St. Francis (N.Y.) (5-15 / 2-7) vs. Robert Morris (14-6 / 5-2)
Saturday, Jan. 26, 2008 at 7:00 p.m.
Charles L. Sewall Center (3,056) - Moon Township, Pa. 

Top Story - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team closes out a two-game homestand Saturday when it welcomes St. Francis (N.Y.) to the Charles L. Sewall Center for a 7:00 p.m. Northeast Conference tilt. The Colonials are coming off an 84-73 win over Central Connecticut State (1/24/08) and have won seven of their last eight games and nine of their last 11. RMU sits in fourth place in the NEC standings with a 5-2 league mark, while the Terriers enter Saturday's game in 10th place thanks to a 2-7 NEC record. Robert Morris closes out the month of January with a trip to Monmouth Thursday, Jan. 31, and will also visit Mount St. Mary's Saturday, Feb. 2, in a two-game road swing after hosting St. Francis (N.Y.). 

Quick Stat of the Night -  Senior forward A.J. Jackson, an All-Northeast Conference preseason pick, has slowly broken out of what seems like a season-long shooting funk in recent weeks. Jackson enters Saturday's game against St. Francis (N.Y.) having paced RMU in scoring in each of the last three games as well as five of the last six contests. Over the last six games he is averaging 16.5 points and 6.8 rebounds and is coming off arguably one his best performances of the season in an 84-73 win over Central Connecticut State (1/24/08). Jackson converted seven of his 10 shots from the floor for 18 points while grabbing seven rebounds in win.

Saturday's Opponent and the All-Time Series - St. Francis (N.Y.) and Robert Morris will tip for the 54th time Saturday, with the Colonials holding a 31-22 edge in the all-time series. In the only meeting between the two clubs in 2006-07, the Terriers garnered a 102-97 double overtime victory at the Charles L. Sewall Center (2/17/07). In that game Jamaal Womack tied a Sewall Center record with nine three-pointers en route to a 31-point performance. The Colonials were led in that game by senior guard Tony Lee, who established a career-high with 31 points while adding six rebounds and six assists. Each of the last two contests between St. Francis (N.Y.) and RMU has gone to overtime, with the Terriers garnering a 70-69 win (2/18/06) in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 2005-06.

Probable Starters (St. Francis-N.Y. vs. Robert Morris)

St. Francis (N.Y.) (5-15 / 2-7 NEC)

Head Coach Mike Rice (First Season; Fordham '91) - Robert Morris University ushered in a new era of men's basketball April 26, 2007, as Mike Rice was named the seventh head coach in the 32-year Division I history of the program. He owns an overall record of 14-6, including a 5-2 mark in the Northeast Conference. Rice, a native of Pittsburgh, Pa., has appeared in the NCAA or NIT Tournament seven times as an assistant coach.

Rice brings to Robert Morris a vast background in collegiate coaching, having served as an assistant coach at alma mater Fordham (1991-94), Marquette (1994-97), Niagara (1997-98), Chicago State (1998-2001), Saint Joseph's (2004-06) and Pittsburgh (2006-07).

At Pitt, Rice served as head coach Jamie Dixon's top assistant, helping lead the Panthers to a second-place finish during the Big East regular season and advancing to the Big East Tournament finals as well as the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Pitt finished with an overall record of 29-8 last year, and as the program's top recruiter, Rice was instrumental in attracting a recruiting class for 2007-08 that is ranked 16th by Scout, Inc., and 12th by HoopScoop.

Prior to his appointment with the Panthers, Rice spent two seasons with head coach Phil Martelli at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, Pa., from 2004-06. While with the Hawks, Rice helped guide Saint Joseph's to a combined record of 43-26 (.623 winning percentage) and a pair of NIT bids. In 2004-05, the Hawks finished with an overall record of 24-12, advancing to the 2005 NIT final.

Scouting the Terriers - St. Francis (N.Y.) enters Saturday's game against RMU with an overall record of 5-15, including 2-7 in Northeast Conference play, and is looking to snap a three-game losing streak. The Terriers are coming off a 92-84 triple overtime loss @ Saint Francis (Pa.). St. Francis (N.Y.) has gone to overtime in three of its last six games and four occasions overall so far this year. The Terriers have been led by senior forward Robert Hines, who posts team-high averages of 16.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Senior guard Jamaal Womack adds 12.6 points per game and owns 52 three-pointers, tops on the club.

