern Illinois, scoring 16 and 11 points respectively for the visiting Huskies

 
THE DIFFERENCE

• The Rams wasted no time taking control from the opening tip, taking a 9-2 lead in the first 1:17 of the game. The Black and Gold then poured it on to with a 15-4 run over the next 4:19, which included three straight treys by Shriver, to stretch it out to an 18-point lead at 24-6 with 14:24 left in the first half
• VCU's lead swelled to as many as 26 with a 10-1 run over the course of 4:08 late in the first half. The Rams took a comfortable 49-26 lead into halftime
• VCU continued their strong play to start the second half, going on a 9-2 run through the first 2:04, putting the game well out of reach with a thirty-point cushion over the Huskies at 58-28. The Rams' lead was as big as 37, and Northern Illinois never got closer than 25 points the rest of the way
• The Rams shot well on all fronts, hitting 53 percent (29-of 55) from the field, including, 44 percent (7-of-16) 3-point land. VCU also connected on 25-of-30 from the free throw line (83 percent)
• The Rams assisted on 18 of 29 baskets

NOTABLE

• The 90 points scored is the Rams' highest output this season by 16 points, and their highest point total since their first round NIT victory over Princeton last season, when they also put up 90 points on the Tigers
• The Rams improve to 2-1 in the all-time series against Northern Illinois, playing the Huskies for the first time since 1973. Furthermore, VCU is now 17-7 against team from the Mid-American Conference (MAC)
• VCU never trailed in the game, leading for all but 29 seconds out of the 40 minutes

QUOTEABLES
"We had offensive success today. Consistent offensive success. That's more important than 90 points, we played the right way for most of the game. We executed the right way for most of the game. We made extra passes, I thought driving the ball today, we were playing off two feet, we weren't out of control. We had a couple of turnovers but we didn't have two, three, four in a row and got shots at the rim. We had 18 assists on 29 baskets because guys were making the right plays so that creates points" – Head Coach Mike Rhoades on the team's offensive success
 
"Seeing those first three go in is just a huge confidence booster. It got the momentum going just for the rest of the game. Just kept the foot on the pedal and just kept going." – Shriver on starting the game strong
 
"When we see shots go in, I think that's better for us on the defense and it gets us going. We had a lot of turnovers in the backcourt and with the shots going in, that's a big thing." – Baldwin Jr. on the team seeing shots go in
 
UP NEXT
The Rams will wrap up non-conference play on Wednesday, Dec. 21 when they play host to the Navy Midshipmen. The game will tip-off at 7 p.m., and it will be televised on MASN and streamed on ESPN+.