http://www.timesdispatch.com/rtd/sports/college/college_basketball/article/RAMS01_20090201-004723/194568/
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Several of Virginia Commonwealth University's players came down with flu-like symptoms Friday night.
Some looked so bad that Rams coach Anthony Grant stopped a team meeting after about five minutes and sent them to bed.
They were feeling a little better yesterday, especially after clamping down on defense in the second half and watching Eric Maynor play medic.
The 6-3 senior guard scored 21 of his 33 points after intermission, and the Rams got a clutch shot from Bradford Burgess and clawed back from a double-digit deficit to beat Hofstra 66-62 in the Colonial Athletic Association.
VCU (9-2, 16-6) avoided what likely would have been a fatal blow to its chances of winning a third straight regular-season CAA championship. Northeastern is 10-1 with seven conference games remaining, but the Huskies own the tiebreaker over the Rams.
VCU essentially would have fallen three games behind with a loss.
"No more for us," Maynor said. "We ain't taking any more losses. I told the guys before the game it's like win or go home. That's the mindset we've got to have."
The Rams had to overcome a lot yesterday: poor first-half shooting (33.3 percent), turnovers (17 for the game), 15 offensive rebounds by Hofstra (6-5, 14-, foul trouble by 6-10 Larry Sanders and the sickness.
"The thing I was concerned about was what type of energy we'd have," Grant said. "They sucked it up."
VCU fell behind by 12 in the first half in a rugged affair that included a double-technical foul on Sanders and Dane Johnson.
"I wasn't worried," Burgess said. "We've been down before. We know how to fight back. Plus, we've got Eric."
The Rams' second-half defense Hofstra was 7 of 28 and two sprees by Maynor proved decisive.
VCU trailed 46-39 when Maynor scored nine unanswered points to give his club a two-point lead at the 10:54 mark.
With the game tied at 58 with 3½ minutes left, Maynor scored six unanswered points on a free throw, a steal that became a layup, and a long 3-pointer.
"I was just trying to get our team going," he said. "When you get in a zone like that, as long as you're taking good shots, they've got a chance of going in."
Maynor, among those not feeling well, played 40 minutes. After going 2 of 8 from the floor in the first half, he was 7 of 10 in the second half.
He also hit 12 of 13 free Throws; had a team-high nine reBounds; had four assists, two blocks and two turnovers; and had much of the defensive responsibility for Hofstra guard Charles Jenkins (5 of 23, 22 points).
"I don't have enough words in the English language to describe the type of player and the type of leader that young man is," Grant said.
Burgess, who was struggling with his shot (18 points in his past six games), was 4 of 9 and finished with 11 points. His biggest basket came when he drilled a 3-pointer with 4:14 left that tied the game.
"It did give me a lot of confidence back," he said. "It was just another shot I had to take. I was wide open."
NOTE: VCU's Bracketbusters matchup will be announced tomorrow (Monday) at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU.