Emmitsburg, Md. - Senior guard Derek Coleman (Dorchester, Mass. / Charlestown) scored 21 of his game high 23 points in the second half to help the Robert Morris University men's basketball team climb out of a 14-point deficit en route to a 65-60 victory over Mount St. Mary's Saturday night at Knott Arena in Emmitsburg, Md. The victory, the second straight for RMU, improved the Colonials to 15-7 overall, including 7-6 in Northeast Conference action, and helped clinch the program's second straight winning season.
The Mount had built a 41-27 lead with 15:40 to play after Mychal Kearse hit a pair of free throws due to a technical foul on Coleman. However, the infraction seemed to spark the senior guard, who led Robert Morris on a 14-2 run by scoring eight points to help close its deficit to two, 43-41, with 11:23 remaining. Jeremy Goode helped give Mount St. Mary's some breathing room with a deep three-pointer as the shot clock was winding down to increase the Mount's advantage to five, 46-41, and the two teams continued to trade baskets until Gus Durr's jumper with 7:37 to go pushed the Mount's advantage to six, 52-46. However, that would be the last field goal of the game for Mount St. Mary's as the Colonial defense allowed a shooting percentage of just 25.9 percent (7-for-29) in the second half.
Coleman's three-pointer with 7:05 left pulled RMU within three, 52-49, and the score remained that way until senior forward A.J. Jackson (Monessen, Pa. / Monessen) hit the back end of a pair of free throws to close the Colonials within two, 52-50, with 4:50 to play. The Mount kept its lead thanks to the free-throw line, as Durr and Chris Vann each hit a pair to keep Mount St. Mary's ahead, but Coleman came back to drain another trifecta at the 2:33 mark to close Robert Morris within one, 56-55. On the next possession by the Mount, sophomore guard Jeremy Chappell (Cincinnati, Ohio / Northwest) picked the pocket of Kearse and went the length of the court for a layup to give RMU its first lead since the 10:21 mark of the first half, 57-56.
Goode then missed a jumper for Mount St. Mary's, and Coleman responded with a three-pointer despite solid defense to extend the Robert Morris lead to 60-56. The Mount had a chance to tie with less than a minute to go, but Kelly Beidler's jumper with 17 seconds to play was off the mark, and sophomore forward Ifeanyi Ehirim (Toronto, Ontario / Eldon Academy Prep) pulled down the rebound. He dished the ball off to Coleman, who was then fouled by Vann with 11 ticks left on the clock. Coleman sank both of his free throws to give the Colonials a 64-60 lead and help seal the win, and after Goode missed a last chance three-pointer Jackson came down with the loose ball and hit one of his two attempts from the charity stripe to settle the score at 65-60.
Robert Morris jumped out to a 15-7 lead in the first half thanks to the long ball as Jackson hit a pair of three-pointers while Chappell and junior guard Tony Lee (Boston, Mass. / Charlestown) each hit one. The Mount slowly chipped away, using a 13-2 spurt to take its first lead of the contest, 20-17, after a three-pointer from Vann with 9:00 to go in the first half. Mount St. Mary's eventually entered the break with a 32-25 lead after shooting 46.2 percent (12-for-26) before halftime and stretched its lead to 14 before Coleman helped lead the comeback.
Coleman finished with 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field, including 4-of-10 from beyond the arc, and added four assists and four rebounds. Jackson added 14 points and eight rebounds, while Lee contributed 14 points and five boards. As a club Robert Morris shot 44.7 percent (21-for-47), including 57.1 percent (12-for-21) in the second half.
The Colonials now return home for a two-game homestand, starting Thursday, Feb. 15, when it hosts Wagner for a 7:00 p.m. Northeast Conference tussle at the Charles L. Sewall Center.
Notes: Prior to the technical foul Coleman had shot 1-for-6 from the floor, including 0-for-5 from beyond the arc, but from the 15:40 minute-mark on he converted six of his seven shots from the field, including 4-for-5 from long range ... Coleman pushed his career point total to 962, just 38 points shy of 1,000 ... Kearse led the Mount with 12 points ... Mount St. Mary's held a 33-29 edge on the backboard, including a 13-7 advantage in offensive rebounds ... Lee's five caroms gives him 491 on his career, just nine shy of 500 ... Robert Morris has now won three straight in the all-time series against the Mount.
