2010 – 11 VCU Rams men 's basketball team represented Virginia Commonwealth University in the Colonial Athletic Association conference during the 2010 – 11 NCAA Division I men 's basketball season . The Rams , led by second year head coach Shaka Smart , played their home games at the Stuart C. Siegel Center . They finished the season 28 – 12 , 12 – 6 in CAA play and lost in the championship game of the 2011 CAA Men 's Basketball Tournament to Old Dominion . They received an at-large bid in the 2011 NCAA Men 's Division I Basketball Tournament where they played in the new '' First Four '' round , defeating Southern California . They defeated Georgetown and Purdue in the second and third rounds , respectively , to advance to the '' Sweet Sixteen '' . The defeated Florida State to advance to the '' Elite Eight '' where they defeated Kansas . They advanced to the school 's first ever '' Final Four '' , being just the third 11 seed in Tournament history to advance to the '' Final Four '' , where they were defeated by Butler . The VCU Rams finished 6th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll at the end of the season . This was the highest ranking in VCU 's history and the highest ranking of any team from the CAA . The 2011 NCAA tournament run by VCU is regarded as one of the best Cinderella runs of all time . To date , they are the only men 's Division I basketball team whose NCAA tournament journey ran from The First Four to the Final Four . They are also the only team in the tournament to win five games , and not qualify for the national championship game
2011 CAA Men 's Basketball Tournament
2011 CAA Men's Basketball Tournament
2010–11 VCU Rams men's basketball team