Game Notes (PDF)

GAME #14
Robert Morris (5-8) @ No. 7 Oklahoma State (11-1)
Monday, Dec. 30, 2013 • 7:00 p.m.
Gallagher-Iba Arena (13,611) • Stillwater, Okla.
 
TV: ESPNU with Clay Matvick (play-by-play) & Bryndon Manzer (color)
Radio: 1320 WJAS AM with Chris Shovlin (play-by-play) & Jim Duzyk (color)
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Top Story - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team continues a five-game road trip Monday when it travels to Stillwater, Okla., for a 7:00 p.m. EST tilt against Oklahoma State that will be televised live on ESPNU. The Colonials opened their five-game trek with a 100-94 setback @ Oakland (12/22/13) as junior forward Lucky Jones established a new career high in points for the third time in five games with a game-high 27 points. Jones was one of five players to reach double figures in scoring for RMU against the Grizzlies, as junior guard Charles Oliver contributed a career-high 18 points off the bench, while freshman forward Jeremiah Worthem added 12 points. RMU will close out its non-conference slate with a road game @ Alabama (1/4/14) after taking on the Cowboys Monday night as part of its five-game road swing and will also open Northeast Conference play with contests @ Sacred Heart (1/9/14) and @ Bryant (1/11/14) as part of its road trip.     

 

Quick Stat of the Night - Robert Morris has built the foundation of its success over the last seven years on defense, but so far this season, the Colonials are proving to have the ability to put the ball in the basket. RMU enters Monday's game @ Oklahoma State leading the Northeast Conference in scoring offense at 74.6 points per game. Robert Morris scored 94 points in its 100-94 loss @ Oakland (12/22/13) to open a five-game road trip, the most points the Colonials have scored under fourth-year head coach Andrew Toole as well as its most points in a game since a 107-76 victory over Alcorn State (11/21/09) at SEFCU Arena in Albany, N.Y., as part of the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. Robert Morris also enters Monday's game against the Cowboys tops in the NEC in three-point field goal percentage (.408), assists (14.31 per game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.22).
 
Monday's Opponent and The All-Time Series - Robert Morris and Oklahoma State meet for just the second time Monday, with the Cowboys having posted a 75-67 victory over the Colonials in the first meeting between the two programs Dec. 29, 1984. OSU's win over RMU was part of the Golden Triangle Classic at the Fitzgerald Field House on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh. In that contest former Colonial forward Tom Underman (1981-85) led Robert Morris with 19 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the floor and a perfect 7-for-7 performance at the free-throw line. Also reaching double figures for the Colonials in the only other meeting against Oklahoma State was former center Garth Wurstle (1981-86), who recorded a double-double thanks to 17 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Get Lucky - Junior forward Lucky Jones is in the midst of his best offensive stretch in a Robert Morris uniform, as the junior forward is coming off a career-high 27 points @ Oakland (12/22/13). RMU's active leader in both points (888) and rebounds (488), Jones enters Monday's game @ Oklahoma State having averaged 19.8 points and 6.2 rebounds in five games during the month of December while shooting 57.9 percent (33-for-57) from the field, including 57.1 percent (16-for-28) from beyond the arc, and 85 percent (17-for-20) at the free-throw line. Jones is the only player in the Northeast Conference to rank in the top 10 in each shooting category, as he ranks second in three-point field goal percentage (.435), third in the league in free-throw percentage (.833) and seventh in three-point field goal percentage (.484). Jones is just 12 rebounds shy of becoming the 17th member of Robert Morris 500-rebound club.
 
Chuck It Out - Junior guard Charles Oliver provided Robert Morris with a boost off the bench in its first game of a five-game road trip @ Oakland (12/22/13), scoring a career-high 18 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc, and a 4-for-6 performance at the free-throw line. Over his last three games, Oliver is averaging 11.0 points while shooting 73.3 percent (11-for-15) from the floor, including 70 percent (7-for-10) from deep and enters Monday's game @ Oklahoma State tied for ninth in the Northeast Conference in three-point field goal percentage at 39.5% (17-for-43). For Oliver, if you subtract a four-game stretch from @ Buffalo (11/26/13) through Toledo (12/7/13) in which he went 0-for-11 from the field, inlcuding 0-for-8 from beyond the arc, he is averaging 9.0 points per contest while shooting 51.9 percent (28-for-54) from the field, including 48.6 percent (17-for-35) from deep.
 
Selective Stewart - Kavon Stewart has settled into the rotation after missing six games earlier this season and is coming off the most complete performance of his rookie campaign @ Oakland (12/22/13), establishing career highs in both points (11) and assists (9). Over his last six games, the freshman guard is averaging 6.3 points, 3.8 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 54.5 percent (12-for-22) from the floor. Stewart posted a career-high four steals in RMU's 72-61 victory over Campbell (12/18/13) and in seven games on the year already ranks third for the Colonials in thefts with 10 (1.43 per game).     
 
Double Nickel On A Dime - Senior guard Anthony Myers-Pate dished out a season-high nine assists in RMU's 88-81 victory over UT Arlington (11/21/13) to go along with 10 points, and thanks to his performance cracked the top 10 all-time in program history for career dimes. Myers-Pate enters Monday's tilt @ Oklahoma State with 379 career assists, a total that is just seven dimes shy of moving into ninth place all-time at Robert Morris. Through 13 games of the 2013-14 season, Myers owns 64 assists against 22 turnovers to rank second in the Northeast Conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.91) while ranking fourth in the circuit in assists per game (4.92). In 114 career contests, Myers-Pate has proven to be a steady ball handler, posting a career 1.95 assist-to-turnover ratio.
 
International Waters - Robert Morris is coming off a record-breaking season in shooting from beyond the arc in 2012-13, and the Colonials have picked up right where they left off from a season ago. Through the first 13 games of the 2013-14 season, RMU has converted 109 of its 267 attempts (40.8 percent) from beyond the arc. Robert Morris enters Monday's game @ Oklahoma State leading the Northeast Conference in three-point field goal percentage while ranking second in three-point field goals made per game (8.38). Robert Morris has drilled at least 10 three-pointers in six of its first 13 games of the 2013-14 campaign, posting a 4-2 (.667) record in those contests. RMU is 27-5 (.844) in four seasons under head coach Andrew Toole when converting at least 10 three-pointers in a game.
 
A Streak Snapped - Senior guard Karvel Anderson had his streak of 13 consecutive games scoring in double figures snapped by finishing with nine points @ Oakland (12/22/13). Anderson enters Monday's game @ Oklahoma State leading the Northeast Conference in three-point field goal percentage (.454) while ranking second in three-point field goals made per game (3.38).
 
HISTORICAL NOTE
Half A Century - The 2013-14 campaign marks the 51st season of intercollegiate basketball at Robert Morris. The Colonials compiled an overall record of 287-58 (.832) in 13 years as a junior college program from 1963 to 1976 and since moving to Division I with the 1976-77 campaign has posted an overall record of 534-560 (.488). Combined, Robert Morris posted a record of 816-610 (.572) over its first 50 years as an intercollegiate program from 1963 to 2013. In honor of 50 years of intercollegiate basketball, Robert Morris will enshrine the 1981-82 Colonials, the first squad to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, into the RMU Athletic Hall of Fame in January of 2014.