VCU Creating Havoc Early in the College Basketball Season

Shaka Smart and his coaching staff have this year's version of the VCU Rams creating "havoc" already. (Mark Gormus)

On March 15, 2007, Virginia Commonwealth University's men's basketball team burst into the national spotlight. Crafty guard Eric Maynor made a 14-foot game-winner jumper to propel the Rams to a 79-77 upset of traditional power Duke. In 2011, head coach Shaka Smart had his team continue to unleash their "havoc" style of play as they made a magical run to the Final Four.

VCU's "havoc" style of play is an up-tempo, pressure intense system that leaves the opposition frustrated and prone to make mistakes. The more Smart's players play in it, the better it works and is executed. The Rams will benefit this season from losing only one senior, even though Bradford Burgess was a major leader and contributor last season.

VCU's season did get off to a bit of a bumpy start with a surprisingly two-point loss at home to Wichita State. "That's fine," Smart said. "We like being written off." The Rams looked at the Battle 4 Atlantis as an opportunity to show that they are a force to be reckoned with again this year. They got their first shot on Thursday night when they faced #19 Memphis.

VCU took the lead to start the game and never looked back. They were up by 14 at the half and ended up pulling off the upset in convincing style by 13. The Rams "havoc" defense forced 22 Memphis turnovers, including seven out of junior point guard Joe Jackson. Offensively, they shot an incredible 13-for-22 from beyond the arc. Sophomore Treveon Graham led the team with 26 points. Junior Rob Brandenberg came off the bench to shoot a perfect five-for-five from three for 15 points.

The Rams have shown that they can shoot the ball well, play tenacious defense and pull off the big upset. They will to do the latter again tomorrow night when the face fifth-ranked Duke for the first time since their NCAA tournament upset in 2007. Even though the Blue Devils are a physical team, I except VCU to give them a run for their money. This team will be well-prepared by its experienced leaders. There are still five players on this team who played a significant role in the team that made it to the Final Four two years ago.

"They could win the whole national championship if they make shots like that," said Memphis head coach Josh Pastner following Thursday night's game. While this may appear to be a bit extreme, anything is possible, especially considering how open of a field this year's NCAA tournament is expected to be. What is for certain is that VCU won't be a team anyone wants to stand in the way of come March.