Moon Township, Pa. - Redshirt sophomore forward Russell Johnson's (Chester, Pa. / Chester) layup off a feed from redshirt sophomore guard Velton Jones (Philadelphia, Pa. / Northeast Catholic) with 1:48 to play snapped a 52-52 tie and helped propel the Robert Morris University men's basketball team to its third straight win Saturday night with a 60-57 victory over Monmouth at the Charles L. Sewall Center.
RMU improved to 8-9 overall on the 2010-11 campaign, including 4-2 in the Northeast Conference, while the Hawks dipped to 5-13 overall and 1-5 in league play.
In a game that featured six ties and 10 lead changes, the Colonials sealed the win at the free-throw line, converting each of their six opportunities in the final 32 seconds.
Johnson had given the Colonials a two-point edge, 54-52, with his layup, and Ed Waite turned the ball over on Monmouth's next possession. Jones missed a jumper with 56 seconds to go, and on the ensuing possession for the Hawks Nick DelTufo was whistled for an offensive foul with 37 seconds remaining, giving the ball back to RMU.
Sophomore guard Karon Abraham (Paterson, N.J. / Harp Academy) was immediately fouled, and he hit both of his attempts to push Robert Morris to a 56-52 lead.
Johnson and senior guard Gary Wallace (Montclair, N.J. / Seton Hall Prep) also converted from the stripe in the final 19 seconds of action, while a layup from Marcus Ware and a three-pointer at the buzzer by Mike Myers Keitt accounted for the final score.
Monmouth went into halftime with a 31-25 advantage thanks to the hot shooting of Josh Steele, who came off the bench to score 15 of his game-high 21 points in the first half. Steele buried four of his five shots from the field before intermission, each of which came from beyond the arc.
RMU used a 15-3 run in the first eight and-a-half minutes after the break to take their biggest lead of the contest, 40-34. Seven different Colonials scored during the surge, including a pair of three-pointers from Abraham.
The Hawks charged right back to take a 45-43 lead thanks to an 11-3 spurt as four different players from Monmouth scored, including a three-pointer from DelTufo and a trio of free throws by Ware.
Freshman guard Anthony Myers (Washington, D.C. / Charis Prep) would push the Colonials back in front, 46-45, with a layup, but a free throw from Waite and a pair from the stripe by Steele with 4:29 to go would help Monmouth surge back in the lead, 48-46.
RMU answered when redshirt freshman guard Coron Williams (Midlothian, Va. / Christchurch School) connected from beyond the arc to again give the Colonials the edge, 49-48, but James Hett answered the three-pointer by Williams with one of his own to push the Hawks in front, 51-49.
Monmouth held the two-point advantage for over a minute before freshman forward Yann Charles (Longueuil, Quebec / Champlain St. Albert) converted a conventional three-point play to give Robert Morris a 52-51 advantage.
Waite was fouled on Monmouth's next possession and hit just one of his two attempts at the charity stripe to tie the game for the final time before Johnson came through with his layup.
Abraham led the Colonials with 18 points and also added four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Jones contributed 10 points, two assists and two steals. Abraham connected on five three-pointers, the fourth time in the last five games he has connected for at least five trifectas.
Steele finished 6-for-11 shooting from the floor for the Hawks, including 4-for-8 from long range, and 5-for-5 at the free-throw line for his 21 points, while Ware finished with 10 points, five rebounds and three assists.
Robert Morris will return to the court Thursday, Jan. 20, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Long Island at the Sewall Center to continue a four-game homestand.
