2020–21 VCU Rams women's basketball team

The 2020–21 VCU Rams women's basketball team represents Virginia Commonwealth University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. It is the program's 47th season of existence, and their eighth season in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Rams are led by seventh year head coach Beth O'Boyle and play their home games at the Stuart C. Siegel Center.

2020–21 VCU Rams women's basketball
Atlantic 10 tournament champions
NCAA tournament, First round
ConferenceAtlantic 10 Conference
Record16–11 (10–5 A-10)
Head coach
  • Beth O'Boyle (7th season)
Assistant coaches
  • Kirk Crawford
  • Terry Zeh
  • Morgan Williams
Home arenaSiegel Center
2020–21 Atlantic 10 women's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Dayton121 .923143  .824
Fordham82 .800124  .750
Saint Louis93 .750124  .750
Rhode Island114 .733118  .579
VCU105 .6671610  .615
Richmond96 .600139  .591
UMass75 .583147  .667
La Salle710 .4121214  .462
Duquesne47 .364511  .313
Saint Joseph's59 .357710  .412
George Washington59 .357914  .391
Davidson510 .333914  .391
St. Bonaventure512 .294615  .286
George Mason014 .000319  .136
2021 A10 Tournament winner
As of March 14, 2021
Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

VCU finished the 2019–20 season with an 20–12 record and a 13–3 record in Atlantic 10 play, finishing second in the Atlantic 10. VCU were seeded second in the 2020 Atlantic 10 women's basketball tournament, where they defeated Davidson and Fordham en route to the Atlantic 10 Championship. There, they lost to Dayton in the final.[1] VCU was considered a potential at-large bid for the 2020 Women's National Invitation Tournament, but all postseason tournaments were cancelled by the NCAA due to rising concerns with the COVID-19 pandemic.[2]

Offseason

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightYearHometownNotes
K.K. Tassin0G5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)SeniorByram, MississippiGraduated
Danielle Hammond30C6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)SeniorPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaGraduated
Nyra Williams34G5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)SeniorHampton, VirginiaGraduated

Transfers

NameNumberPos.HeightYearHometownNotes
Janika Griffith-Wallace2G5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)RS-JuniorBrampton, Ontario, CanadaTransferred from Murray State
Chloe Bloom13F6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)SophomoreWedderburn, Victoria, AustraliaTransferred from Oklahoma
Samantha Robinson35F6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)RS-SophomoreBradford, Ontario, CanadaTransferred from Central Michigan

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Camila Contreras
C
Socorro, TX San Elizario High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) N/A Sep 15, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Rain Green
PG
Baltimore, MD Roland Park Country School 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) N/A Apr 14, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Elze Motekaityte
PF
Klaipėda, LTU New Hope Academy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) N/A Nov 14, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Sarah Te-Biasu
PG
Montreal, QC Niagara Prep 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) N/A Nov 25, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Dasia Townes
SG
Baltimore, MD Baltimore Polytechnic Institute 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A Nov 14, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "VCU 2020 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 18, 2020.

Preseason

A10 media poll

The Atlantic 10 men's basketball media poll was released on November 9, 2020. VCU was picked to win the regular season.[3]

A10 Women's Basketball Preseason Poll[4]
Predicted finish Team Points 1st Votes
1VCU 18510
2Dayton 1762
3Saint Louis 1711
4Davidson 1400
Duquesne 1401
Fordham 1400
7UMass 1180
8Richmond 810
9George Washington 780
10La Salle 700
11Rhode Island 650
12St. Bonaventure 420
13Saint Joseph's 410
14George Mason 230

Preseason honors

Recipient Award Ref.
Tera ReedAtlantic 10 Preseason First-Team[4]
Taya RobinsonAtlantic 10 Preseason Second-Team[4]
Taya RobinsonAtlantic 10 Preseason Defensive Team[4]

Roster

2020–21 VCU Rams women's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 0 Sarah Te-Biasu 5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) FrNiagara Prep Montreal, Quebec
G 1 Taya Robinson 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) SrHuguenot Richmond, Virginia
G 2 Janika Griffith-Wallace 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) RS JrMurray State Brampton, Ontario
G 3 Madison Hattix-Covington 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) RS JrEllison Killeen, Texas
G 5 Olga Petrova 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) SrDynamo Moscow Rostov, Russia
G 12 Dasia Townes 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) FrBaltimore Poly Baltimore, Maryland
C 13 Chloe Bloom 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) SoOklahoma Wedderburn, Australia
C 15 Sofya Pashigoreva 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) Sr  Moscow, Russia
G 20 Sofya Nelson 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) SoKing's Christian Blackwood, New Jersey
F 22 Sydnei Archie 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) SrSt. Catherine's (VA) Richmond, Virginia
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: December 18, 2020

