Virginia Commonwealth’s players are trying not to look ahead to 17th-ranked Oklahoma’s visit Saturday to the Siegel Center. The Rams (1-0) are trying to focus on tonight’s game at Western Michigan (0-1), even though it seems everybody around them wants to talk about Oklahoma and former VCU coach Jeff Capel. “My parents talk about it, but I don’t really listen to them,“ VCU junior point guard Joey Rodriguez said. “We’re thinking about Kalamazoo, Mich., and going to play Western Michigan. One game at a time.“

Joey Rodriguez and the Virginia Commonwealth basketball team got a text message from Eric Maynor at 8 a.m. yesterday. “Time to get up,“ it read in part. “It’s game day. You guys get ready.“

Of the many things Virginia Commonwealth’s Joey Rodriguez is as a basketball player—hustler, heady, emotional, feisty on defense, terrific 3-point shooter—there is one thing he is not: Eric Maynor. “I’m totally different,“ he said. Rodriguez will focus on being himself as he succeeds one of VCU’s all-time great players. Maynor was a do-it-all force who carried the Rams to two NCAA appearances in three seasons, an upset of Duke and a 76-25 record. He’s now in the NBA with the Utah Jazz.

Guard Joey Rodriguez is returning to the Virginia Commonwealth University basketball team. Reserve forward Franck Ndongo is not. VCU coach Shaka Smart said Rodriguez, who in mid-April announced he was transferring to Division II Rollins College, has been cleared to rejoin the Rams. Rodriguez, a two-year starter, was released from his VCU scholarship after announcing he wanted to transfer in the wake of former VCU coach Anthony Grant’s departure to Alabama.

Guard Joey Rodriguez is returning to the Virginia Commonwealth University basketball team. Reserve forward Franck Ndongo is not. VCU coach Shaka Smart said Rodriguez, who in mid-April had announced he was transferring to Division II Rollins College, has been cleared to rejoin the Rams. Rodriguez, a two-year starter and rising junior, averaged 9.4 points, 2.5 assists and 1.8 steals this past season while leading the Colonial Athletic Association in 3-point field goal percentage (.416).

Guard Joey Rodriguez wants to return to the Virginia Commonwealth University basketball team. Rodriguez, a two-year starter for the Rams, announced in mid-April he was transferring to Division II Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla., about 20 minutes from his home in Oviedo. Rodriguez cited a desire to get closer to his family after former VCU coach Anthony Grant left to become Alabama’s coach.

Joey Rodriguez, a two-year starter at guard for Virginia Commonwealth University, has decided to transfer. Rodriguez’s father, Joe, said his son wants to get closer to their home in Oviedo, Fla., now that former VCU coach Anthony Grant has become Alabama’s new coach.

Contemplating life without Eric Maynor is not something his teammates at Virginia Commonwealth University are eager to do. “I don’t even want to think about life without him,“ sophomore forward Larry Sanders said, shortly after the Rams lost to UCLA in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

VCU’s players are soaking it in Rams’ Pishchalnikov getting crash course about UCLA history The buzz about Virginia Commonwealth University getting a crack at UCLA in the NCAA tournament still hadn’t died down after the selection show ended Sunday night. While his teammates wrapped up media interviews and checked a flood of text messages, VCU starting forward Kirill Pishchalnikov sat at a table at the Siegel Center absorbing all the hoopla.

Contain the fallout. That’s the mission that falls to the Virginia Commonwealth University basketball team tonight in the aftermath of Wednesday’s potentially radioactive loss. The Rams, seeking their third consecutive regular-season title in the Colonial Athletic Association, are tied for second place (9-3, 16-7). They could have been tied for first but instead are regrouping after an almost inexplicable 81-72 loss to UNC Wilmington, the conference’s next-to-last-place team.

The weaning of the Virginia Commonwealth basketball team continues. Eric Maynor scored 28 points against Delaware. VCU lost by two. Maynor scored 16 points against UNC Wilmington, eight against Drexel. VCU won both games by 29. Not that the Rams have any intention of completely severing themselves from Maynor’s ability to dominate games. But the recent outcomes, even against teams expected to be near the bottom of the Colonial Athletic Association, suggest that VCU’s sophomore and freshman-heavy lineup may be starting to stand on its own.

Joey Rodriguez has been thinking about playing defense for the Virginia Commonwealth basketball team. He should be so forgetful about his offense more often.