Rams trounce winless Toledo for third consecutive win

Rams trounce winless Toledo for third consecutive win

Another fast start for the Rams led to another relatively easy win Saturday in the 2K Sports Coaches vs. Cancer Classic as the University of Rhode Island men’s basketball team cruised past tournament host Toledo, 76-65, at the Savage Arena.

Less than 24 hours after beating Charleston on Friday, the Rams (3-1) picked up where they left off yesterday, jumping out to a 9-0 lead and never looking back in their third consecutive victory.

Sophomore guard Akeem Richmond led all scorers with 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting while seniors Delroy James (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Will Martel (10 points, 10 rebounds) chipped in with double-doubles for the second game in a row. The Rams shot 46 percent from the floor and out-rebounded Toledo (0-4), 32-27.

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The winless Rockets actually pulled to within a point midway through the opening half, but Rhode Island responded with 10 unanswered points to put the game out of reach. Ben Eaves and Nikola Malesevic fueled the run with back-to-back 3-pointers as the Rams closed the half on a 26-11 run.

The Rams eventually led by 24 points with 17:01 to go in the second half before Toledo made the final score respectable. Malesevic cooled off following a 17-point performance against Charleston, but still hit all three of his field goal attempts and finished with eight points. Eaves added eight points and five rebounds and Marquis Jones chipped in with eight points, five assists and two steals.

Rhode Island will close out this weekend’s subregional at 2:30 this afternoon against Illinois-Chicago, which dropped to 2-2 following a loss to Charleston on Saturday. Yesterday’s win marked the first time all season James did not lead the team in scoring. With a win today, the Rams would improve to 4-1, matching the start by last year’s team through five games.