St. Bonaventure Basketball Finishes Epic Comeback On VCU: 3 Takeaways

The fans inside the Reilly Center were treated to an epic second half as St. Bonaventure basketball came back down 20 points to stun VCU.

St. Bonaventure basketball got a home win against VCU, 67-62, getting back to .500 in the Atlantic 10. Despite rough shooting nights from a few of their top scoring stars, the Bonnies bench outscored the starters, 34-33, helping to cap off a come-from-behind win.

St. Bonaventure missed their first nine threes from the field as a team but eventually started finding a groove, hitting 5 of their last 13 from outside.

Daryl Banks III led the way with 15 points and made up for a rough shooting night by going 8-of-8 from the free throw stripe. Three other Bonnies finished in double figures, and despite going 1-for-7 from the field, Charles Pride led the team with 10 rebounds.

VCU got a lift from Max Shulga, whose 25 points were a game-high.

Takeaway #1: Bounce back Bonnies

At one point in the first half, VCU led 39-19. But the Bonnies kept chipping at it. And chipping some more. And chipping even more, until they took their first lead of the game late in the second half.

Bonnies head coach Mark Schmidt said a 7-0 run to get the halftime deficit down to 13 points was crucial. Even then, he expressed trust in a veteran bunch.

“Halftime, it wasn’t me going crazy. We got a mature team,” said Schmidt.

Even though the veteran leadership didn’t show up for much of the first half, it turned around toward the end and picked back up out of the gates. And on a night where Charles Pride, Daryl Banks III, and Moses Flowers combined to go 4-of-22 from the floor, St. Bonaventure still found a way to pull it out.

You could look at their 34 bench points to 33 points from the starters. But don’t tell coach Schmidt anything about that. This is a unique group that shouldn’t be classified like usual teams.

“We don’t have reserves,” said Schmidt. “Everyone is going to have a day in the sun.”

On Tuesday, you could thank Chad Venning and Banks. With the Bonnies down 51-44, they scored 17 of the team’s final 23 points, willing their team to the win.

Takeaway #2: Whatever you do, guard Max Shulga

Shulga, a Utah State transfer who came over to VCU with head coach Ryan Odom, is one of the best three-point shooters in the Atlantic 10. He came into the game hitting 38.7% of his shots from deep.

St. Bonaventure’s response? Not nearly enough defense. Shulga got a few open looks and used that to get hot, even once the Bonnies started extending the defense. He also found some open spots on the floor without the ball, finishing the first half 6-for-7 from the field and 5-for-5 from downtown for 17 points.

Shulga finished with 25 points, leading the way for the Rams. He quieted down a bit, but still hit a few field goals and got to the free-throw line in the second half. St. Bonaventure dodged a bullet, escaping VCU despite Shulga’s big night.

Takeaway #3: Grit over game

Talent will go a long way and the Bonnies have a lot of it, but on Tuesday night, grit was a big factor in the win.

Charles Pride was that gritty player St. Bonaventure needed.

His 10 rebounds led the way and another underrated aspect was his 5 assists, which for a long time, were the only assists of anyone on the team. Throw a 1-for-7 shooting night out the window. Pride brings much more to the court.

“(Charles) is not the prettiest player in Bonaventure history, but he’s productive,” said Schmidt.

Sure, Pride can have nights where he goes off for 20, 25, 30+ points. We saw it at Bryant and we’ve seen it in Olean. But on a night where he didn’t come close to those numbers – finishing with 4 points – he still found a way to be effective.

When you’ve got players that never give up, even if the stats aren’t sexy, results will follow.

Next up for St. Bonaventure: at Dayton (Feb. 2 – 7 p.m.)

Next up for VCU: vs. Richmond (Feb. 3 – 4 p.m.)