GAME NOTES: With their season-opening stint in the Top-25 over, the VCU Rams take to the road for Tuesday's non-conference clash with the Illinois State Redbirds.

VCU tipped off the 2014-15 campaign with victories in its first three games, but a 77-53 loss to No. 12 Villanova in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn, New York last Monday brought the team crashing back to Earth. The Rams bounced back to take out Oregon the following night, but a 73-67 loss to regional rival Old Dominion on Saturday has the squad once again searching for answers.

Illinois is just a game over .500 here in the early going, as the team has beaten Weber State, the same ODU squad that just beat VCU, and most recently, Youngstown State. The 85-73 overtime victory versus the Penguins evened ISU's home record at 1-1.

VCU has won four of the previous meetings between these two teams, including each of the last two.

Treveon Graham scored 34 points on the strength of six 3-pointers, but his effort went to waste as lackluster shooting across the board proved to be VCU's undoing in the recent bout with Old Dominion. The Rams made good on only 39 percent of their total shots, which included an 8-of-25 effort from beyond the arc, while also converting only 13-of-22 free throws (.591). Conversely, ODU shot 47.6 percent from the field, draining 9-of-17 3-point tries along the way, while scoring 24 points at the charity stripe. In addition to Graham, Melvin Johnson tallied 14 points and Mo Alie-Cox grabbed 13 rebounds for the Rams in defeat.

Graham is averaging a club-best 17.5 ppg, while Johnson is breathing down his neck at 16.8 ppg. As for the team as a whole, it generates 79.2 ppg in hitting 44.9 percent of its field goal attempts, which includes a 34.9 percent performance from beyond the arc. Defensively, which is where the Rams have been their strongest in recent campaigns, foes are producing 71 ppg in dropping 44.2 percent of their total shots, including 38.1 percent of their long-range launches.

Bobby Hunter scored 20 points, and Deontae Hawkins and DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell both hit for 18 to lead Illinois State to their recent overtime victory against Youngstown State. Reggie Lynch chipped in 10 points for the Redbirds, who dominated the glass with a 50-29 rebounding advantage, with Hawkins logging 15 boards. Lynch was credited with seven of the team's nine blocked shots. ISU committed 19 turnovers, but used a sizable 27-12 edge in points from the foul line, 12 of which came in the extra session, to put the game away.

Akoon-Purcell leads Illinois State in both scoring and rebounding this season, netting 15.8 ppg while pulling down 5.8 rpg. Hunter (12.4 ppg) and Daishon Knight (12.0 ppg) are the only other double-digit scorers for a team that is generating 71.4 ppg while allowing 65.2 ppg. The Redbirds also own favorable margins in both rebounds (+8.2) and turnovers (+2.4).

VCU is better than it's played of late, but the Redbirds aren't about to let the Rams come into their building and take it over. That said, the visitors will likely come out on top, despite the rowdy hometown fans giving them the business.