GAME NOTES: The VCU Rams pay a visit to Fifth Third Arena on Saturday afternoon for a non-league clash with the Cincinnati Bearcats.

VCU has kicked off the month of December with wins in three of four contests. The Rams were last in action Tuesday night against Belmont at home, where they claimed a 78-51 victory. Following this tilt, they will return home to face East Tennessee State on Monday.

Cincinnati has split its last four outings but is coming off Wednesday's 71-62 triumph over 19th-ranked San Diego State in overtime. It was a key victory for the Bearcats after they dropped a double-overtime decision at Nebraska in their previous game. This marks the second leg of a three-game homestand for UC.

VCU leads the all-time series, 2-1, although these teams have not met since the 1980-81 season.

Rams freshman Justin Tillman led the way with a career-high 16 points in 17 minutes off the bench against Belmont, while fellow reserve Jequan Lewis tallied 13 points and five steals in 13 minutes. Treveon Graham (17.1 ppg, 6.3 rpg) rounded out the team's double-figure scorers with 11 points and six rebounds, although second-leading scorer Melvin Johnson (14.9 ppg) had an off night, finishing with only two points on 1-of-7 shooting. Belmont came into the game sixth in the nation with 10.7 3-pointers per game, but the Bruins were held to 8-of-29 shooting from beyond the arc against the Rams, who led by as many as 19 in the first half.

The Bearcats simply dominated the overtime period against nationally-ranked SDSU, as a 3-pointer by Farad Cobb sparked a 12-0 run that ultimately decided the outcome. The Aztecs went more than four minutes without a basket as they shot 2-of-10 from the field in the extra session. Cobb and Troy Caupain shared team-high scoring honors for UC with 12 points apiece, while Gary Clark added 10 points and five boards in the victory. The Bearcats are not a particularly potent offensive squad, as only Caupain averages double figures with 10.1 ppg. But the Bearcats are among the nation's stingiest defensive teams, holding foes to 37.4-percent shooting and 53.8 ppg. UC is +8.6 in scoring margin and +7.4 on the boards.

Coming off a signature victory, the Bearcats must be careful not to have a letdown here. VCU has proven to be a formidable foe, so expect a close on in this contest.