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The No. 20 VCU Rams basketball team will meet the Purdue Boilermakers at The Arena at Northwest Florida State College on Friday in the first round of the Emerald Coast Classic.
The game is scheduled to start at about 9:30 p.m. ET (after FSU-Tennessee) and will be televised on CBS Sports Network. If you don’t have cable or don’t have that channel, you can watch a live stream of the game on your computer, phone, Roku, Fire TV Stick or other streaming device via one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
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FuboTV
CBS Sports Network is one of the 95-plus live TV channels included in the main FuboTV bundle, which is largely tailored towards sports.
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch a live stream of Purdue vs VCU on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or other supported device via the FuboTV app.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV comes with 30 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as a 72-hour look-back feature, which will allow you to watch the game on-demand within three days of its conclusion, even if you don’t record it.
AT&T TV Now
AT&T TV Now (formerly DirecTV Now) offers six different channel bundles. Of those, the “Max,” “Xtra” and “Ultimate” bundles all include CBS Sports Network.
Start Your AT&T TV Now Free Trial
Once signed up for AT&T TV Now, you can watch a live stream of Purdue vs VCU on your computer via the AT&T TV Now website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or other compatible streaming device via the AT&T TV app.
If you can’t watch live, AT&T TV Now — no matter what channel package you choose — comes with included cloud DVR.
Hulu With Live TV
Hulu With Live TV comes with Hulu’s extensive on-demand library of TV shows and movies and 60-plus live TV channels, including CBS Sports Network.
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch a live stream of Purdue vs VCU on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Echo Show, or other streaming device via the Hulu app.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu With Live TV comes with 50 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as the option to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of space and the ability to fast-forward through commercials.
Purdue vs VCU Preview
The Rams have opened their campaign with six consecutive victories, but they have yet to be tested outside of the Stuart C. Siegel Center.
On Monday, they bested the Alabama State Hornets 78-62 behind a 25-point effort from guard Marcus Evans. The redshirt senior shot 8-of-11 from the field and 5-of-7 from deep en route to his season high. He added a trio of assists without turning the ball over.
“I’ve seen that a bunch before, and that’s a good sign,” VCU head coach Mike Rhoades said, according to The Commonwealth Times. “I thought he did a good job of getting downhill, and making plays for his teammates. We don’t want him in foul trouble, but him guarding the ball full court — that’s a great advantage for us.”
Evans picked up his fourth foul midway through the second half, limiting him to 20 minutes of action and leading Rhoades to lean more heavily on guard Nah’Shon Hyland.
The freshman, who entered the night averaging 15 minutes per game, logged 20 minutes, scoring 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field. He went 3-of-5 from 3-point range.
“It was great for him to be put in a pressure situation,” Rhoades said, per The Commonwealth Times. “I said, ‘Look at the scoreboard, what are you going to do with it now.’ He’s going to have to really play better here in the next month. But that’s why you throw freshmen into the battle, for sure. I was really proud of him.”
The Boilermakers have won two straight to improve to 3-2, most recently topping the Jacksonville State Gamecocks 81-49 at home on Saturday.
Matt Haarms, Purdue’s 7-foot-3-inch starting center, scored 17 points (on 6-of-10 shooting), pulled down 10 rebounds, and came up with 5 blocks, all game highs. He attempted just one field goal in the team’s previous outing.
After the victory over the Gamecocks, Purdue head coach Matt Painter said he and his staff had been pressing his squad to pass into the paint more often.
“It’s something that we’ve really harped on,” Painter said, according to 247Sports. “We go too long periods of time were we don’t throw the ball inside, whether those guys are diving or posting up, that’s got to be a big part of our offense. It gives us a balance, so that was something that we really harped on.”
He added: “Each guy is a little bit different with how in terms of what they see and how they can deliver it. Their experience of being able to pass to big guys. Some guys that are young don’t have that experience and haven’t been with guys of that size.”