Richmond Area Honda Dealers Capital City Classic
Score: VCU 77, Richmond 69
Location: Richmond, Va. (Siegel Center)
Records: VCU 15-6 (6-2 Atlantic 10), Richmond 13-9 (3-6)
Attendance: 7,637 (sellout)
 
The Short Story: Five Rams scored in double figures as VCU jumped out to an early lead and fended off a late charge by Richmond Tuesday night in a win over its crosstown rival.
 
OPENING TIP

• Junior forward Lazar Djokovic led the Rams' scoring attack with 14 points. He has now reached double-figures in 10 of his last 11 games
• Sophomore guard Terrence Hill Jr. added 14 points with three rebounds for the Black and Gold
• VCU sophomore guard and Richmond native Brandon Jennings supplied 12 points, including 6-of-6 shooting from the free throw line
• Redshirt senior guard Jadrian Tracey knocked down 3-of-5 attempts from beyond the arc for the Rams and finished with 11 points, while senior forward Barry Evans tied a season-high with 10 rebounds
• For the Spiders, senior guard AJ Lopez led the way with 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting

THE DIFFERENCE

• VCU controlled much of the first half and Ahmad Nowell buried a step-back 3-pointer at the first-half buzzer to stake the Rams to a 39-29 lead at the break
• Despite only 18 field goal attempts in the second half, VCU shot 19-of-24 from the free throw line in the period. For the game, VCU shot 82 percent (22-for-27) from the charity stripe
• The Spiders cut the Rams lead to four points with 1:06 remaining thanks to a layup from Aiden Argabright. The Rams responded with a Hill Jr. pullup jumper and a defensive stop to ice the win
• The Rams led for 39:35 Tuesday and never trailed
• VCU shot 38 percent (9-of-24) from 3-point range, while holding the Spiders, one of the nation's top long-range shooting teams, to a 5-of-15 night from beyond the arc

NOTABLE

• The victory marks the fourth straight win for VCU overall it its third straight over Richmond. The Rams have won nine of the last 11 matchups against the Spiders
• For the ninth time this season, VCU had five or more players score in double-figures

NEXT UP
VCU remains in the Siegel Center for a Friday night match-up with Loyola Chicago on Jan. 30. The Rams look to improve to 5-0 in the all-time series with Ramblers. The matchup will air nationally on ESPN2 at 9 p.m.