Score: St. Bonaventure 77, VCU 75
Location: St. Bonaventure, N.Y. (Reilly Center)
Records: VCU 10-4 (0-1 Atlantic 10), St. Bonaventure 13-1 (1-0)
 
The short story: Graduate guard Phillip Russell poured in a season-high 26 points for VCU, but St. Bonaventure's Melvin Council Jr. hit a go-ahead, driving layup with 3.3 seconds remaining to lift the Bonnies past the Rams Tuesday afternoon.
 
OPENING TIP

• Russell connected on 10-of-16 attempts from the field for the Black and Gold, including 6-of-12 from 3-point range
• Graduate guard Joe Bamisile added 13 points and eight rebounds for VCU, while classmate Max Shulga supplied 11 points, four rebounds and four assists
• Junior forward Christian Fermin and graduate guard Zeb Jackson chipped in six points off the bench for the Rams
• Noel Brown and Council sparked St. Bonaventure with 20 points apiece 

THE DIFFERENCE

• Russell drove the baseline and converted an eight-foot floater to knot the game at 75-75 with 17.7 seconds remaining. Following a timeout, Council drove to the right side of the lane and scooped a ball around two defenders for a bucket and the lead. The Rams were unable to connect on a long 3-pointer at the buzzer
• The Bonnies shot 50 percent (29-of-58) from the field in the game and outscored the Rams 48-32 in the paint
• St. Bonaventure was able to turn 11 VCU turnovers into 11 points, and the Bonnies used 11 offensive rebounds to cash in 15 second-chance points
• Bona led 70-67, but Russell tied the game at the 3:20 mark with his sixth 3-pointer of the day. Lajae Jones briefly gave the Bonnies a 72-70 advantage with a tip-in, but Bamisile buried a 3-pointer with 1:50 showing to push the Rams in front 73-72. Bona regained the lead on the ensuing possession, when Council rebounded his own miss for a layup

NOTABLE

• The game featured 10 ties and 16 lead changes, but the Rams never led by more than a single point
• VCU outrebounded St. Bonaventure 33-30 and scooped up 11 offensive rebounds of its own
• The Rams shot 48 percent (28-of-58) from the field in the contest, including 11-of-31 (36 percent) from beyond the arc

NEXT UP
VCU will head to Loyola Chicago for its next conference match-up on Saturday, Jan. 4 at 2 p.m EST. That game will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network.