After three days of hard-fought games and last-second finishes, the Atlantic 10 Tournament’s top-two seeds have emerged as the last two standing for the conference crown.
Atlantic 10 Tournament 2013 Championship: VCU and Saint Louis to square off Sunday for title
The top-two seeds have advanced to the title game of the Atlantic 10 Tournament. The Rams and Billikens meet Sunday afternoon for a chance at an automatic NCAA Tournament bid and conference bragging rights.
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On Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. ET, the No. 16 Saint Louis Billikins will face the No. 25 Virginia Commonwealth Rams for the Atlantic 10 championship on CBS.
Saint Louis advanced to the title game thanks to a 67-56 win over Butler in the semifinals. Dwayne Evans had 24 points and 11 rebounds in the victory, while the Billikens held the Bulldogs to just 39-percent shooting and 28-percent from three.
VCU held off a relentless, upset-minded Massachusetts team in its semifinal, 71-62. Troy Daniels had 20 points on 6-9 shooting from long range. Three of those came in a 90-second span late in the first half.
So with both teams coming off big semifinal wins, Sunday’s title game figures to be a close one. VCU met the Billikens in Saint Louis on Feb. 19 and fell 76-62. Four Billikens scored in double-figures in that game, as Saint Louis turned it over just eight times all night.
That win came in the midst of an 11-game winning streak for the Billikens, which vaulted them into the top spot in the conference and eventually the tournament’s No. 1 seed.
The Billikens will rely on Evans, who has already scored 49 points in his two tournament games. Cody Ellis has been effective off the bench despite a tough shooting game in Saint Louis' quarterfinal win over Charlotte. He is a skilled three-point shooter who can provide a boost if the Billikens need it against a Rams squad that plays notoriously tough defense.
VCU counters with Daniels and Juvonte Reddic. Reddic scored 18 points and hauled in 12 rebounds against UMass in a game where the Rams struggled on the glass. VCU did, however, force 23 Minutemen turnovers, overwhelming UMass's speedy guards.
VCU is in its first year in the Atlantic 10, while Saint Louis joined the league in 2005. This will be the Billikens’ first championship game appearance.
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