The fifth-place game in the Maui Invitational will be between the VCU Rams and the Michigan Wolverines? Who will pick up the crucial win between these teams?
TV schedule: Wednesday, Nov 20, 5:00 p.m. ET. ESPN2
Arena: Lahaina Civic Center in Maui, Hawaii
Virginia Commonwealth (3-2) comes into the fifth-place consolation game off an 83-69 win against California. The game was not as close as the final score indicates, as the Rams had a 55-29 halftime lead.
De’Riante Jenkins was the only Ram to score in double-figures, but he was all that was needed, dropping 27 points and 11 rebounds. He wasn’t alone in the production, however, as seven other players scored between 7-9 points in the game.
Under Mike Rhodes as the head coach, the team is still looking for their identity as well as their go-to scorer. It’s been a different player each game this, including Isaac Vann against Virginia and Malik Crowfield in the opening round loss to Marquette. While there are benefits to having a number of players that can be the leading scorer on any given night, it’s important for a coach to be able to rely on that one player to produce consistently.
Michigan (4-1) comes into this game off the heels of dropping 102 points on host Chaminade. The game, as expected, was never in doubt, the Wolverines’ offense was too much to handle for the Division II school. Kentucky transfer Charles Matthews had 22 points and ten boards in the process, showing he’s the likely top player for Jon Beilein.
Michigan suffered an upset loss in the first round against the LSU Tigers, a team expected to finish in the bottom of the SEC. That game showed the weakness of the team, which lies on the defensive end. LSU doesn’t have many proven scorers, so seeing them score the way they did is a concern going forward.
The match-up to watch in this game will be between Matthews of Michigan and Kris Lane of VCU. Lane might not be the best scorer for the Rams, but size wise he’s the best defender to put on the lead scorer for the Wolverines.
Next: 2017 Maui Invitational Preview
Right now the only wins both teams have in this event is a Division II team and a Cal team not expected to finish over .500 for the season. The loser of this game will suffer two losses and no wins of note. This will be a big resume-building game for both teams. Michigan is very similar to Marquette, so how the Rams defend will determine the outcome of this game.
Prediction: Michigan 86 – VCU 80