The No. 11 seeded Virginia Commonwealth Rams have already gotten further in the NCAA bracket that most expected after being a controversial at-large selection to the 2011 NCAA Tournament. Now, after defeating USC in the opening round and routing No. 6 seed Georgetown on Friday, the Rams look to slay another dragon when they take on No. 3 seed Purdue on Sunday at 7:10 p.m.
The game will be broadcast on TBS, with Spero Dedes and Bob Wenzel announcing. The winner will take on the winner between No. 2 seed Notre Dame and No. 10 seed Florida State, which will also be played on Sunday in Chicago 30 minutes after the conclusion of the VCU-Purdue game.
The Boilermakers pose a bigger challenge than Georgetown. Matt Painter's squad lost Robbie Hummel to injury early in the season, but continued to roll and would have likely been a higher seed had it not lost early in the Big 10 Tournament. JaJuan Johnson is one of the top big men in college basketball and will be a difficult matchup for Jamie Skeen, while E'Twaun Moore is a tough cover on the perimeter. Shaka Smart's squad will have to play really well to continue to advance in the NCAA Tournament.