Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team closed out a three-game homestand Tuesday night at the Charles L. Sewall Center with a 64-54 victory over Hampton.
The Colonials, who posted a 2-1 record during the homestand, improved to 9-3 overall on the 2011-12 campaign, while the Pirates slipped to 4-8.
RMU led from the 15:51 mark of the first half through the rest of the contest after redshirt junior forward Russell Johnson (Chester, Pa. / Chester) hit a three-pointer to give the Colonials a 6-5 lead.
Johnson's three-pointer ignited a 14-2 surge that allowed Robert Morris to take its first double-digit lead of the contest, 17-7, with 12:03 remaining before halftime. Freshman forward Lucky Jones (Newark, N.J. / St. Anthony) scored three points at the free-throw line, while sophomore guard Anthony Myers (Washington, D.C. / Charis Prep) connected from long range.
Hampton quickly scored the game's next eight points to trim its deficit to 17-15 after a Danny Agbelese dunk, but a three-pointer from redshirt junior guard Velton Jones (Philadelphia, Pa. / Northeast Catholic) and another pair at the chalk from Lucky Jones gave the Colonials a 22-17 edge.
RMU eventually entered the break with a 31-28 advantage and in the first six and-a-half minutes after intermission used a 14-7 spurt to take a 45-35 lead.
Redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams (Midlothian, Va. / Christchurch School) scored seven points during the run, while Myers buried one of the nine three-pointers on the game for Robert Morris.
The Pirates twice trimmed the lead for the Colonials down to four with just under 10 minutes to play, but back-to-back three-pointers from Lucky Jones and Williams again gave RMU a double-digit lead, 55-45, with 8:05 to go.
Hampton wouldn't get any closer the rest of the game.
For the eighth time in 12 contests this season a total of four Colonials reached double figures in scoring, led by Velton Jones, who finished with a game-high 18 points.
Lucky Jones added a career-high 16 points to go along with nine rebounds and a pair of assists, sophomore forward Mike McFadden (Newark, N.J. / Technology) supplied 11 points and Williams contributed 10.
David Bruce led Hampton with 16 points and 13 rebounds, recording a double-double in the first half thanks to 11 points and 10 boards in the first 20 minutes of action. He also blocked three shots.
Darrion Pellum added 11 points for the Pirates.
A three-game homestand complete, Robert Morris now takes to the road for five straight, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Youngstown State Thursday, Dec. 22, in Youngstown, Ohio.
Notes: The game was the first meeting all-time between the two programs ... Hampton outrebounded RMU, 35-33, and held edges in points in the paint (28-20), points off turnovers (17-10) and fast break points (13-4) ... Velton Jones stretched his streak of consecutive double-figure scoring games dating back to last season to 18, tied with former Colonial Gene Nabors (1995-2000) for the third longest streak in school history ... Senior forward Lawrence Bridges (Detroit, Mich. / Columbus State Community College) established a career high with eight rebounds ... RMU is 6-2 (.750) this season when at least four Colonials reach double figures in scoring ... Robert Morris is 3-0 when both Velton and Lucky Jones score at least 10 points in a game.
