Emerald Coast Classic , The Arena at NW Florida St, Niceville, Florida; Friday, 9:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: VCU and Purdue will go at it in the Emerald Coast Classic . Purdue earned an 81-49 win over Jacksonville State on Saturday, while VCU walked away with a 78-62 win against Alabama State on Monday.
LEADING THE CHARGE: Marcus Santos-Silva and Marcus Evans have led the Rams. Santos-Silva is averaging 11.5 points and 10.5 rebounds while Evans is putting up 15.2 points per game. The Boilermakers have been anchored by Jahaad Proctor and Matt Haarms, who are scoring 15.6 and 12 per game, respectively.JUMPING FOR JAHAAD: Proctor has connected on 27.8 percent of the 18 3-pointers he's attempted and has made 5 of 18 over the last five games. He's also made 72.2 percent of his free throws this season.
PASSING FOR POINTS: The Boilermakers have recently used assists to create buckets more often than the Rams. Purdue has 61 assists on 86 field goals (70.9 percent) over its previous three games while VCU has assists on 52 of 91 field goals (57.1 percent) during its past three games.
STINGY DEFENSE: VCU has forced opponents into committing turnovers on 29.3 percent of all possessions this year, the fifth-highest rate among all Division I teams. Over their last three games, the Rams have forced opponents into turnovers on 29.5 percent of all possessions.
