Boone, N.C. - Appalachian State scored its final eight points from the free-throw line and 21 of its 39 points in the second half came courtesy of the charity stripe as the Mountaineers held off a late charge by the Robert Morris University men's basketball team Saturday night for a 71-66 victory.
RMU dipped to 4-6 overall on the 2010-11 season with the setback, while ASU improved to 4-4.
Trailing by seven at halftime, 32-25, the Colonials opened the second half on a 9-2 run to pull within one, 35-34, with 16:27 to play. \
Sophomore forwards Russell Johnson (Chester, Pa. / Chester) and Lijah Thompson (Philadelphia, Pa. / Monsignor Bonner) each scored four points to bolster RMU, including back-to-back dunks by Thompson.
Appalachian State responded by scoring the next 11 points to take its first double-digit lead of the game, 46-34. Donald Sims went 5-for-5 from the free-throw line during the surge, while Andre Williamson converted a three-point play.
Freshman forward Yann Charles (Longueuil, Quebec) scored a layup off a feed from redshirt sophomore guard Velton Jones (Philadelphia, Pa. / Northeast Catholic) and freshman guard Anthony Myers (Washington, D.C. / Charis Prep) buried a three-pointer to trim RMU's deficit to 46-39, but a 13-4 spurt allowed the Mountaineers to take their biggest advantage of the contest, 59-43, with 6:23 to go.
Robert Morris mounted one last charge, outscoring Appalachian State, 26-12, in the final 6:16 of action but never getting over the hump.
Johnson hit a pair of three-pointers while Jones scored five points during a 14-5 run that pulled the Colonials within two possessions, 66-62, with under a minute to play.
Omar Carter hit a pair at the free-throw line to give the Mountaineers a 68-62 edge, but back-to-back layups by Jones sandwiched around a 1-for-2 performance by Carter at the free-throw line made it a one-possession game, 69-66, with 33 seconds left.
Williamson was then fouled and sent to the line, but he made just one of his two attempts to give ASU a 70-66 advantage.
RMU tried to pull closer, but sophomore Coron Williams (Midlothian, Va. / Christchurch School) missed a three-pointer with 21 seconds left, and Carter helped seal the win by going 1-for-2 at the charity stripe with 18 seconds to play.
Johnson took home game-high honors in scoring with a career-high 26 points, converting 11 of his 18 shots from the field, including a 4-for-8 performance from beyond the arc. He also grabbed a team-high six rebounds.
Jones added 15 points, four rebounds, five assists and two steals for the Colonials.
Sims led Appalachian State with 23 points but finished with more free throws (12) than Robert Morris had attempts (11) at the charity stripe. Sims was 5-for-11 from the field and 12-for-14 at the line.
Carter added 14 points while Williamson and Jeremi Booth each scored 10 points for the Mountaineers.
Robert Morris continues its six-game road trip Wednesday, Dec. 22, with an 8:30 p.m. tip at Arizona.
Notes: RMU slipped to 0-4 all-time against Appalachian State ... The Colonials shot 48.2 percent (27-for-56) from the field, while the Mountaineers converted 20 of their 49 attempts (40.8 percent) from the floor ... Robert Morris held its fifth straight opponent to a shooting percentage of 25 percent or less from beyond the arc, as ASU finished 3-for-16 (18.8 percent) from long range ... Appalachian State held a 39-29 edge on the glass ... The Mountaineers posted 12 offensive rebounds compared to five for RMU, which allowed ASU to hold a 17-5 advantage in second-chance points ... RMU outscored Appalachian State, 30-22, in points in the paint and 18-16 in points off turnovers ... The 30 points in the paint against ASU are a season-high, but Robert Morris dropped just its sixth game out of the last 46 dating back to the start of the 2007-08 campaign when reaching the plateau in points down low ... A trio of Colonials fouled out in the contest, with Johnson, sophomore guard Karon Abraham (Paterson, N.J. / Harp Academy) and senior guard Gary Wallace (Montclair, N.J. / Seton Hall Prep) each picking up five fouls ... Wallace, Abraham and Johnson each fouled out in the final three minutes ... Robert Morris tied a season high by being whistled for 28 fouls, while Appalachian State finished with 13 infractions ... Abraham finished with eight points, while Myers dished out a game-high six assists.
