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CHICAGO – Oh yeah, VCU belongs in the NCAA tournament. The real question now: Who crapper kibosh the Rams?

Fresh, fast, wild and at nowadays flawless, VCU didn't countenance a taste aforementioned a aggroup activity its ordinal mettlesome in five nights. The Rams pressured Purdue, broke through its defense for numerous layups, and overwhelmed the third-seeded Boilermakers of the Big Ten 94-76 Sun period to earn their prototypal activate to the ammo of 16.

As their fans chanted "VCU, VCU," players hugged and famous on the story of the United Center. What a activate — what a hebdomad — it has been. Now it's on to San Antonio for the 11th-seeded Rams (26-11) to endeavor the succeeder of Notre Dame-Florida State on weekday in the Southwest regional semifinals.

It was meet a hebdomad past the Rams conventional an at-large effort to the uncertainty of whatever critics. Shuttled off to metropolis for a first-round game, they vex Southern Cal on Wednesday, got into metropolis in the wee hours Thursday, routed Georgetown on weekday and then did the aforementioned to the Boilermakers.

"A hebdomad ago, we intellection we were done," said the relentless point guard Joey Rodriguez, who had 12 points, 11 assists and no turnovers in 34 minutes.

"And now, we're here in the Sweet 16. Anything crapper hap now."

Purdue railcar Matt Painter, whose Boilermakers (26-8) were denied a ordinal straightforward activate to the ammo of 16, agreed.

"If you watched VCU a certain instance in the season you wouldn't see what you meet watched discover there," Painter said. "Then you check them during a four- or five-game stretch and you literally think, `They crapper vex some aggroup in the country.' ... I prefabricated that statement — VCU crapper vex some aggroup in the land on a viewless court. And I believe that. ... I was hoping that aggroup wouldn't exhibit up, but that aggroup from VCU did exhibit up."

Bradford author scored 23 points to lead a balanced offense, and the Rams' depth wore the Boilermakers down in the ordinal half when the lead reached 20 points.

"It wasn't easy. We meet prefabricated plays discover there. You see every these guys on TV, and we're watching them every assemblage and in our heads, we're like, 'Man, we crapper endeavor with these guys,'" Rodriguez said.

"We're getting the possibleness today and we're proving it."

VCU finished with 26 assists to meet four turnovers. The Rams didn't waffle to pop up 3-pointers — making 8 of 21 — but they also took it exclusive against Big Ten Player of the Year JaJuan Johnson, hard the 6-foot-10 center.

"We prefabricated him impact for everything he got," said VCU railcar Shaka Smart, noting that President appeared to ring a bit.

Johnson did finish with 25 points and 14 rebounds in the test mettlesome of a stellar career.

"Honestly it was meet one of those nights. Basic principles that we didn't fulfil on and that's every on us, taking null absent from VCU," President said.

But VCU really obstructed the Boilermakers' another star, E'Twaun Moore, holding him to 10 points on 5-of-15 shooting. That's eight points below his average. Ryne adventurer had 20 for Purdue, touch 6-of-8 on 3-pointers.

"Our guys hit worked unitedly every assemblage long. They mutual the basketball. I conceive we found a broad level of antitank energy these terminal individual games and that's what has allowed us to advance," Smart said.

"We meet had to hit everyone on the aforementioned tender and everyone feat in the aforementioned direction. ... I'm meet so bright for our guys."

Jamie Skeen additional 13 points and underclassman Juvonte Reddic had 12. The Rams effort 57 percent.

"I see aforementioned every teams are equal. It's not meet most the conference and how bounteous the conference is and every that another stuff," Skeen said.

"We're every meet as good. It's meet basketball, man. I undergo you hit your All-Americans, aforementioned you had two All-Americans discover there, but it's a aggroup game. If you solidify as a aggroup aforementioned we did today, you crapper vex anybody."

VCU led by 10 at the half. Reddic had six points primeval in the ordinal half when the speedy Rams foiled a comeback by the Boilermakers by consistently getting unstoppered for short shots inside.

And after a timeout and a Boilermakers miss, Rodriguez didn't waffle from artefact beyond the crowning of the key, sinking an NBA-length 3-pointer and swing the Rams up 59-44. VCU hit heptad of its prototypal eight shots in the ordinal half to keep up what it started in the first.

When author crowd for a layup and then got unstoppered and sank a 3-pointer, he place the Rams aweigh by 19 with meet more than 11 transactions left.

"It's VCU against the world," said the 6-foot-9 Skeen. "Nobody else intellection we could do this. Nobody else's redact said that we're feat to make it to the Sweet 16. Honestly, if it was me and I was meet a lawful person, I wouldn't place VCU in the Sweet 16. Who would hit thought?"

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