Boxscore
Lafayette, La. - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team extended its winning streak to five with a 66-61 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette Tuesday night at the Cajundome.
The Colonials improved to 8-4 overall with the win, while the Ragin' Cajuns dipped to 4-8.
Holding a 40-34 edge entering the second half, ULL used an 11-5 run to open the stanza to knot the game, 45-45, with 15:23 remaining. Redshirt senior forward Russell Johnson (Chester, Pa. / Chester) helped stem the tide with a layup on feed from sophomore guard David Appolon (Philadelphia, Pa. / Imhotep Charter) to give RMU a 47-45 edge.
The Ragin' Cajuns responded, scoring seven straight points to open up their biggest lead of the contest, 52-47, with 12:49 to go. Bryant Mbamalu started the spurt with a three-pointer, while Elfrid Payton converted a pair of layups for Louisiana-Lafayette.
Robert Morris followed by switching its defense to a 2-3 zone, and it helped slow down the Ragin' Cajuns. ULL went over six minutes without converting a field goal.
In the meantime, the Colonials continued to convert from deep, as three-pointers from redshirt junior guard Coron Williams (Midlothian, Va. / Christchurch School), Johnson and junior guard Karvel Anderson (Elkhart, Ind. / Glen Oaks Community College) helped Robert Morris reclaim the lead, 56-52, with 8:02 to play.
Payton finally helped ULL snap its field-goal drought with a slashing layup at the 6:35 mark of the second half to pull the Ragin' Cajuns within 56-54, but Louisiana-Lafayette was never able to grab the lead back.
Williams would give RMU a 62-56 edge with 2:25 to go with his fifth trifecta of the contest, but Mbamalu answered with his own three-pointer to make it 62-59 with just under two minutes left.
A pair of failed offensive opportunities by both clubs led Robert Morris to gain possession with 1:15 to play, and out of a timeout Anderson buried a three-pointer with just 48 seconds on the second-half clock to give RMU a 65-56 edge.
Williams would hit one of his two free-throw attempts with 32 seconds to play to give the Colonials a 66-59 advantage before Payton closed the scoring with a dunk as time expired.
In the opening 20 minutes, four ties and four lead changes highlighted an offensive half, with RMU taking a 40-34 advantage at intermission on the strength of a 7-for-14 (50 percent) showing from international waters. Overall, the Colonials finished 13-for-27 (48.1 percent) from long range.
Anderson paced Robert Morris with 17 points, while Williams added 16. The duo combined to convert 12 of their 23 shots from the floor, including an 8-for-14 performance from beyond the arc. Williams finished 5-for-9 on the night from deep.
Redshirt senior guard Velton Jones (Philadelphia, Pa. / Northeast Catholic) added 11 points, while junior forward Mike McFadden (Newark, N.J. / Technology), despite being saddled with foul trouble most of the game, added eight points and three rebounds.
Off the bench, Johnson scored six points and grabbed eight boards, while junior forward Vaughn Morgan (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Southwestern Christian College) added two points, six caroms, two blocks and four steals.
Louisiana-Lafayette was led by Mbamalu, who scored a game-high 21 points. Payton chipped in 19 points and seven rebounds, while Shawn Long finished with 12 points and 13 boards for ULL.
Robert Morris concludes its 2012-13 non-conference slate and two-game road swing through the deep south with an 8:00 p.m. tip Thursday, Dec. 20, at Arkansas.
