Game Notes (PDF)

GAME #34
#4 Mount St. Mary's (15-16) vs. #1 Robert Morris (21-12)
2014 Northeast Conference Tournament Final
Tuesday, March 11, 2014 • 7:00 p.m.
Charles L. Sewall Center (3,056) • Moon Township, Pa.
 
TV: ESPN2
TV Talent: Mike Crispino (play-by-play) & Miles Simon (color)
Radio: 970 ESPN AM
Radio Talent: Chris Shovlin (play-by-play) & Jim Elias (color)
Follow RMU Men's Basketball on Twitter and Instagram: RMUMBasketball
 
Top Story - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team continues its quest for a league-record eighth Northeast Conference Tournament title Tuesday when it hosts No. 4 seed Mount St. Mary's in the championship game of the 2014 NEC Tournament in a 7:00 p.m. tip at the Charles L. Sewall Center. The Colonials earned a 60-57 win over No. 6 seed Saint Francis U. (3/8/14) in the semifinals to advance to their fifth NEC Tournament final in the last six years. Senior guard Karvel Anderson scored all of his game-high 21 points in the second half in the victory over the Red Flash, the third time in 2013-14 he's scored at least 20 points after halftime. Junior forward Lucky Jones chipped in 18 points, seven rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals against SFU and is averaging 18.5 points and 7.0 rebounds in two games of the 2014 NEC Tournament. Tuesday's championship game in the NEC Tournament marks the sixth time in program history RMU has hosted the title tilt and its first since a 48-46 win over Mount St. Mary's (3/11/09). The Colonials are 5-0 in NEC Tournament championship games at home.      

 
 
Quick Stat of the Night - Robert Morris enters the 2014 Northeast Conference Tournament final Tuesday against Mount St. Mary's in the midst of its best stretch defensively on the 2013-14 campaign. The Colonials have held each of their last 10 opponents to 70 points or less, posting a record of 9-1 (.900) over that span while yielding an average of 59.4 points per contest. In the last 10 games, RMU has held its opponents to a shooting percentage of 39.7 percent (217-for-547), including 28.1 percent (62-for-221) from beyond the arc. In two victories in the 2014 NEC Tournament to reach the championship game, the Colonials have allowed an average of 55.0 points per contest on 35.9 percent (37-for-103) shooting, including 25 percent (11-for-44) from deep. 
 
NEC Tournament Quick Hits - The Colonials own a record of 25-7 (.781) in tournament games played at home, including a record of 20-6 (.769) in games at the Charles L. Sewall Center, 6-8 (.429) in road games and a mark of 5-7 (.417) in neutral site contests ... RMU has appeared in the NEC Tournament in each of the past 11 seasons, advancing to the semifinals nine times over that span and the NEC Championship game five times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014) ... RMU has hosted the NEC Tournament championship game five times (1983, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2009) prior to Tuesday's contest with Mount St. Mary's, with the Colonials a perfect 5-0 in those games ... RMU is 2-2 in NEC Tournament championship games on the road, with victories @ LIU Brooklyn (1982) and Quinnipiac (2010) and a pair of losses @ LIU Brooklyn (2011, 2012) ...  Robert  Morris is one of four programs in the NEC to have won back-to-back league titles, having accomplished the feat three times (1982 & 1983, 1989 & 1990 and 2009 & 2010) ... The Colonials have advanced to the semifinals of the NEC Tournament 18 times in school history, the most in league history ... The 43 points RMU held Saint Francis U. in the 2004 tournament quarterfinals is the fewest points scored in a tourney game ... The Colonials are one of four teams to score 100 points in a tournament game, joining LIU Brooklyn, Wagner and Saint Francis U.
 
Tuesday's Opponent and The All-Time Series - Mount St. Mary's and Robert Morris tip for the 57th time Saturday, with the Colonials owning a 30-26 (.536) edge in the all-time series. Tuesday's game marks the seventh time in the last nine years that the Mount and RMU have met in the NEC Tournament, with the two squads having split the last six meetings. In the 2013-14 season series, Robert Morris posted a 77-69 victory at Knott Arena (1/18/14) in Emmitsburg, Md., before earning a 69-61 win at the Charles L. Sewall Center (2/15/14). In RMU's victory at home, junior guard Charles Oliver paced the Colonials with a career-high 19 points, hitting seven of his eight shots from the field, including 3-for-3 from deep, while junior forward Lucky Jones averaged 12.0 points and 9.5 rebounds in the two wins. 
 
