Boxscore
Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team shot 65.6 percent (21-for-32) from the field in the second half en route to its fourth straight victory Saturday night with a 91-69 victory over Duquesne at the Charles L. Sewall Center.
The Colonials improved to 7-4 overall on the 2012-13 campaign with the win, while the Dukes slipped to 6-5.
Nursing a 31-30 advantage entering the second half, junior forward Mike McFadden (Newark, N.J. / Technology) sandwiched a three-pointer from redshirt senior guard Velton Jones (Philadelphia, Pa. / Northeast Catholic) with a layup and a dunk to push RMU's advantage to 38-30 with 18:30 to play.
Duquesne called timeout, but the Colonials kept up their offensive prowess, as a pair of three-pointers from redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams (Midlothian, Va. / Christchurch School), another from Jones and one from sophomore forward Lucky Jones (Newark, N.J. / St. Anthony) capped a 21-5 run to open the second half and give Robert Morris a 52-35 lead.
On three occasions the Dukes would trim their deficit to 14, but RMU kept extending its advantage, eventually taking an 84-59 cushion with 4:19 to play thanks to a pair of free throws from redshirt senior forward Russell Johnson (Chester, Pa. / Chester).
Velton Jones scored 17 of his game-high 22 points in the second half for the Colonials, converting on six of his 10 shots from the floor, including 4-of-6 from deep, and producing a perfect 6-for-6 performance at the free-throw line.
He was one of players in double figures for RMU, as Williams contributed a season-high 16 points, McFadden finished with 12 points on a 6-for-7 shooting night and Lucky Jones added 10 points and five rebounds.
Duquesne opened the contest by hitting seven of its first nine shots from the field in building an 18-13 advantage at the 12:10 mark of the first half. Jerry Jones scored five points and Andre Marhold added four in the opening salvo for the Dukes.
Martins Abele would convert a pair of free throws with 3:48 to play before halftime that would give Duquesne a 28-24 lead, but the Colonials closed the first half on a 7-2 spurt to take a 31-30 advantage at intermission.
Johnson started the run with a three-pointer, and four straight points from Lucky Jones helped give the Colonials the lead at the break.
Robert Morris finished the game forcing Duquesne into 25 turnovers, turning those into 19 steals and 31 points. Johnson and sophomore guard David Appolon (Philadelphia, Pa. / Imhotep Charter) each finished with four thefts as seven different Colonials produced at least a pair of steals.
Duquesne won the rebounding battle, 42-27, with Marhold pulling down a game-high 11 for the Dukes. He also added nine points. Derrick Colter led Duquesne with 16 points, while Sean Johnson added 12 and Jones scored 11 off the bench.
Robert Morris closes out its 2012-13 non-conference schedule with a pair of road games, first with an 8:00 p.m. tip against Louisiana-Lafayette Tuesday, Dec. 18. The Colonials will conclude the road swing with an 8:00 p.m. tip at Arkansas Thursday, Dec. 20.
