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Moon Township, Pa. – Matt Mobley hit a pair of free throws with 2.2 seconds left and Central Connecticut State erased an 18-point deficit in the second half Saturday to earn a 74-73 win over the
Robert Morris University men's basketball team at the Charles L. Sewall Center.
The Colonials had their season-high seven-game winning streak snapped with the loss and slipped to 12-11 overall and 7-1 in the Northeast Conference, while the Blue Devils improved to 6-15 overall and 2-6 in league play.
CCSU closed the game on a 20-6 run in the final 4:01 to earn the victory behind Mobley, who scored all 12 of his points in the second half. He hit a pair of three-pointers to spark the run, then came down with a rebound off a missed jumper by senior guard
Karvel Anderson (Elkhart, Ind. / Glen Oaks Community College) with eight seconds to play.
Mobley went the length of the court and was fouled by Anderson driving to the basket, setting up his game-winning free throws.
Also hitting three-pointers during the final Central Connecticut State salvo was Malcolm McMillan and Khalen Cumberlander. The Blue Devils finished the game 9-for-20 from beyond the arc.
RMU struggled down the stretch at the free-throw line, hitting just six of its 10 opportunities in the final 2:33 of action. That, coupled with the three-pointer for CCSU, allowed the Blue Devils to climb out of their deficit and earn the victory.
Robert Morris took its biggest advantage early in the second half when sophomore forward
Aaron Tate (New Bern, N.C. / Dodge City Community College) converted a layup at the 19:14 mark to give the Colonials a 48-30 advantage.
The two teams traded baskets the majority of the second half, with Tate's layup with 4:01 to go giving RMU a 67-54 cushion. Mobley, however, ignited the final run with a three-pointer and shot 4-for-8 from the field in the second half, including 2-of-5 from deep.
Cumberlander led four Blue Devils in double figures with 18 points, while McMillan added 14 points and three assists. In addition to Mobley's 12 points, Faronte Drakeford also scored 12 points while grabbing eight rebounds.
Junior forward
Lucky Jones (Newark, N.J. / St. Anthony) registered his fourth double-double of the season and sixth of his career to pace the Colonials with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds and in the process joined the RMU 1,000-point club. Jones hit a layup at the 12:07 mark of the first half to become the 22nd player in school history to eclipse 1,000 career points.
Anderson added 18 points for Robert Morris, while Tate tied a career high with eight points and also grabbed six rebounds and registered two steals. Junior guard
David Appolon (Philadelphia, Pa. / Imhotep Charter) added a game-high five assists and also recorded four points and five boards.
A four-game homestand complete, RMU opens a three-game road trip Thursday, Feb. 6, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against LIU Brooklyn at the WRAC in Brooklyn, N.Y., in a tilt that will be televised live on ESPNU.
