Dec. 3, 2008

Final Stats

UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - Richmond (7-0) edged cross-town rival VCU (4-2) 56-48, to secure its seventh win of the season Wednesday night at the Robins Center. Sophomore Brittani Shells scored a game-high 16 points.

The Spiders jumped out to a 15-4 lead at the 10:46 mark, and led by as many as 12 before ending the half holding a 26-15 advantage. The 15 total points scored by VCU is the second fewest points allowed by the Spiders this season. (13 vs. Albany). The Spider's hot-shooting continued as they were 11-for-22 from the field at the break. Shells led all scorers with 10 points, thanks to 4-for-7 shooting from the field.

"Any time you beat a city rival, it's special," said head coach Michael Shafer.

The eight-point win is Richmond's largest since beating VCU 76-67 December 5, 2004.

Richmond started the half on a 6-0 run, and led 37-20 at the 13:01 mark. The Rams went on a run of their own, scoring 10 straight points in the span of three minutes.

"We need to learn from our mistakes, especially down the stretch," said Shafer.

Richmond recovered, and never let VCU within eight points the rest of the game.

"The win feels really good," said senior Johanna McKnight. "We went out and did our job."

McKnight chipped in with 13 points, one shy of her season-high. Freshman Sam Bilney tied a season-high with five steals and three assists.

"We played tough," said Shafer. "We made stops when we needed to, and executed our game plan."

Richmond returns to action Saturday afternoon, when William and Mary comes to the Robins Center. Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m.