Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team notched its 10th straight victory Thursday night, tying a school record, with a 69-66 win over Mount St. Mary's at the Charles L. Sewall Center.

The Colonials improved to 22-6 overall and 13-2 in the Northeast Conference and set up a showdown for first place in the league Saturday when Wagner visits the Sewall Center. The Seahawks, also 13-2 in the NEC, notched an 80-72 double overtime victory at Saint Francis (Pa.). Mount St. Mary's fell to 13-14 overall and 9-7 in the NEC with the defeat.      

The Mount wasted no time jumping out to a lead against the Colonials, scoring the game's first four points and opening an early 7-2 advantage after a three-pointer from Will Holland. Mount St. Mary's owned the advantage the  majority of the first half until a 14-3 RMU surge gave the Colonials a 31-24 edge with 3:41 to play before halftime.    

Junior guard Jeremy Chappell (Cincinnati, Ohio / Northwest) tied the game at 21-21 with a layup, and Robert Morris took its first lead, 23-21, after a pair of free throws from junior guard Bateko Francisco (Paris, France / Fort Scott J.C.). Sophomore guard Mezie Nwigwe (Hyattsville, Md. / High Point) added four straight points, while a fastbreak layup from senior guard Tony Lee (Boston, Mass. / Charlestown) upped the RMU lead to seven, 31-24.   

Mount St. Mary's quickly cut its deficit to three, but a three-pointer from Francisco and a jumper from sophomore guard Jimmy Langhurst (Willard, Ohio / Willard) opened up a 36-29 advantage. However, the Mount scored the final five points of the five half to close their deficit to two at the break, 36-34. Jean Cajou drained a three-pointer, while Kelly Beidler added a jumper.    

Chris Vann, who was held scoreless in the first half due to three fouls, gave Mount St. Mary's the lead with a three-pointer to open the second stanza, 37-36, but senior forward A.J. Jackson (Monessen, Pa. / Monessen) answered with a trifecta of his own to push Robert Morris back in front, 39-37. The Colonials never trailed again despite a multiple runs from the Mount.  

RMU opened up a 53-45 lead after a steal and layup from Lee with 12:12 to play, and a layup from Langhurst pushed the Colonial advantage to 57-47 with 10:53 remaining. Robert Morris, however, missed its next three shots from the field while turning the ball over three times. During that stretch Mount St. Mary's tied the game at 57-57 with a 10-0 run.

Sam Atupem and Shawn Atupem each hit layups, while Vann and Jeremy Goode each connected from beyond the arc to help tie the score. Freshman guard Gary Wallace (Montclair, N.J. / Seton Hall Prep) answered with a three-pointer with 5:44 to go to give the Colonials back the lead, 60-57, and a three-pointer from Francisco with 2:36 remaining gave Robert Morris a 65-61 advantage.  

Wallace then hit a big jumper at the 1:26 mark of the second half to keep the Mount at bay, 67-63, and after a flurry in the final minute, Francisco sealed the win with a pair from the charity stripe with 10.3 seconds to play.

Francisco paced Robert Morris with 16 points, while Lee added 12 and Jackson 11. Lee recorded his seventh double-double of the year by adding 11 rebounds and also posted eight assists, while Francisco recorded three assists and four steals. Mount St. Mary's was led by Goode, who scored 15 points, while Cajou contributed 13 off the bench.

Robert Morris looks for its 11th straight victory Saturday when it welcomes Wagner to the Sewall Center for a 7:00 p.m. tilt for senior night.