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Robert Morris University Athletics

Kavon Stewart
45
Mount St. Mary's MOUNT 4-8, 0-1 NEC
70
Winner Robert Morris RMU 5-8, 1-0 NEC
Mount St. Mary's MOUNT
4-8, 0-1 NEC
45
Final
70
Robert Morris RMU
5-8, 1-0 NEC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Mount St. Mary's MOUNT 16 29 45
Robert Morris RMU 36 34 70

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Balanced Effort Leads RMU to Win in NEC Opener

Four Colonials score in double figures in 70-45 victory over Mount St. Mary's

Photo Credits: Kyle Gorcey (RMU Sentry Media)

Moon Township, Pa. – The Robert Morris University men's basketball team shot 53.5 percent (23-for-43) from the field en route to a 70-45 victory over Mount St. Mary's in the 2014-15 Northeast Conference opener for both programs Saturday at the Charles L. Sewall Center.

The Colonials improved to 5-8 overall and 1-0 in the NEC with the victory, while the Mount slipped to 4-8 overall and 0-1 in league play.

RMU never trailed in the contest, grabbing an 8-0 lead just four minutes into the game that was bolstered by four points from freshman guard Marcquise Reed.

The lead eventually swelled to 20-3 for Robert Morris at the 10:28 mark of the first half thanks to back-to-back three-pointers from sophomore guard Kavon Stewart and junior guard Rodney Pryor as well as a layup from junior forward Aaron Tate.

Mount St. Mary's opened the game by missing its first eight shots from the field and was just 1-for-12 from the floor before Andrew Smeathers connected from beyond the arc to pull the Mount to within 20-6 with 10:08 remaining before halftime.

RMU's biggest lead of the first half came with 4:21 left before intermission, when freshman forward Elijah Minnie drained a jumper off a feed from Stewart to give the Colonials a 30-8 cushion. Robert Morris eventually owned a 36-16 advantage at the break.

In the second half the Mount sliced its deficit to 38-24 after a trio of free throws from Smeather at the 17:41 mark of the second half, but a 15-6 Robert Morris surge that featured seven points from senior forward Lucky Jones gave the Colonials a 53-30 lead with 8:07 to play.

Mount St. Mary's finished the game just 13-for-52 (25 percent) shooting from the field, including 5-for-20 (25 percent) from beyond the arc. Gregory Graves and Smeathers each scored 14 points for the Mount, with Graves grabbing 11 rebounds for the double-double.

Robert Morris was led by Jones, who scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds while also registering two assists and two steals. He was one of four Colonials in double figures, as Reed and Pryor each contributed 12 points, while Minnie scored 10 points off the bench.

"It was a great way to start conference play," head coach Andrew Toole said. "We were active defensively and shared the ball on offense. I was extremely happy we had 18 assists, and that's a credit to Kavon (Stewart). He did a nice job of getting into the teeth of the defense. Once he did that he made great decisions that allowed us to get high percentage shots and open looks."

The Colonials improved to 17-17 (.500) all time in Northeast Conference openers thanks to the win, including a mark of 4-1 (.800) under Toole. The win also marked RMU's 19th consecutive victory against a league opponent when shooting 50 percent or better from the field.

RMU takes to the road for its next tilt, opening a three-game road trip Monday, Jan. 5, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against in-state rival Saint Francis U. at DeGol Arena in Loretto, Pa.

Stat of the Night: 3.11 – Assist-to-turnover ratio for sophomore guard Kavon Stewart in the four victories he's played in this season. He owns 28 assists against just nine turnovers after finishing with seven dimes and just two miscues Saturday against the Mount.

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