Despite opening the second half by erasing a 10-point deficit, Rhode Island couldn't match VCU down the stretch, falling to 1-4 in conference play.
SOUTH KINGSTOWN – The time arrived early in the second half Wednesday night for a team with legitimate NCAA Tournament aspirations to respond.
VCU met the moment at the Ryan Center. They answered a blistering start out of the locker room by the University of Rhode Island with the necessary toughness to snap a two-game losing skid.
Jadrian Tracey broke the only tie of the evening with a tough three-point play along the left block, and that set the tone for the final 13:17. The visiting Rams prevailed over the home version, 84-75, in an Atlantic 10 showdown that featured a return to the state for Phil Martelli Jr. and multiple members of the travel party.
Tyrell Ward followed Tracey’s bucket with a 3-pointer and Ahmad Nowell added another pair of important makes from beyond the arc. URI went cold over the next eight minutes and a Keyshawn Mitchell layup gave VCU its largest lead to that point at 70-56. The hosts had just 6:56 to rescue a result and couldn’t do so, falling against VCU for the fourth straight time here and sixth straight time overall.
“Man, did they burn us,” URI coach Archie Miller said. “The inability to guard the 3-point line and then make them every time – we've had a stretch here at home where guys are on fire.”
URI (10-8, 1-4 Atlantic 10) opened the second half a sizzling 8-for-10 from the field and wiped out a 10-point deficit prior to the second media timeout. Myles Corey drove hard off the left for a three-point play and shoveled a pass to Tyler Cochran along the left wing for a 3-point jumper on the ensuing possession. The Rams were locked in a 51-51 tie and VCU called timeout with 13:41 to play.
“I thought we were much better in the second half,” Miller said. “First eight or nine minutes we had our chances.”
VCU (12-6, 3-2) didn’t commit a turnover through the opening 12:15 and was able to maintain that level of offensive efficiency throughout. They finished with just five overall and enjoyed a 16-5 scoring margin off giveaways. The Rams shot 49.1% overall, made double-digit 3-pointers for the ninth time this season and averaged 1.33 points per possession.
“We just struggled to get some defensive rebounds, some loose balls,” URI guard RJ Johnson said. “I feel like they were beating us to some 50-50 balls. We just could never get back into it.”
Terrence Hill Jr. led four in double figures with 19 points and helped power a 49-31 scoring advantage off the bench. Tracey added 17 points while continuing a strong start in his old conference – he spent time at Saint Joseph’s before a transfer to Oregon. Nowell added 14 points off the bench and Michael Belle chipped in 10.
“Credit to them,” Cochran said. “Coming into the game we knew everybody one through five was going to let it ride.”
Cochran closed with a team-high 17 points for URI but was just 5-for-14 from the floor. Johnson hit for 16 and started the second half at the point in place of Corey, who played only 14 minutes. Keeyan Itejere made it three in double figures with 11 points on 4-for-5 shooting.
“We’ve got to do a better job for our home crowd,” Miller said. “We’ve got to do a better job at home being able to play with more confidence and more urgency. It’s not for lack of trying, but we’ve got to find a way to get some rhythm in here.”
VCU entered off defeats against Saint Louis and George Mason, setbacks that dropped them to .500 in league play. Each of their four nonconference losses were to opponents in the KenPom.com top 50, and only the Patriots reside outside the top 75. This could have been a damaging defeat against URI with respect to postseason chances, and VCU stayed the course through some bumpy moments.
Martelli led Bryant to a sweep of America East regular season and tournament titles in 2024-25, punching a corresponding ticket to March Madness. He was hired away to VCU following a loss to Michigan State in Cleveland and took several key members of those Bulldogs with him. Mitchell and Barry Evans both started for VCU against URI as transfers while staff members Chris Cole, Ryan Daly, Brendan Phelps and Luke St. Lifer now call the Siegel Center home.
VCU (84): Jadrian Tracey 5-13 4-5 17, Barry Evans 2-6 0-0 6, Keyshawn Mitchell 3-7 0-2 6, Brandon Jennings 0-2 0-0 0, Nyk Lewis 1-2 3-4 6, Michael Belle 4-6 2-4 10, Terrence Hill Jr. 7-11 3-5 19, Ahmad Nowell 3-5 5-6 14, Tyrell Ward 2-3 1-2 6. Totals 27-55 18-28 84.
RHODE ISLAND (75): Alex Crawford 1-4 1-2 4, Tyler Cochran 5-14 5-7 17, Keeyan Itejere 4-5 3-4 11, Jonah Hinton 2-7 0-0 5, Myles Corey 3-6 1-4 7, RJ Johnson 7-10 0-0 16, Jahmere Tripp 3-4 2-3 9, Jalen Harper 1-3 3-4 6, Damone King 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-53 15-24 75.
Halftime – V, 40-30. 3-point FG – V 12-29 (Tracey 3-9, Evans 2-4, Lewis 1-2, Hill 2-6, Nowell 3-4, Ward 1-2), RI 8-25 (Crawford 1-4, Cochran 2-8, Hinton 1-4, Corey 0-1, Johnson 2-4, Tripp 1-1, Harper 1-3). Rebounds – V 30 (Mitchell 5, Belle 5), RI 31 (Cochran 9). Assists – V 16 (Mitchell 4), RI 10 (Hinton 4). Turnovers – V 5 (Ward 2), RI 13 (Johnson 3, Team 3). Blocked shots – V 3 (Belle 2), RI 4 (Crawford 2). Steals – V 8 (Evans 3), RI 4 (Cochran 2). Attendance – 3,712.
On X: @BillKoch25
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rhode Island men's basketball loses to VCU, 84-75 on January 15, 2026
Category: General Sports
