West Long Branch, N.J. - Jhamar Youngblood's three-pointer from the top of the arc as time expired fell short as the Robert Morris University men's basketball team notched its fourth straight victory Thursday night with a 61-60 win over Monmouth at Boylan Gymnasium.
The victory, also the fifth straight on the road for the Colonials, improves RMU to 16-6 overall and 7-2 in Northeast Conference action, while the Hawks fell to 5-16 overall and 2-7 in league play. The win also settled RMU's record for the month of January at 8-1, the program's best since finishing 9-1 in January of 1991.
Youngblood had pulled Monmouth within one, 61-60, with just 50 seconds to play after hitting a pair at the free-throw line after a foul by freshman guard Gary Wallace (Montclair, N.J. / Seton Hall Prep). Robert Morris brought the ball down the court to set up its offense, but with just six ticks left on the shot clock the ball was kicked by Rickie Crews of the Hawks.
The Colonials retained possession with 25.6 seconds remaining and also had 15 seconds on the shot clock, but sophomore guard Jimmy Langhurst (Willard, Ohio / Willard) missed a jumper, and Whitney Coleman came down with the rebound for Monmouth with just over 10 seconds to play. He dished the ball off to Youngblood, who raced up the length of the court before pulling up for a long three-pointer with 3.3 seconds remaining. The ball never reached the rim, however, and senior guard Tony Lee (Boston, Mass. / Charlestown) helped preserve the victory with the rebound as time expired.
Senior forward A.J. Jackson (Monessen, Pa. / Monessen) hit a big bucket for the Colonials at the 1:39 mark of the second half to give RMU a 61-58 lead just seconds after Youngblood's alley oop pass to Crews for a dunk pulled the Hawks within one, 59-58. It marked the first field goal for Robert Morris since 6:34 remained when junior guard Bateko Francisco (Paris, France / Fort Scott J.C.) converted a fastbreak layup after a steal by Lee.
The Colonials trailed, 52-48, with 9:13 to play, but a 9-0 surge gave RMU a 57-52 advantage after Francisco's layup. Jackson hit a pair of free throws to start the run, while junior guard Jeremy Chappell (Cincinnati, Ohio / Northwest) knocked down a three-pointer and Lee provided a finger roll layup.
Monmouth had a pair of opportunities to cut into its deficit at the charity stripe, but Crews hit just one of his two free throws while Youngblood missed a pair. Francisco would sink a pair from the charity stripe with 4:35 remaining to up RMU's lead to 59-53, but a three-pointer by Youngblood and the jam from Crews pulled the Hawks within one, 59-58. Despite momentum in Monmouth's favor, Jackson calmly drilled a 15-foot shot to help keep the Hawks at bay.
In the first half RMU held a 19-13 lead, but an 8-2 run by Monmouth knotted the game at 21-21 at the 7:06 mark. Crew and Nick DelTufo each hit three-pointers during the run to spark the Hawks. The Colonials, which had hit six of their first nine shots from the floor in the contest, went cold the rest of the half, hitting just five of their last 17 attempts.
In the process Monmouth climbed ahead at the break, 35-30, thanks to the shooting of Whitney Coleman. Coleman hit four of his eight shots from the floor, including a 3-for-5 performance from long range, and was also 4-for-4 at the free-throw line for 15 points in helping the Hawks take the lead at halftime.
Chappell led all scorers in the game with 18 points, hitting seven of his 13 shots from the field while adding five rebounds, an assist and a steal. Jackson contributed 15 points, four rebounds and two steals, while Lee finished with eight points, seven rebounds, five assists and a pair of steals. Coleman led Monmouth with 17 points but had just two after halftime, while Youngblood contributed 15 points off the bench and Crews 10.
Robert Morris looks to extend its winning streak to five, as well as its road winning streak to six, Saturday, Feb. 2, when it travels to Emmitsburg, Md., for a 7:00 p.m. tilt against Mount St. Mary's at Knott Arena.
