Rhode Island vs. Richmond: 2020-21 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
The Rhode Island Rams travel to Richmond to take on the Spiders on Wednesday. This should be an exciting Atlantic 10 matchup for both programs.
TV Schedule: January 6th, 6:00 pm ET.
Arena: The Robins Center in Richmond, VA
The Rams will be looking to extend their two-game winning streak when they travel to Richmond Wednesday night. Rhode Island is coming off two big conference wins against St. Bonaventure and Saint Joe’s. They snapped a three-game losing streak as they dropped outings to Wisconsin, Western Kentucky, and Davidson.
The last time the Rams took the court, they trailed by four points with 20 seconds left to Saint Joe’s. With four seconds left, star guard Fatts Russell knocked down three free throws. The Rams would go on to defeat the Hawks in overtime which put their record at 5-5.
The Rams’ biggest weakness has come from turning over the ball. Rhode Island turns over the ball on 19.7 percent of their possessions. They have also been struggling from three-point range, where they have only hit 30.0 percent of their attempts.
Richmond is looking to bounce back as they have lost two of their last three games. The Spiders opened up the season winning six of its first seven games. Their non-conference wins came over talented programs such as Kentucky, Wofford, Northern Iowa, Vanderbilt, and Loyola-Chicago.
The Spiders are off to a 1-1 start to their Atlantic 10 schedule, they notched a win over Davidson before losing to St. Bonaventure. The Spiders rank No. 28 in field goal percentage and do a great job at avoiding turning over the ball.
Richmond is a deep team with several seniors who are averaging double figures. Senior guard Blake Francis leads Richmond with 16.5 points and 2.6 assists per game. Senior forward Grant Golden is averaging 14.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. Their lineup is balanced with players who can dominant inside the paint and shoot from the perimeter.
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If Rhode Island can avoid turning over the ball, take smarter shots, and can get Fatts Russell going who has been battling an ongoing injury, they have a good chance of stealing this game on the road. The Spiders are going to have to rely on Francis, Golden, and the other three players averaging double figures to get back into the winning column.