St. Francis (N.Y.) Head Coach - Brian Nash (Keene State '92) is in his third season as head coach of the Terriers and was named to his current post March 30, 2005. He enters Saturday's game with an overall record of 24-54 (.308). Prior to St. Francis (N.Y.), Nash served as an assistant coach at Seton Hall from 2001-05.

RMU's Last Game - Robert Morris closed the first half on a 19-7 run to take 45-31 halftime lead and snapped Central Connecticut State's five-game winning streak, Jan. 24, with an 84-73 victory over the Blue Devils. Marcus Palmer hit a pair of free throws at the 8:15 mark of the first half to knot the score at 24-24, but Robert Morris held Central Connecticut State to 2-for-8 shooting the rest of the half while forcing three turnovers en route to a 19-7 spurt. Junior guard Bateko Francisco started the run with a jumper, while the Colonials also got a spark from their bench. Freshman guard Gary Wallace scored four points, while senior center Freddie Harris and sophomore forward Mezie Nwigwe each scored baskets. Sophomore guard Jimmy Langhurst also added five points, including a three-pointer with one second left in the first half. RMU opened the second stanza with a trio of three-pointers to open up its largest lead of the contest, 56-37, with 16:44 remaining as Langhurst and seniors Tony Lee and A.J. Jackson each hit baskets from long range for the Colonials. Central Connecticut State answered with a 13-2 run to close within eight, 58-50, with 12:47 to play. Joe Seymore hit a pair of three-pointers for the Blue Devils, while Marcus Palmer scored five points. Despite the surge, the Colonials were able to keep the lead in double digits despite CCSU pulling within eight on four more occasions. Junior forward Ifeanyi Ehirim hit a jumper to give Robert Morris a 60-50 lead, while Jackson hit a jumper, then a three-pointer at the 10:04 mark to up RMU to a 65-54 advantage. Central Connecticut State pulled within 69-61 after a 1-for-2 performance at the free-throw line by Shemik Thompson, but junior guard Jeremy Chappell buried a three-pointer with 6:37 to go to up the Colonial lead to 72-61. Lee's fastbreak layup off a steal with 4:55 remaining pushed the RMU lead back to double digits, 74-64, and the Blue Devils couldn't whittle their deficit to single digits the rest of the game. Jackson led four scorers in double figures for Robert Morris with 18 points and a game-high seven rebounds, while Langhurst and Chappell each contributed 15 points and Francisco 11.

Leading Scorers: Jackson (18), Chappell (15), Langhurst (15), Francisco (11)
Leading Rebounders: Jackson (7), Lee (4), Chappell (3), Harris (3)
Assists: Lee (6), Chappell (4), Langhurst (3), Nwigwe (3)

Central Connecticut State Game Notes - Robert Morris has won four straight over Central Connecticut State at the Charles L. Sewall Center and four of the last five meetings overall to tie the all-time series, 11-11 ... RMU shot 52.3 percent (34-for-65) from the field, including 41.7 percent (10-for-24) from long range, while the Blue Devils converted 56.5 percent (26-for-46) of their shots, including 36.8 percent (7-for-19) from beyond the arc ... The Colonials took 19 more shots than CCSU due in large part to forcing 23 turnovers, the highest for an RMU opponent in NEC games this season ... Robert Morris outscored the Blue Devils, 25-7, in points off turnovers ... The Colonials improved to 11-1 this season when leading at halftime ... Central Connecticut State held a 29-26 edge in rebounding, but the Colonials owned an 11-8 edge on the offensive glass ... RMU outscored CCSU, 15-10, in second-chance points ... Senior guard Tony Lee was held under 10 points for the second straight game, finishing with nine.

It's Your Team - Head Coach Mike Rice often looks to the three seniors on the Robert Morris 2007-08 roster for leadership, and so far Tony Lee, A.J. Jackson and Freddie Harris have helped contribute to RMU's 14-6 record. Not only has each contributed with overall numbers, but it's obvious in crunch time the trio are go-to options. In the last five minutes of games, Lee, Jackson and Harris have combined to shoot 55.8 percent (29-for-52) from the field.

