The men’s and women’s basketball teams hosted a “Rim Rally” on Oct. 24 at the Stokes Center to introduce the two squads to students, faculty, staff and fans from the community.

Both teams competed in preseason scrimmages last weekend and open their official seasons next Tuesday, Nov. 5, in Virginia.

The women tip-off against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg at 7 p.m. The men are at #25 Virginia Commonwealth next Tuesday. This game is also a 7 p.m. start. Rob Krimmel returns for his eighth season as head coach of the men’s program.

Keila Whittington takes over as the head coach of the women’s team in 2019-20, becoming the eighth head coach in this program’s history.

“The best thing you could do is never get too high or too low about the outcome of the game, but get better every day,” said Krimmel, last year’s Northeast Conference Coach-of-the-Year.

Both teams face serious challenges in their openers. The Virginia Tech women’s team went 22-12 last year while competing in the competitive Atlantic Coast Conference.

VCU’s men’s squad went 25-8 in 2018-19, advancing to the NCAA Tournament, where the Rams lost to Central Florida.