Home Phil Martelli Jr. VCU coach Phil Martelli Jr. praises student journalists after Rams' comeback win over UNC in NCAA tournament first round

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21 Mar 2026

VCU coach Phil Martelli Jr. praises student journalists after Rams' comeback win over UNC in NCAA tournament first round

No. 11 seed VCU defeated No. 6 seed North Carolina in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament on March 19, 2026. The game was played at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina, a first- and second-round host site.^[1]

VCU head coach Phil Martelli Jr. interrupted a question from student media during the postgame news conference to commend the efforts of VCU's student journalists. Ben Rekosh, director and on-air commentator for WVCW Sports, VCU's student radio station, was asking about the Rams' comeback when Martelli spoke up.

"I am gonna shout you guys out. I know there's a lot of professional media, our student media, the best in the country. They are unreal. Unreal, unreal," Martelli said. "Three of these guys drove in a snowstorm — I'm not sure why they did it — to Davidson to cover us in Davidson. They came out to St. Louis, they've been everywhere along the way."

Martelli noted the student reporters had missed a game for Valentine's Day. "We won't talk about that. I understand young love is young love," he joked. "But this crew right here, I told them in Pittsburgh, I'll tell them again, I cannot thank you guys enough. You are what this is about, right there. The rest of these [media members] are getting paid — not enough. They don't get paid enough, but they get paid to be here — they're not paid to be here, and they show up every single day, every single game, and I can't thank you guys (enough)."

Rekosh thanked Martelli and resumed his question. The victory marked VCU's first NCAA tournament win since a 84-72 first-round defeat of UCF in 2018.^[2]

Terrence Hill Jr. hit the game-winning three-pointer for VCU, while UNC's Henri Veesaar missed a late free throw that could have tied the score. VCU advances to the second round at the same venue.