Exclusivity - Junior forward Lucky Jones joined the Robert Morris 1,000-point club in a 74-73 setback to Central Connecticut State (2/1/14), as his layup at the 12:07 mark of the first half helped him become the 22nd player in program history to join the fraternity. Jones finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds against the Blue Devils and enters the championship game of the 2014 NEC Tournament with 1,139 career points. Earlier this season, Jones also joined the RMU 500-rebound club when he finished with seven boards in RMU's final non-conference tilt of the 2013-14 campaign @ Alabama (1/4/14). Jones is one of just 13 players in school history to eclipse career totals of 1,000 points and 500 rebounds and, based on his current averages, is slated to finish the season with 1,166 points and 652 rebounds, totals that would rank 16th and sixth, respectively, in the career record book.
 
Tag Team - Senior guard Karvel Anderson and junior forward Lucky Jones, just the second tandem in school history to combine for at least 1,000 points in a season, established a new single-season school record for points by an RMU duo in a 60-53 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson (3/5/14) in the quarterfinals of the 2014 NEC Tournament. Through 33 games of the 2013-14 campaign, Anderson and Jones have combined for 1,076 points, eclipsing the record of 1,028 points that former Colonials Myron Walker (1990-94) and Ricky Cannon (1988-92) combined for during the 1991-92 season. Anderson enters the 2014 NEC Tournament championship game against the Mount with a single-season school record 628 points, while Jones has 448 for RMU. 
 
Consistency - If there is one thing that 2014 Northeast Conference Player of the Year Karvel Anderson has been over the course of the 2013-14 campaign, it's been consistent.  Thanks to a game-high 21 points in RMU's 60-57 win over Saint Francis U. (3/8/14) in the semifinals of the 2014 NEC Tournament, Anderson recorded his 16th game of the year eclipsing the 20-point plateau, a new single-season school record. The old mark of 15 was held by former Colonials Myron Walker (1990-94), Gene Nabors (1995-2000) and Maurice Carter (2001-05). Walker turned the trick twice, first as a sophomore in 1991-92 in leading RMU to the NEC Tournament championship and again as a senior in 1993-94. Nabors reached the 20-point plateau in 15 games as a senior in 1999-2000, while Carter finished with at least 20 points in 15 contests during his sophomore season in 2002-03.
 
Comeback Kids - Robert Morris continues to prove no lead is safe for an opponent this season. RMU enters the championship game of the 2014 Northeast Conference Tournament having climbed out of a double-digit deficit in four of its last six games. In a 60-57 victory over Saint Francis U. (3/8/14) in the semifinals of the 2014 NEC Tournament, the Colonials erased a 10-point deficit in the first half, 16-6, to earn the win. RMU also erased a 15-point deficit in the second half of a 69-64 win @ Fairleigh Dickinson (2/27/14) and fell behind by 16 points against LIU Brooklyn (2/20/14) before charging back to grab a 73-64 win. In a 71-70 overtime victory over St. Francis Brooklyn (2/22/14), Robert Morris eclipsed a 12-point deficit in the second half to post a win. The win over the Red Flash marked the 15th time RMU has climbed out of a double-digit deficit to earn a victory in four seasons under head coach Andrew Toole, including the sixth occasion in 2013-14. 
 
Protect The Rock - No member of the Colonials has done a better job of protecting the basketball in recent weeks than senior guard Anthony Myers-Pate. As the 2014 Northeast Conference Tournament continues, Myers-Pate has posted 90 assists against just 36 turnovers in his last 25 games, an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.50. Myers-Pate is threatening to establish a new RMU single-season record in assist-to-turnover ratio, as he enters Tuesday's game against Mount St. Mary's ranked third the NEC in the category at 2.35. The single-season mark of 2.29 was established by former RMU point guard Wade Timmerson (1988-92) during the 1990-91 campaign. Myers-Pate also ranks second in the Robert Morris career record book for assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.95, trailing only Timmerson (2.02).
 
Grand Concourse - Senior guard Karvel Anderson became the 23rd member of the Robert Morris 1,000-point club in RMU's 2013-14 regular-season finale @ Wagner (3/1/14), as his three-pointer at the 18:07 mark of the first half helped him join the fraternity. In 67 career games with the Colonials, Anderson has scored 1,041 points, an average of 15.8 points per contest. Anderson is just the third player in school history to eclipse 1,000 points while playing just two seasons at Robert Morris. The only other Division I player to turn the trick at RMU was former guard Gene Nabors (1995-2000), who scored 1,029 points with the Colonials from 1998 to 2000 after transferring from Louisiana State University (LSU). The first player to accomplish the feat was junior college guard Don Mackey, who scored 1,034 points from 1963 to 1965.
 
