Top Story - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team returns home to the Charles L. Sewall Center and opens a two-game homestand Thursday night when it welcomes Quinnipiac for a 7:00 p.m. tilt in a Northeast Conference game. The Colonials are coming off a 68-53 setback @ Central Connecticut State (1/7/12), RMU's first conference loss of the season, to wrap up a five-game road swing. Robert Morris posted a record of 3-2 (.600) during its road swing, with redshirt junior guard Velton Jones leading the Colonials during the trip with averages of 11.6 points, 4.6 assists and 2.2 steals per game. Against the Blue Devils, redshirt junior forward Russell Johnson paced RMU with 13 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while freshman forward Lucky Jones notched his first career double-double with 11 points and 11 caroms. Robert Morris closes out its homestand Saturday, Jan. 14, with a 7:00 p.m. contest against Sacred Heart after hosting the Bobcats Thursday night.

Quick Stat of the Night - Robert Morris is coming off its first Northeast Conference loss of the 2011-12 campaign with a 68-53 setback @ Central Connecticut State (1/7/12), but one thing the Colonials have done extremely well this season is bouncing back from a defeat. RMU enters Thursday's tilt against Quinnipiac with a record of 4-0 so far this season when playing after a loss, and RMU has also won five straight dating back to last season when playing after a defeat. It has been almost a full calendar year since Robert Morris has suffered back-to-back losses, and it came against RMU's opponents this week. The Colonials suffered a 69-61 loss @ Quinnipiac (1/27/11), followed by an 84-75 defeat @ Sacred Heart (1/29/11). Since losing those two games, Robert Morris owns a record of 21-7 (.750).

Thursday's Opponent and The All-Time Series - Robert Morris and Quinnipiac will tip for the 26th time Thursday, with the Colonials holding a 16-9 (.640) edge in the all-time series. The two programs met twice during the 2010-11 campaign, with the Bobcats posting a 69-61 win over RMU at the TD Bank Sports Center (1/27/11) in Hamden, Conn., in the regular season before Robert Morris earned a 64-62 win @ Quinnipiac (3/6/11) in the semifinals of the 2011 Northeast Conference Tournament. In the pair of games, redshirt junior guard Velton Jones averaged 15.5 points and 5.5 assists, including a jumper with 4.3 seconds to play that helped lift RMU to the win in the semifinals of the NEC Tournament.

Defense Wins Championships - At the heart of the resurgence of the RMU basketball program over the last five seasons has been defense. Even with second-year head coach Andrew Toole on the sidelines, RMU's attention to detail on defense hasn't changed. Despite a 68-53 setback @ Central Connecticut State (1/7/12) to close out a five-game road trip, Robert Morris still owns a record of 77-16 (.828) since the beginning of the 2007-08 campaign when holding its opponent to less than 70 points.

More Defense For Your Pleasure - Robert Morris is led by second-year head coach Andrew Toole, who will coach his 50th game Thursday against Quinnipiac and owns an overall record of 30-19 (.612). In his 49 games on the sidelines, RMU has held its opponents to 70 points or less in 36 contests, an amazing 73.5 percent of the time. The Colonials are 26-10 (.722) in those games, and overall since the beginning of the 2007-08 season, when Toole joined former head coach Mike Rice's staff, Robert Morris has held 60.8 percent (93-of-153) of its opponents under the 70-point plateau.

Luck of the Draw - Freshman forward Lucky Jones has been a consistent presence on the glass for Robert Morris in the early portion of the 2011-12 campaign, as he enters Thursday's game against Quinnipiac leading RMU in rebounds with 105, an average of 6.2 per contest. Jones is coming off his first career double-double with 11 points and 11 caroms @ Central Connecticut State (1/7/12) and in four games against league foes so far this season is averaging a league-best 4.0 offensive rebounds per game. He is also proving to be an adept free-throw shooter, as he enters Thursday's game with a conversion rate of 82.8 percent (48-for-58) at the chalk, which ranks third in the Northeast Conference.

Keep It On the Down Low - Robert Morris returned to Northeast Conference play by splitting a pair of games in New England last week, and despite a 68-53 setback @ Central Connecticut State (1/7/12), the Colonials continue to hold serve on defense. Since the beginning of December, RMU owns a record of 8-3 (.727) and has not allowed any of their last 11 opponents to reach the 70-point plateau. RMU has yielded an average of 59.4 points per contest over that span, and the streak of 11 straight games of not allowing at least 70 points in a game is a new school record. The 2008-09 Colonials turned the trick in eight straight games, including their final five regular-season contests and three victories in the 2009 NEC Tournament en route to their sixth league championship.