Score: No. 5 Saint Mary's 63, No. 12 VCU 51
Location: Albany, N.Y. (MVP Arena)
Records: VCU 27-8, Saint Mary's 27-7
Schedule Note:: NCAA Tournament First Round
 
The short story: VCU trailed Saint Mary's just 38-34 early in the second half, but the Rams struggled offensively, shooting just 22 percent in the second half, as Saint Mary's slowly pulled away for the win.
 
OPENING TIP

• Junior Ace Baldwin Jr. scored a team-high 13 points, going 6-of-11 from the field. He suffered a leg injury midway through the second half and was limited to just over two minutes in the final 14:16 of the contest
• Jayden Nunn scored nine points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds
• Graduate forward Brandon Johns. Jr. and redshirt sophomore Jamir Watkins each scored seven points, Johns. Jr. grabbed five boards
• Saint Mary's was led by Alex Ducas and Mitchell Saxen who each scored 17 points

THE DIFFERENCE

• Saint Mary's went 20-of-27 from the free throw line while the Rams were just 10-of-16
• The Gaels had a 37-29 advantage on the glass and a 15-4 edge in second chance points
• VCU shot 22.2 percent from the field and from behind the arc in the second half while Saint Mary's shot 47.4 percent overall and 33.3 percent from deep
• The Rams and Gaels had a highly contested first half with seven lead changes and six ties
• VCU trailed 12-8 with 11:13 left in the first half before going on a 9-2 run, capped off by a Baldwin Jr. layup, to lead 17-14
• The remainder of the half was played within one possession and the Rams trailed just 29-28 at halftime thanks to a Baldwin Jr. 3-pointer
• The Gaels led 38-34 with 14:43 left when Baldwin Jr. injured his leg on the Rams' next possession. Saint Mary's went on a 12-5 run after he exited and pushed its lead to 50-39 with 8:53 remaining
• VCU continued to battle but got no closer than eight points the rest of the way

NOTABLE

• Baldwin Jr.'s three assists moved him into 10^th place on VCU's all-time career list
• The Rams' 27 wins were the most under Mike Rhoades and the most for the Rams since 2012-13
• VCU completed its 23^rd consecutive winning season