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I expect many Richmond fans are like me and woke up happy and exhausted this morning...the atmosphere inside the Robins Center was reminiscent of some of the most important and greatest games I've seen there...most recently, it reminded me of the historic 2022 A-10 Championship game against Davidson in DC...it was intense from start to finish against our most bitter rival...like the players the fans and students gave it everything we had...

besides our team doing what they've done all season, making the biggest plays at the most important time...it appears our offense is catching up with our tough defense...have the Spiders ever shot 67% FG and 50% 3FG for a half against the Rams?...

reliving the selected amateur highlights, I was struck by the precision with which we are running our offense...the passing, cutting, and screening just seems extraordinary...it's putting our players in position to finish plays all over the court...that's how you get to 67% FG...

Jordan King was electric again...he clearly deserves to be on the Spiders list of very special players, but the great thing about how our offense is running is that everyone is involved and able to make big plays...if you saw the game you know what a giant game Delonnie Hunt had...and how about Neal Quinn! How does a man of his size catch and dish the way he does?...and Dji Bailey is always in the middle of wins with big plays on both ends of the court...and Isaiah Bigelow just continues to make big plays!...without any one of these men we might not have brought home last night's W...

Coach Mooney said in his local media session Friday that the Spiders offense was still improving and showing the capability to score in surges...I think we saw a surge begin at about the 13 minute mark of the 2nd half...

it's March and that means every win gets more and more important for contending teams...in a perfect world coaches like to have their teams playing their best ball at the most important time...it looks like the Spiders could be peaking at just the right time!

Coach Mooney was asked in his post game radio interview last night what made this team so special...I'm paraphrasing, but I believe he cited their competitiveness as making them what they have been on the court...obviously they hate to lose!

it was pretty crazy in the stands last night so besides the spectacular plays in the selected highlights you'll enjoy fist pumps, hands and head bobs...they just make reliving the plays even more fun...

congrats to the players and coaches...on to St. Joseph's...let's finish this thing!

Go Spiders!

I think this was my first game in the renovated RC. I guess I fell off the wagon but as I mentioned in my Seismic Mooney thread earlier, this team is different and I am liking Seismic Mooney. Great team interaction, great heart and great crowd and great coach timing with substitutions and timeouts. I also enjoyed the speed of the ball movement on O, Quinn not trying to shoot threes and making drives to the basket and the rebounds. I thought of the great games of old at the RC, Tarrant/Chaney, the Beilein WVa game even old Jer d’ber. This team reminds me of believing UR has a chance in every game, a feeling I haven’t had well, since I stopped buying season tickets.
Keep it going SM!
PS when I was watching the Rhode Island VCU game, I thought RI looked like pre SM, very painful.

This article is interesting. According to the Times Dispatch, the salaries paid for basketball coaches are

#1, UVA Tony Bennett $4 million in 2023
#2 VT Mike Young is set to make $2.75 M in 2024
#3, UR Chris Mooney made $2.68 million in 2022 (the highest in the A10)
#4, VCU: Ryan Odom $1.7 million in 2024
#5, Liberty: Ritchie McKay 1,368,036
#6, Mason, Tony Skinn 975,000
#7 JMU: Mark Byington, 612,000

In the A10,
#1, UR Chris Mooney made $2.68 million in 2022 (the highest in the A10)
#2, SLU: travis Ford, 2,477,321
#3 Dayton: Anthony Grant, 2,251,326
#4 VCU: Ryan Odom $1.7 million in 2024

#8 Bona, Mark Schmidt 1,069,819
#9 Davidson: Matt McKillop, 1,016,564

Public Schools information was obtained through Open Records requests. Private schools came from the 990.

(Not the game thread so no comments please about jinxing or looking ahead)

If anyone is interested in riding up with me to GMU game, let me know. I live close to campus so could meet you around Robins. Will be by myself since wife and daughter are flying out that morning for spring break stuff and my normal friend who goes to games with me has a kid soccer tourney,

Would leave mid morning and eat lunch before game close to arena …

If you have interest post here and we will find a way to connect. I have not bought tix yet but will do in next few days. Can easily fit 3 and up to 5.

6'7" SF out of Jacksonville, Florida. Gipe is on him. Mason, Ohio, and South Florida offers, plus a bunch more generally below our level. Yale too, so academics must be there.


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With victories over St. Joe' and George Mason, this team will be 16-2. No UR team has ever gone 16-2 in conference, nor have the Spiders ever won the A-10 regular season. However, neither of the last two games will be easy. St. Joe's has had several quality wins. Mason always plays us tough. Both will be looking to gain momentum for the post season. This is our chance to seize the moment and make a statement.

2024 Men's Lacrosse Standings - America East Conference

Joe Biden allowed Jose Antonio Ibarra into this country in 2022 by Joe Biden. This illegal immigrant killed a nursing student on the campus of the University of Georgia. The only people who care are Republicans.

Spiders looking to go 7-1 on the road and 13-2 in conference … Spiders 77-71.

At least two of top four teams in the A10 will have another loss by Sat. I want to beat VCU no matter what the situation, but it’s doubly important now. We better have figured out how to handle their pressure.

Life-long Spider fan looking for 2 tix to Saturday's game. See post history to know I'm not a VCEw fan. Single ticket helps too. DM me. Thanks and Roll Spide.

Based on the first 7 games, I am going to give the coaching staff and our NIL program an A for the quality of transfers we have had over the past 2 years. We've welcomed 3 all-conference players from lesser-quality conferences who have transitioned well, and notably, 4 out of our 5 starters are transfers.



