Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team remained perfect at home in the Charles L. Sewall Center and held Central Connecticut State to a shooting percentage of just 36.4 percent (16-for-44) en route to a 64-48 win over the Blue Devils Saturday night. The victory, the fifth in a row for the Colonials, improves the club to 10-3 overall and 2-2 in the Northeast Conference, while CCSU fell to 5-10 overall and 2-1 in league play.
The Blue Devils hit their first four shots from the field, including three-pointers from Tristan Blackwood and Joe Seymore, to build an early 10-4 advantage three and-a-half minutes into the contest, but after that Central Connecticut State converted just 12 of its final 40 shots from the field as the RMU defense clamped down. Robert Morris took a 15-14 lead after a layup from junior guard Tony Lee (Boston, Mass. / Charlestown) with 13:12 to go before halftime, but Obie Nwadike answered with a layup of his own to push the Blue Devils back in front, 16-15.
The see-saw battle continued until Robert Morris hung a 9-1 run on CCSU to take a 29-22 lead and eventually entered the break with a 29-24 advantage. During the spurt freshman guard Mezie Nwigwe (Hyattsville, Md. / High Point) came off the bench to hit a three-pointer, while Lee hit a pair of free throws and senior forward A.J. Jackson (Monessen, Pa. / Monessen) added a jumper.
In the first five minutes of the second half RMU held Central Connecticut State to just 1-for-5 shooting and in the process stretched its five-point halftime lead into a 12-point advantage, 41-29, with 15:07 to play. Sophomore guard Jeremy Chappell (Cincinnati, Ohio / Northwest) scored five points during the run, while Jackson added a three-pointer. Chappell's jumper in the paint with 12:03 remaining gave Robert Morris its biggest lead of the game, 46-31, and the Blue Devils could whittle their deficit to single digits just once the rest of the game. Blackwood hit a pair from the charity stripe to make it 52-44 in favor of RMU with 6:18 to go.
Senior guard Derek Coleman (Dorchester, Mass. / Charlestown) answered with a layup to push the Colonial lead back to double digits, 54-44, and Chappell's three-pointer from the corner with 3:22 helped seal the victory by giving RMU a 59-46 edge. Chappell scored 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting to pace all scorers and added eight rebounds, while Jackson recorded his 18th career double-double thanks to 13 points and 10 boards. He also added a career high three steals. Lee added 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and four steals, while Coleman chipped in with 10 points and six assists. CCSU was led by Nwadike, who finished with 12 points and five boards.
Robert Morris now takes to the road for a two-game swing, traveling to Brooklyn, N.Y., for a 7:00 p.m. tilt at Long Island Thursday, Jan. 11. The Colonials also visit Fairleigh Dickinson Saturday, Feb. 13, for a 7:00 p.m. contest in Teaneck, N.J., as part of its trip.
Notes: The five-game winning streak matches the longest by Robert Morris under sixth-year head coach Mark Schmidt ... The Colonials posted five-game winning streaks in both the 2004-05 and 2005-06 campaigns ... The 10-3 start also ties the school record for fastest to 10 wins, as the 1988-89 Colonials started 10-3 en route to a 21-9 overall record ... It marks the first time this season Chappell has led Robert Morris in scoring in a game ... RMU held a commanding edge in rebounding, 39-19, including a 13-7 edge on the offensive glass ... Central Connecticut State received just two points from its bench ... Blackwood and guard Javier Mojica, who had combined for 103 points in CCSU's first two league games, combined for just 15 points in the contest ... Mojica scored 10 points but Blackwood was just 1-for-9 from the field, including 1-for-7 from beyond the arc, in finishing with five points ... Robert Morris converted 45 percent (9-for-20) of its three-point attempts as four different Colonials had at least a pair of trifectas.
