Meyer on Morris Link

Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University Colonials spent Monday and Tuesday in Brooklyn waiting.

They practiced basketball.

And waited.

They watched film of basketball games.

And waited.

They looked at basketball games on television.

And waited.

And waited.

The Colonials will play at LIU Brooklyn in the Northeast Conference Tournament championship game, and if that sounds familiar it should.

These same two teams met in the same place last year in the NEC Tournament championship game.

That after all the days, weeks and months that followed - not to mention all the practices and games - these two teams would meet again in the same game seems rather amazing.

"Very much so,'' Toole said. "It is a different year, but the rosters are similar (to last season's). It's going to be another terrific game. We've just got to be a little bit better and a little bit stronger.''

Robert Morris, which won the NEC championship in 2009 and 2010, lost last season's championship game, 85-82, in overtime. Players who scored 154 of the 167 points in that game returned this season, so viewers on ESPN2 Wednesday night might think they're watching an Instant Classic.

"It's going to be a good battle,'' Jason Brickman, the Blackbirds' outstanding point guard, told the New York Post. "The tougher team's going to win.''

Each team showed its toughness and determination in its NEC semifinal game, the final step to this rematch.

LIU Brooklyn, which gained the NEC tournament's top seed by winning the regular-season championship for the second straight season, came from behind to oust a game Quinnipiac team, 78-75, last Sunday evening.

The Blackbirds trailed, 65-57, with seven minutes remaining. Three and a half minutes later, they were ahead for good at 71-69.

"Quinnipiac played really well,'' Toole said, "but that's the danger of LIU. They can go on an 11-point run so quickly.''

"They played like you expected a defending champion to play on their home court in the last eight minutes,'' Quinnipiac coach Tom Moore told the New York Post.

"I was confident that my team was going to close it out,'' Quinnipiac senior James Johnson told the New Haven Register. "(But) they played like champions.''

"Scoring has never been a problem for us,'' said LIU Brooklyn coach Jim Ferry , whose team leads the NEC in scoring offense at 81.6 points per game. "It was basically focusing on getting stops. In the end, we got some stops and we can score in a hurry. I thought our guys showed unbelievable character, played with fantastic poise. I'm proud (of) the fortitude they showed.''

Robert Morris showed some fortitude, too, in winning at Wagner Sunday.

The Colonials struggled with their offense and fouls in the first half and fell behind by eight points midway through that half. However, they quickly took a lead in the second half and maintained it through the half en route to a 71-64 victory.

''If you're going to beat them in the conference tournament, you have to be playing at your very best,'' said Seahawk coach Dan Hurley, whose team has been eliminated by Robert Morris in each of his two seasons at Wagner.

Ferry is well aware of what is required to beat Robert Morris.

"It's going to take exactly what we had to do (Sunday),'' Ferry said. ""They're going to the conference championship game for the fourth time in a row. They've been there. They know what it's about, and it doesn't surprise me that they're there again. I think it's going to be a very difficult challenge for us. We need to play with great poise. We need to trust each other. We need to play better than we did at Robert Morris. They outplayed us at their place.''

That was Jan. 26 when the Colonials, playing in front of a jacked up crowd at the Sewall Center, beat the Blackbirds, 75-66.

"I thought Robert Morris really played at a high level,'' Ferry said after that game. "I thought they set the tone for this basketball game. They controlled the tempo. In last year's championship game, they controlled the tempo in the first half and then we kind of got it going and we established the second half.''

Toole and his team will try in Wednesday night's game to replicate what they did against the Blackbirds at the Sewall Center.

"Make them take a tough shot - and then go get the rebound, which is just as difficult,'' Toole said.

In that January game, each team's stars did what they usually do. LIU Brooklyn forward Julian Boyd, the NEC Player of the Year, had 25 points and 12 rebounds. RMU point guard Velton Jones, a first team all-NEC pick, scored 23 points and dished seven assists.

What helped the Colonials that night was their defense against the three. LIU Brooklyn was just 3-of-16 from deep, including an uncharacteristic 0-for-7 night by Michael Culpo. Over his next eight games, Culpo was 22-for-46 (48 percent) from beyond the arc, demonstrating he's certainly capable of having big games.

It will help the Colonials Wednesday night if Lijah Thompson continues his recent good work on the glass and if freshman Lucky Jones continues to work his magic all over the court.

Thompson, who had 15 points and nine rebounds in last season's championship game, had only two rebounds in the Colonials' loss at Quinnipiac in the regular-season finale.

Afterward, Toole talked with the junior who's been hampered for much of this season with a sore foot.

"I told him his effort needed to improve (in order) to help our team,'' Toole said. "His foot is still injured, and I think he's thinking about his foot. He's going to have surgery on it after the season, so he might as well go for broke. In the last two games, he's been much energetic.''

Against Monmouth in the NEC quarterfinals, Thompson had seven points and five rebounds in 22 minutes. Against Wagner, he scored five points and had nine rebounds (eight on the offensive glass) in 19 minutes.

Lucky Jones, voted to the NEC All-Rookie Team, has been a force throughout the season on the glass and on the floor. Against Wagner, he scored nine points and had nine rebounds and made several important plays down the stretch.

"I don't know how to explain (what he does),'' Toole said. "I'm just glad he's on our team. He definitely has a knack for being involved in the action. (Against Wagner), he was right in the middle of it.''

Something else to keep in mind Wednesday night - LIU Brooklyn has won 26 consecutive games at home. That's the second-longest home court winning streak in the country, behind only powerhouse Kentucky at 52 in a row.

"They're a very tough team to beat in this gym - as they've proven in the last 26 games here,'' Moore said.

LIU Brooklyn hasn't lost at home since falling to Iona 88-82 Dec. 8, 2010.

The last Northeast Conference team to win at LIU Brooklyn?

That would be your Robert Morris Colonials - 70-69 Dec. 2, 1010.

FORMER COLONIALS IN A DANCE: Two former Robert Morris players will compete in the Division II tournament this weekend.

Brad Piehl, a member of the 2010 Colonials, is a junior at Findlay University in Ohio. Piehl averages 10.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game for the Oilers (23-6).

Deion Turman, a member of last season's Colonial team, is a sophomore at Wingate (20-11). Turman averages 5.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game for the Bulldogs (20-11).