1. King shows potential as an A10 player of the year.

2. Quinn exhibits potential as an all-conference player.

3. Hunt proves himself as a great point guard capable of driving to the basket and creating his own shots.

4. Bigelow demonstrates excellence across the board and has notably enhanced his shooting skills significantly.

5. Roche, a great 3-point shooter, is hopefully overcoming a recent slump.

6. Harris contributes quality minutes off the bench.

Hope this news on his wrist is better than expected. Based on his tweet I am expecting worst case and he is out for the year. As competent as Tyne has been, this would be a huge blow. I was not expecting big things from Hunt preseason, but after seeing him play loved his toughness, defense and ability to get to the hoop. Hoping this is something he can come back from in weeks instead of putting him out for the season.

Big revenge game for the Spiders, hosting the Dukes. Winding down toward the half with the Spiders up by 9, but they're on the short end of a big foul disparity that could come cause issues later in the game.

Did not realize he had already stepped down after having a heart attack and battling cancer.

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none other than legendary Charles Barkley showed up via the video board with a gracious and humorous congratulatory message during last night's halftime ceremony to honor the original Richmond "Giant Killers" on the 40th anniversary season of their 72-71 victory over heavily favored Auburn in the first round of the 1984 NCAA Tournament...

this win put Richmond basketball on the NCAA map and provided the foundation for the "Giant Killers" moniker that has made the Spiders program one of the few mid major programs recognized immediately by most NCAA Tournament basketball fans...

the team was led by legendary Richmond Coach Dick Tarrant and featured an iron man rotation of Johnny Newman, Bill Flye, Kelvin Johnson, Greg Beckwith and John Davis...I know Newman, Flye, Beckwith and Davis were there last night and it appeared most of the others must have been on the court too...

every Richmond fan owes this incredible coach and team a debt of gratitude for proving that Spiders basketball could do very special things....it was a nice ceremony and really classy that Charles Barkley was willing to send his regards...

I'm sure that every Richmond fan who was following UR basketball in 1984 can remember exactly where they were and what they were doing during this game...here's my story...I was at the Richmond Coliseum with The Sheriff and our kids for an afternoon performance of the Barnum and Bailey circus...there was no cell phone and no internet in those days...I didn't know how long the circus performance would last, but hoped I could get home in time to catch the end of the game on local TV...when I reached the parking lot the game was into the second half...the Spiders had a shocking comfortable lead...as I drove as fast as I could home Bob Black was reporting the start of the Auburn run that you knew would come...I made it to the house and was able to watch the Spiders survive in the final minutes on TV...just think, if there had been another minute in that game the "Giant Killers" may have never happened...it was unreal at the time...

great memories...thanks to the 1984 "Giant Killers" and for all the "Giant Killers" that followed...

Go Spiders!

Davidson’s Grant Huffman, along with Holmes, Jimmy Clarke, Kyle Rose and Andy Tsimbila were all chosen for the Preseason All-Defensive Team.

I’m definitely going bias here…but no way Dji shouldn’t be on this team at end of season. The center for GW that leads the league in blocks would be another. Not sure who else…Who do you guys think? If not Dji, no worries just trying to pass the time 😀

Spiders looking to go 12-2 in A10. We win 71-63.

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for a regular season game that didn't involve VCU, or a Top 25 team, this one had the intensity of a post season tournament game...it matched two teams with distinct styles of play, disciplined players committed to their style and willing to give relentless effort...neither team would give in to the other the entire game...the result a game that wasn't real pretty offensively, but literally came down to a final play...

how many times did it look like Richmond would get some breathing room and take control of the game?...maybe a half dozen?...each time Davidson played their way back into the game culminating the final time with the Durkin three to tie it at 63 with :14 remaining...

then Spiders fans saw what they've seen time and again all season...Richmond made a play to win the game!...Jordan King drawing the foul on the three point attempt and making all three FTs to put the Wildcats away...top tier A-10 finish and double bye for Tournament clinched!...now the Spiders can focus on earning the #1 seed!

for the 2nd game in a row the Spiders had to survive and win at the foul line in the final minutes...impressive job by Bigelow, Quinn and King converting 8/9 down the stretch made it work again this time!...and how about Delonnie Hunt putting the offense on his back midway in the 2nd half...Coach Mooney said after the game it may have been his best game as a Spider!...we needed it!

these amateur highlights capture many of the clutch plays made by both squads in the deciding final minutes and seconds...a steal, Bailey taking the charge, the FTs, Durkin's dagger and King's play to draw the foul...wow! it was great entertainment and quite a game...

on to St. Louis to face a team that scored 96 points last night...it'll be interesting to see how much different from this one that game plays out...

congrats to the players and coaches on earning the top tier finish...now let's add to it!

Go Spiders!

St John’s better than its record.

Bigelow made 85.3% of free throws last year and 84.8% this year, which has improved to an incredible 89.5% in conference play. The Career Free Throw percentage leader for U of R is Darien Brothers at 84.4%. However, to qualify a player needs to have a minimum of 200 attempts, which he does, but not at Richmond. As a Spider he only has 141 attempts.

He has also transformed his 3 point shooting from last year when most of us cringed every time he threw it up. This year he is shooting 40% and has turned into a valuable offensive player. BTW, with his athleticism and being strong at many aspects of the game, he might have a shot one day of making the NBA.

One of the biggest surprises this year has been the outstanding play of our mid-sized forwards on both offence and defense. Even when Bigelow and Bailey are out of the game we have gotten solid play by Harris. Although Harris doesn't shoot that much, he is shooting 56% from 3s, 85.7% three throw and 51% over all. Maybe he should stop passing the ball and shoot more?

Heading to 13-0 in Robins and 10-1 in conference .. Spiders 68-62.

Looking to move to 6-1 on the road in the A10 and 11-2 overall. Spiders 73-68.