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Pittsburgh, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University men's basketball team snapped a five-game losing streak Saturday afternoon with a 67-63 victory over Duquesne at the A.J. Palumbo Center.
Thanks to the win the Colonials, who also broke a six-game slide in road games, improved to 4-7 on the 2013-14 campaign, while the Dukes fell to 3-5.
Derrick Colter opened scoring in the contest with a three-pointer to give Duquesne an early edge, but RMU got off to a hot start offensively, hitting its first five shots from the field in building a 14-7 advantage. Freshman forward
Jeremiah Worthem (Philadelphia, Pa. / Math, Civics & Sciences) was the stalwart, scoring seven early points.
Senior guard
Karvel Anderson (Elkhart, Ind. / Glen Oaks Community College) gave the Colonials their first double-digit lead, 17-7, with a three-pointer at the 14:27 mark of the first half, and the lead eventually swelled to 24-10 after senior guard
Anthony Myers-Pate (Washington, D.C. / Charis Prep) scored on a layup with 9:18 left before intermission.
By switching to a zone defense, the Dukes cooled the RMU offense and and reeled off a 16-6 run to close to within 30-26 with just 1:36 to play before halftime.
Anderson helped stem the tide by hitting the front end of a pair of attempts at the free-throw line, but a three-pointer from Tra'Vaughn White at the buzzer helped the Duquesne close to within 31-29 at the break.
In the second half, a jumper from Worthem and a three-pointer by Myers-Pate helped keep the Colonials in front, 36-31, in the opening minutes, but Duquesne was able to eclipse RMU's 14-point advantage in the first half when Jerry Jones connected from deep to knot the score, 39-39, with 13:38 remaining.
Despite the three-pointer from Jones, RMU answered right back, as junior forward
Lucky Jones (Newark, N.J. / St. Anthony) connected for his own three-pointer to give the Colonials the lead right back, 42-39.
Freshman guard
Kavon Stewart (Paterson, N.J. / Hudson Catholic) would convert in the lane on RMU's next possession to give Robert Morris a 44-39 lead before junior guard
Charles Oliver (Scotch Plains, N.J. / Lakeland Community College) provided a huge spark off the bench.
Oliver scored 10 straight points over a three-minute stretch, including a pair of three-pointers, and senior forward
Mike McFadden (Newark, N.J. / Technology) added a layup as part of a 12-5 surge that opened up a 56-48 cushion for RMU.
Anderson then came through for the Colonials, as he buried a pair of three-pointers, the second of which pushed the lead back to double digits, 64-54, with 3:24 to go.
Duquesne had one last charge, closing to 64-61 after a layup from Dominique McKoy with 54 seconds left. The Colonials struggled at the free-throw line in the second half, three times missing the front end of a one-on-one. In a one-possession contest with less than 30 seconds seconds to go, Myers-Pate came through with a layup on a feed from Anderson to help seal the win.
Anderson finished with game-high honors in scoring with 17 points and also added four rebounds and four assists, while Worthem contributed 15 points, four rebounds and a steal. Also finishing in double figures for Robert Morris were Myers-Pate and Oliver, who each scored 10 points.
McKoy paced the Dukes with 16 points and also grabbed 10 rebounds, while Ovie Soko chipped in 14 points and seven boards and Jerry Jones added 10 points off the bench.
RMU returns home to the Charles L. Sewall Center for its next contest, welcoming Campbell for a 7:00 p.m. tip Wednesday, Dec. 18.Â
