The Veal deal: Forward’s roller coaster season finds form in NCAA tournament, shows glimpse of future

Jim Swing
Assistant Sports Editor

Commonwealth Times’ Sport Twitter

Junior transfer Toby Veal provided a solid force in the paint for VCU against Kansas in the Elite 8

In the VCU men’s basketball team’s season opener against UNC Greensboro, head coach Shaka Smart gave JUCO transfer Toby Veal the start in his initial game as a Ram.

At first glance, it appeared the 6-foot-8, 235 pound forward would be a perfect fit to pair up with senior Jamie Skeen for a big-man tandem underneath to help replace the loss of NBA first round draft pick Larry Sanders.

He properly introduced himself to VCU, reeling off 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks in a solid effort for a new transfer just settling in.

Veal went on to start in six more games, adding a consistent rebounding factor on both ends of the floor that the Rams would find tremendously crucial later in the season.

And then – like a flash – it felt like he had disappeared.

On Dec. 18 Veal went down with a torn meniscus in his left knee against UAB and missed the next eight games, which dwelled right in the heart of the season.

He returned a little more than a month later but never seemed to have completely eased his way back into the lineup, averaging insignificant minutes and failing to provide a force in the paint like he once had.

That was until this past weekend.

VCU was set to go up against Kansas, which possessed two of the best big-men in the country with a trip to the Final Four on the line.

The Morris twins – Marcus (6-foot-9, 235 pounds) and Markieff (6-foot-10, 245 pounds) – had provided a powerhouse down low for the Jayhawks in the Big 12 all season and Smart knew he would have to bring in some size to compete in the most critical game of the Rams’ season.

He called on Veal, and Veal answered.

The Savannah, Ga. native made his presence felt in the trenches, scoring six points and grabbing five rebounds in 16 minutes of play – but most importantly – he limited the Morris brothers.

Looking back, Smart pondered on a quote from his college coach at Kenyon – Bill Brown – who told him, “Things don’t always happen when you want them to but they always happen on time.”

“I’m not sure we win the Kansas game without him,” Smart said. “He went in there and banged with the Morris twins when they were kicking our butts.”

With less than 12 minutes remaining in the second half, Veal connected on a jump hook over both Morris brothers that helped largely tame a steaming comeback run by the Jayhawks.

Veal’s rugged performance helped relieve a lot of the defensive pressure on Skeen who said, he himself, does not like going up against his counterpart on the practice court.

“He’s real tough, and he doesn’t have to walk around being all tough and stuff, he just shows it on the basketball court,” Skeen said. “He’s the nicest guy in person but you don’t want to be up against him in practice.”

While Veal may not be the opponent of choice in practice, his toughness and work ethic are well respected by his teammates.

“He’s the hardest worker that I know,” junior guard Bradford Burgess said. “He just out-worked them in the game and it showed out there on the court.”

Veal’s execution on the biggest stage went far beyond the stats sheet for VCU.

His performance against Kansas Sunday afternoon not only lifted the Rams into the Final Four, but also reassured signs of what’s to come.

“Toby Veal came through on time against Kansas,” Smart said. “Certainly moving forward we’re excited about him doing that on a regular basis.”

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Photo by: Kyle LaFerriere

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