Rise Up - Senior guard Karvel Anderson continues to the move up the rankings in a number of different top 10 lists in single-season history at Robert Morris this year, and in a 60-57 win over Saint Francis U. (3/8/14) in the semifinals of the 2014 NEC Tournament he established a new single-season record for points scored. Anderson's game-high 21 points against the Red Flash pushed his season total in points to 628. That total eclipsed the old single-season mark of 614 points that former guard Myron Walker (1990-04) scored as a sophomore in 1991-92.
 
Mission Accomplished - Many have tried over the years, and many have failed. Yet senior guard Karvel Anderson was the one that came through and established a new RMU single-season school record in a category that had stood for almost a quarter of a century. Thanks to a trio of three-pointers in a 71-70 overtime victory over St. Francis Brooklyn (2/22/14), Anderson set a new single-season record for triples and on the year owns 104. That total surpassed the old single-season school record of 93 that was established by former guard Scott Shepherd (1988-91) during the 1988-89 campaign. In 66 career contests, Anderson has drilled 186 three-pointers, an average of 2.81 per game that would also establish a new career record.
 
Dynamic Duo - While senior guard Karvel Anderson has been RMU's leading scorer so far this season thanks in large part to his ability to convert from beyond the arc, junior forward Lucky Jones has developed into a solid outside shooter, as well. Jones enters the championship game of the 2014 Northeast Conference ranked eighth in three-point field goals made per game (1.82). The duo of Anderson and Jones has combined for 164 three-pointers, an average of 4.97 per game, which has established a new single-season school record for three-pointers by a Robert Morris tandem. The old record of 156 was established last season by Anderson and former guard Coron Williams (2009-13). Anderson hit 82 triples in 2012-13, while Williams connected for 74.
 
Double Nickel On A Dime - Senior guard Anthony Myers-Pate recorded one assist in a 60-57 win over Saint Francis U. (3/8/14) in the 2014 NEC Tournament semifinals, helping him move into seventh place all-time at Robert Morris for career dimes. Myers-Pate enters Tuesday's game against Mount St. Mary's with 437 career assists and so far this season owns 122 assists against 52 turnovers. He ranks third in the NEC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.35) while ranking eighth in the circuit in assists per game (3.70).
 
International Waters - Robert Morris produced 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 33 games this season, RMU has converted 241 of its 626 attempts (38.5%) from beyond the arc. Robert Morris enters Tuesday's game leading the Northeast Conference in three-point field goal percentage while ranking third in the NEC in three-point field goals made per game (7.30). The Colonials are 29-5 (.853) in four seasons under head coach Andrew Toole when converting at least 10 three-pointers in a game, including 6-2 (.750) in 2013-14.
 
The 30-30 Club - Senior guard Karvel Anderson became just the second player in school history to eclipse the 30-point plateau in back-to-back games when he turned the trick in RMU's swing through New England to open Northeast Conference play. Anderson finished with a career-high 36 points in a 79-70 win @ Sacred Heart (1/9/14), followed by 32 points in a 71-67 victory @ Bryant (1/11/14). Anderson joins former Colonial Gene Nabors (1995-2000), who accomplished the feat in the 2000 NEC Tournament in Trenton, N.J., at Sovereign Bank Arena. In the quarterfinals of the 2000 NEC Tournament, Nabors scored 38 points in a 72-52 win over Saint Francis U. (3/3/00). The next day, Nabors dropped 35 points to lead Robert Morris to an 80-61 win over Mount St. Mary's (3/4/00) in the semifinals of the NEC Tournament.   
 
Defense Wins Championships - At the heart of the resurgence of the Robert Morris basketball program over the last seven seasons has been defense. Thanks to a 60-57 win over Saint Francis U. (3/8/14) in the semifinals of the 2014 Northeast Conference Tournament, RMU improved to 123-24 (.837) since the beginning of the 2007-08 campaign when holding its opponent to less than 70 points. In four seasons under head coach Andrew Toole, the Colonials are 72-17 (.809) when turning the trick.
 
Board Games - Part of following the formula in regard to being successful for Robert Morris over the last seven seasons has been the program's ability to crash the boards. Since the beginning of 2007-08, Robert Morris owns a record of 116-19 (.859) when the Colonials are even or better in rebounding in a game, including a 111-17 (.867) mark when outrebounding their opponent. In Andrew Toole's four seasons as head coach, Robert Morris has posted a record of 59-13 (.819) when outrebounding its opponent, including a mark of 15-2 (.882) in 2013-14.

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