Rhode Island Starters
Phillips, Komara, Dutat, Vital, Kaur

VCU Starters
Hutson, Asare, Khalil, Ojeda, Parkham

How it Happened
A strong defensive effort helped Rhode Island lead from start to finish as the Rams knocked off VCU 64-50 Wednesday night.

Rhode Island (8-10, 3-2 Atlantic 10) never trailed, despite a competitive first quarter in which the teams were separated by three points or less for all but 29 seconds.

Sparked by a defensive effort that limited VCU (9-9, 3-3 A-10) to just 4-of-14 shooting in the second quarter, the Rams established control. Holding a slight 18-17 lead, URI went on a 13-3 run over the final 6:34 of the half. Ines Debroise had five points during the run, including a 3-pointer that made the score 31-20 for Rhody's biggest lead of the half.

The teams traded baskets in the third as URI's lead lived between 11-14 points until the very end of the quarter. A 3-pointer by Harsimran "Honey" Kaur extended the lead to 16 points at 49-33. From there, the lead stayed in double digits the rest of the way as Rhode Island picked up a key road conference win.
Inside the Box Score

• Point guard Ines Debroise was a spark plug off the bench once again, scoring 13 points to go with five rebounds and four assists.
• Over her last five games, Debroise has averaged 10.8 points per game.
• Center Harsimran "Honey" Kaur just missed a double-double, scoring a team-high 17 points to go with nine rebounds.
• Guard Sophie Phillips had 14 points and two rebounds.
• Forward Anaelle Dutat had three of Rhode Island's 11 steals. The URI defense forced 18 turnovers.
• Forward Hawa Komara had eight points on 4-of-6 shooting. She added six rebounds.
• Rhode Island had a 15-3 edge in fastbreak points.

Up Next
Rhode Island stays on the road to visit Duquesne Sunday, Jan. 19 at 12 p.m. The game will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network.