Saint Louis University maintained its hold on first place in the Atlantic 10 Conference with an 88-76 victory over VCU on Friday night at Chaifetz Arena.
A raucous sellout crowd of 10,223 helped spur the No. 18 Billikens on to an impressive victory in a battle of the top two teams in the A-10. The Billikens overcame a nine-point halftime deficit as they exploded for 55 points in the second half to take the victory.
The Billikens improved their record in conference play to 13-1 and 25-2 overall. Saint Louis also extended their winning streak at Chaifetz Arena to 20 games, including 17 in a row this season. VCU fell to 12-3 in A-10 play at 21-7 overall.
VCU dominated the first half of the game as it built a 42-33 lead. The Rams made eight 3-pointers, including their first three of the game to take an early 9-0 lead. They led by as many as 14 points in the first half.
The second half was a total reversal as the Billikens caught fire from the field while holding VCU to 22 percent shooting from the field. Junior guard Kellen Thames scored a team-high 16 points to lead a balanced scoring attack. The former Pattonville High standout was seven of eight from the field while also getting a team-high five steals. His high energy also electrified the sellout crowd in the second half.
Junior guard Ishan Sharma scored 13 points, including four 3-pointers. Senior center Robbie Avila added 13 points while sophomore Amari McCottry and junior Quentin Jones added 11 points. Sophomore guard Trey Green scored nine points on three 3-pointers. Senior forward Paul Otieno grabbed a season-high eight rebounds.
The Billikens return to action on Tuesday night when they travel to Dayton for another A-10 contest. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised on FanDuel Sports and broadcast on KMOX AM-1120.