Schedule

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 25, 2020*
9:30 p.m., FBL
vs. Saint Mary's
Arizona State MTE
W 87–79  1–0
 22  Reed  7  T. Robinson  5  Te-Biasu  Desert Financial Arena (199)
Tempe, AZ
November 27, 2020*
6:30 p.m., P12N
at Arizona State
Arizona State MTE
L 40–49  1–1
 16  Hattix-Covington  8  Te-Biasu  4  Te-Biasu  Desert Financial Arena (68)
Tempe, AZ
November 28, 2020*
3:00 p.m., FBL
vs. Stephen F. Austin
Arizona State MTE
L 66–71  1–2
 19  Griffith-Wallace  5  Tied  2  Hattix-Covington  Desert Financial Arena (0)
Tempe, AZ
December 3, 2020*
5:00 p.m., ESPN+
Buffalo W 61–55  2–2
 20  T. Robinson  10  Archie  4  Te-Biasu  Siegel Center (72)
Richmond, VA
December 6, 2020*
2:00 p.m., CUSATV
at Old Dominion
Rivalry
L 76–81  2–3
 18  Te-Biasu  8  Archie  4  Tied  Chartway Arena (250)
Norfolk, VA
December 9, 2020*
4:00 p.m., ESPN+
at East Carolina L 55–58  2–4
 13  Tied  6  Tied  6  T. Robinson  Minges Coliseum (0)
Greenville, NC
December 17, 2020*
3:00 p.m., SECN+
at Vanderbilt L 80–91  2–5
 21  Reed  10  T. Robinson  4  Reed  Memorial Gymnasium (46)
Nashville, TN
Atlantic 10 regular season
December 20, 2020
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Richmond
Capital City Classic
W 73–49  3–5
(1–0)
 15  T. Robinson  12  Archie  4  Reed  Robins Center (0)
Richmond, VA
January 8, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Duquesne W 68–63 OT 4–5
(2–0)
 16  Tied  9  Tied  5  Reed  Palumbo Center (0)
Pittsburgh, PA
January 10, 2021
12:00 p.m., ESPN+
at St. Bonaventure W 69–67 OT 5–5
(3–0)
 17  Archie  10  Archie  2  Tied  Reilly Center (0)
Olean, NY
January 13, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
George Mason
Mason rivalry
W 60–41  6–5
(4–0)
 11  Reed  7  Te-Biasu  2  Archie  Siegel Center (50)
Richmond, VA
January 15, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
UMass L 49–55  6–6
(4–1)
 14  T. Robinson              Siegel Center (111)
Richmond, VA
January 24, 2021
1:00 p.m., ESPN+
Richmond
Capital City Classic
L 64–69  6–7
(4–2)
 16  T. Robinson  6  T. Robinson  5  Reed  Siegel Center (123)
Richmond, VA
January 27, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
George Washington W 67–60  7–7
(5–2)
                   Siegel Center 
Richmond, VA
January 29, 2021
6:00 p.m.
at George Mason
Mason rivalry
W 64–56  8–7
(6–2)
                   EagleBank Arena 
Fairfax, VA
February 1, 2021
2:00 p.m.
at George Washington W 64–50  9–7
(7–2)
                   Charles E. Smith Center 
Washington, DC
February 5, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
Davidson Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols Siegel Center 
Richmond, VA
February 7, 2021
1:00 p.m., ESPN+
Fordham Canceled due to COVID-19 protocols Siegel Center 
Richmond, VA
February 12, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Saint Louis L 50–66  9–8
(7–3)
                   Chaifetz Arena 
St. Louis, MO
February 14, 2021
12:00 p.m., ESPNU
at Dayton L 62–67  9–9
(7–4)
 18  T. Robinson  7  Pashigoreva  4  Reed  UD Arena (0)
Dayton, OH
February 18, 2021
6:00 p.m., ESPN+
La Salle W 63–62  10–9
(8–4)
 13  Te-Biasu  9  Reed  5  Te-Biasu  Siegel Center (63)
Richmond, VA
February 20, 2021
7:30 p.m., ESPN+
Saint Joseph's W 64–49  11–9
(9–4)
 16  T. Robinson  6  S. Robinson  3  Te-Biasu  Siegel Center (163)
Richmond, VA
February 26, 2021
7:30 p.m., ESPN+
at UMass W 72–69  12–9
(10–4)
 17  T. Robinson  8  T. Robinson  6  Tied  Mullins Center (0)
Amherst, MA
February 28, 2021
1:00 p.m., ESPN+
at Rhode Island L 68–87  12–10
(10–5)
 18  Robinson  4  Tied  8  Reed  Ryan Center (0)
Kingston, RI
Atlantic 10 Tournament
March 11, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
(5) (12) Davidson
Second round
W 69–52  13–10
 20  Reed  16  Bloom  3  Te-Biasu  Siegel Center (250)
Richmond, VA
March 12, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPN+
(5) (4) Rhode Island
Quarterfinals
W 64–57  14–10
 24  T. Robinson  10  Bloom  3  Griffith-Wallace  Siegel Center (250)
Richmond, VA
March 13, 2021
1:00 p.m., CBSSN
(5) (1) Dayton
Semifinals
W 56–50  15–10
 18  T. Robinson  9  S. Robinson  3  Reed  Siegel Center (250)
Richmond, VA
March 14, 2021
12:00 p.m., ESPNU
(5) (7) UMass
Championship
W 81–69  16–10
 19  Tied  5  Tied  3  Reed  Siegel Center (250)
Richmond, VA
NCAA Women's Tournament
March 22, 2021
2:00 p.m., ESPNU
(13) vs. (4) No. 12 Indiana
First round
L 32–63  16–11
 8  Tied  9  Reed  4  Te-Biasu  UTSA Convocation Center 
San Antonio, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

See also

References

  1. "Rams Fall to Dayton in A-10 Championship Battle, 52-48". VCUAthletics.com. Virginia Commonwealth University Athletics. March 8, 2020.
  2. "Postseason WNIT Cancelled". Women's National Invitation Tournament. March 12, 2020. Archived from the original on March 26, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  3. "A-10 Releases Women's Basketball Preseason Poll". University of Rhode Island Athletics. November 9, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  4. "VCU Picked to Win Atlantic 10 Women's Basketball; 23 Student-Athletes Earn Preseason Honors". Atlantic 10 Conference. November 9, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
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