University of Richmond Athletics
University of Richmond
VCU
Big Second Half Surges Rams Past Spiders In Black & Blue Thriller
12/12/2009 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 12, 2009
RICHMOND, Va. - David Gonzalvez scored 19 points and Kevin Anderson added 18 but it wasn't enough to overcome a 45-point second-half by VCU and Richmond dropped a 65-57 thriller at the Verizon Wireless Arena Saturday night in the Farm Bureau Insurance Black & Blue Classic.
Richmond took a 29-20 lead into the break, and led by as many as 12 in the first half, but VCU flipped the momentum with a 13-0 run early in the second stanza. From there the Black & Blue Classic lived up to its billing.
The lead changed hands five times during the back-and-forth second half (seven in the game) and a Gonzalvez layup with 3:39 left gave the Spiders a 55-52 edge.
But VCU's Brandon Rozzell answered with a three on the next possession and he followed with another trey with 50 seconds left to ice it. Rozzell finished with nine points - all from long-range in the second half.
T.J. Gwynn led all scores with 20 points, knocking down six-of-10 shots from the field and seven of his nine free throws. VCU was 23-of-30 at the line for the game, while Richmond made just four of its eight attempts.
The game was a story of two halves as the Spiders shot a sizzling 13-of-28 in the first half, holding homestanding VCU to just seven-of-24. But the Rams clammed down defensively in the second, holding Richmond to 11-of-31 shooting and just three made field goals in the final 6:35.
For the second-straight season, Richmond enjoyed a double-digit lead over its crosstown rival but couldn't cash in a win. The Spiders slipped to 7-2, while the Rams improved to 6-2.