Picking His Spots - Despite the RMU roster featuring a trio of 1,000-point scorers, junior guard Bateko Francisco is slowly emerging as a go-to option for the Colonials. Francisco enters Saturday's game against St. Francis (N.Y.) seemingly having found a groove, as he ranks sixth in the Northeast Conference in field goal percentage (.556) in league games. He's been just as solid in shooting from long range, as he ranks second in the circuit in three-point field goal percentage (.524) against NEC foes.

Sealing the Deal - Sophomore guard Jimmy Langhurst found his stroke in an 84-73 win over Central Connecticut State (1/24/08), converting five of his shots from the floor for 15 points, including a 3-for-5 performance from beyond the arc. That total marked a season-high in points in NEC games. Langhurst has also been the most consistent free throw shooter for the Colonials in league games, as he enters Saturday's game against St. Francis (N.Y.) a perfect 15-for-15 from the charity stripe. Langhurst is tied with CCSU's Tristan Blackwood (19-for-19) for tops in the league, and even more amazing is that of Langhurst's 15 free throws in league games, 11 have come in the last five minutes of contests.

Ski Lift - A key reason that Robert Morris has posted back-to-back wins after having its five-game winning streak snapped with a loss to Sacred Heart (1/13/08) has been due to the contributions from its bench. In a 65-55 win @ Saint Francis (Pa.), the reserves supplied 19 points and seven rebounds. That performance was followed up by 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists in an 84-73 win over Central Connecticut State (1/24/08). Over the last two games, the RMU bench has combined to shoot 62.5 percent (16-for-24) from the field. Probably the most impressive aspect of RMU's bench scoring the past two contests has been the play of junior forward Ifeanyi Ehirim. After not seeing any action in the previous six games, Ehirim has played 21 minutes the last two contests and has supplied eight points and five rebounds, converting all three of his field goals while going 2-for-3 at the free-throw line.

Hand Me Down - RMU's ability to be unselfish this season has the club working toward a possible school record in assists this season. The Colonials enter their tilt with St. Francis (N.Y.) Saturday with 347 assists, an average of 17.35 per game that leads the Northeast Conference. Based on that average, Robert Morris is on pace to finish the 2007-08 regular season with 537 assists, which would be 10 short of the team record. The 1982-83 Colonials dished out 547 assists en route to their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance. In fact, both of the two clubs in school history to compile over 500 assists in a season (512 as a team in 1989-90) advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Here & There - Tony Lee has been as consistent a player for Robert Morris in his final season of eligibility in 2007-08, as the senior guard enters Saturday's game against St. Francis (N.Y.) leading the Northeast Conference in both steals (3.10 per game) and assists (6.65 per game). Those per game averages also rank fourth and eighth, respectively, in Division I. Lee is the only player in the country to rank in the Top 10 in both categories. Along with junior guard Jeremy Chappell, the duo are the only pair of teammates in Division I to rank in the Top 10 in the country in steals, as Chappell's average of 2.7 per game currently ranks ninth. As a club, RMU's average of 10.1 steals per game ranks ninth in Division I.

Defense Wins Championships - Mike Rice has preached in his first season as head coach of Robert Morris that defense wins championships, and the numbers bear that out. Thanks to a 65-55 win @ Saint Francis (Pa.) (1/19/08), RMU improved to 8-1 this season and 67-20 (.770) over the last seven seasons when holding its opponents under 70 points.

Did You Know? RMU's trio of seniors Tony Lee and A.J. Jackson and junior Jeremy Chappell have combined for 3,646 points in their careers and have a chance to become the first trifecta in the Northeast Conference since the 2002-03 season to finish a campaign with a total of 4,000 points. That year, Wagner seniors Jermaine Hall (2,278) and Dedrick Dye (1,349), along with junior Courtney Pritchard (861), amassed 4,488 career points by season's end. That year Wagner finished with an overall record of 21-11, including 14-4 in the NEC, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.