The 2016–17 VCU Rams men's basketball team represented
Virginia Commonwealth University
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a public research university in Richmond, Virginia. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virginia in 1854. In 1968, the Virgini ...
during the
2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 11, 2016. The first tournament was the 2K Sports Classic, and ended with the Final Four in Glendale, Arizona on April 3, 2017. Practices officially began on September 30, 2 ...
Atlantic 10 Conference
The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located in states mostly on the United States Eastern ...
. They finished the season 26–9, 14–4 in A-10 play to finish in second place. In the A-10 tournament, they beat
George Mason
George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including s ...
and
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
before losing to
Rhode Island
Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
in the championship game. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 10 seed in the West region where they lost in the first round to Saint Mary's.
Following the season, head coach Will Wade left VCU to take the head coaching position at
LSU
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...
following the firing of Johnny Jones. Wade had served has the head coach for the last two seasons making him VCU's shortest tenured head coach since
Benny Dees
Benny Dees (December 29, 1934 – March 23, 2021) was an American college basketball coach. He was head coach of the University of New Orleans Privateers team from 1985 to 1987, the University of Wyoming team from 1987 to 1993 and Western Carolina ...
. On March 21, 2017, the school hired
Rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima
''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
head coach
Mike Rhoades
Michael David Rhoades (born September 21, 1972) is an American basketball coach. He is the head men's basketball coach at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), a position he has held since 2017. Rhoades served as the head men's basketball coac ...
, who had served as associate head coach under
Shaka Smart
Shaka Dingani Smart (born April 8, 1977) is an American men's college basketball coach. He is the current head men's basketball coach at Marquette University.
Early life and playing career
Smart grew up in Oregon, Wisconsin. In high school, Sm ...
from 2009 to 2014.
Previous season
The
Rams
In engineering, RAMS (reliability, availability, maintainability and safety)2015–16 season with a record of 25–11, 14–4 in A-10 play to finish in a tie for a first-place. In the A-10 tournament, the Rams lost to Saint Joseph's in the championship game. The Rams received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they beat
Oregon State
Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...
in the first round before losing to
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
in the second round.
Preseason
The Rams were picked to finish third in the A-10 preseason poll. Mo Allie-Cox was selected to the All-A-10 second team while JeQuan Lewis was selected to the third team. Cox and Lewis were also selected to the All-Defensive team.
VCU Rams men's basketball
The VCU Rams men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball team that represents Virginia Commonwealth University. The Rams joined the Atlantic 10 Conference in the 2012–13 season after previously competing in the Colonial Athl ...
VCU Rams men's basketball
The VCU Rams men's basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball team that represents Virginia Commonwealth University. The Rams joined the Atlantic 10 Conference in the 2012–13 season after previously competing in the Colonial Athl ...