Kellen Thames powers Saint Louis past VCU 88-75 as late scuffle empties benches at Chaifetz
Second-half burst flips a tight Atlantic 10 matchup
No. 18 Saint Louis used a decisive second-half run Friday night to defeat VCU 88-75 at Chaifetz Arena, rallying from a 10-point deficit after halftime and strengthening its position atop the Atlantic 10 standings.
Kellen Thames scored 16 points to lead the Billikens. Amari McCottry, Robbie Avila and Ishan Sharma each added 13 points as Saint Louis improved to 25-2 overall and 13-1 in conference play. The victory came four days after Saint Louis absorbed its first league loss of the season, a setback at Rhode Island.
VCU (21-7, 12-3) saw a 10-game winning streak end despite 19 points from Lazar Djokovic and 18 from Brandon Jennings.
Bench production fuels a 24-4 swing
Saint Louis’ reserves provided the turning point after the break. During a 24-4 stretch, Thames scored seven points and made key plays at both ends, including steals that generated transition chances. A Thames steal and runout layup put Saint Louis in front 66-59, a sequence that prompted a VCU timeout as momentum shifted decisively.
After that surge, VCU’s offense stalled over several possessions while Saint Louis extended the margin to double digits and maintained at least a seven-point cushion the rest of the way.
- Saint Louis record: 25-2 overall, 13-1 Atlantic 10
- VCU record: 21-7 overall, 12-3 Atlantic 10
- Result: Saint Louis 88, VCU 75
Late incident sends both benches to locker rooms
The closing seconds were disrupted by an on-court scrum that led officials to remove nearly all bench players. With Saint Louis dribbling out the clock near midcourt, VCU guard Nyk Lewis stole the ball from behind and launched a long 3-point attempt from near halfcourt. Lewis was then bumped into the broadcast table by Avila with only seconds remaining.
The contact was followed by pushing between players and both teams leaving their benches as staff members moved in to separate those involved. Officials disqualified VCU’s Barry Evans and Saint Louis’ Quentin Jones for flagrant fouls and directed remaining bench personnel from both teams to the locker rooms for the final 1.1 seconds.
The game resumed briefly after the review and administrative penalties, with Lewis taking three free throws before time expired.
Standings implications and what’s next
The win gave Saint Louis a two-game lead in the Atlantic 10 race and the head-to-head tiebreaker over VCU with roughly two weeks left in the regular season. It also extended Saint Louis’ home winning streak at Chaifetz Arena to 20 games.
Next, VCU is scheduled to host Fordham on Feb. 28. Saint Louis is set to play at Dayton on Tuesday night.