Men's Basketball | 11/25/2015 9:50:00 PM

GAME 6
Robert Morris (0-5) @ Tennessee Tech (2-2)
AIR FORCE CLASSIC
Friday, November 27, 2015 • 7:00 p.m. EST
Eblen Center (9,280) • Cookeville, Tenn.
 
Radio: ESPN 970 AM & 106.3 FM
Radio Talent: Chris Shovlin (pxp) & Jim Duzyk (color)
Video: OVCDigitalNetwork.com
Twitter: @RMUMBasketball • Instagram: @RMUMBasketball
 
Quick Hits
 
- The Robert Morris University men's basketball team concludes play in the Air Force Classic with a pair of games at Tennessee Tech in Cookeville, Tenn. The Colonials will take on the host Golden Eagles Friday in a 7:00 p.m. eastern tip before wrapping up play in the tournament Saturday in a neutral site matchup against Mississippi Valley State.
 
- RMU dipped to 0-2 in the Air Force Classic and 0-5 overall on the 2015-16 season by dropping an 81-71 decision in overtime @ New Mexico State (11/24/15). Sophomore forward Elijah Minnie paced the Colonials with a career-high 29 points and also added six rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
 
- Senior guard Rodney Pryor contributed 13 points and seven rebounds against the Aggies and has reached double figures in scoring in each of his last 15 games dating back to last season.
 
- The Colonials opened play in the Air Force Classic with a 64-52 setback @ Air Force (11/22/15). Senior guard Rodney Pryor paced RMU against the Falcons with his first double-double of the 2015-16 campaign and second of his career with a game-high 25 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
 
- RMU dropped its 2015-16 home opener to Bucknell (11/18/15), 81-76, at the Charles L. Sewall Center. Senior guard Rodney Pryor led four players in double figures for Robert Morris with 15 points and also added six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
 
- Robert Morris returns four starters and six letterwinners from a 2014-15 squad that finished with an overall record of 20-15 (.571), including a 12-6 (.667) mark in the Northeast Conference. The Colonials posted their 10th consecutive winning season.
 
- RMU earned its eighth NEC Tournament title and subsequent bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2015 and posted its first victory in the Big Dance since 1983 and second overall in program history with an 81-77 win over North Florida (3/18/15) in the 2015 NCAA First Four. In the second round of the NCAA Tournament, the Colonials fell to eventual national champion Duke (3/20/15), 85-56.
 
- RMU was tabbed second in the 2015 NEC Preseason Coaches Poll, the 10th consecutive year the Colonials have been picked to finish in the top three in the league. Senior guard Rodney Pryor, who led RMU in scoring last season at 15.6 points per game, was named to the 2015 Preseason All-NEC Team.
 
- From the 2007-08 season through 2014-15, Robert Morris compiled an overall record of 183-96 (.656), with the 183 victories ranking ninth among mid-major programs in the eight-year span. The Colonials have won at least 20 games in seven of the last eight years and have also appeared in seven postseason tournaments, including three appearances each in the NCAA Tournament (2009, 2010, 2015) and NIT (2008, 2013, 2014) as well as the 2012 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT).


 
New Mexico State Tidbits - The meeting between the Colonials and Aggies marked the first in the all-time series between the two programs ... Junior guard Kavon Stewart dished out a season-high eight assists against just a pair of turnovers ... New Mexico State shot 50.8 percent (21-for-61) from the field, the fourth time in five games to open the 2015-16 campaign an RMU opponent has shot at least 50 percent from the floor ... Robert Morris shot 50 percent (15-for-30) from the field in the second half and 43.9 percent (29-for-66) overall ... The Aggies held a slight edge in points in the paint, 28-26, while the two teams tied in points off turnovers, 15-15 ... New Mexico State suffered 18 turnovers, the second time in three games (Bucknell) an RMU opponent has suffered that many miscues and a season high.
 
The Anatomy of Overtime - Robert Morris went to overtime for the ninth time under sixth-year head coach Andrew Toole in an 81-71 setback @ New Mexico State (11/24/15). The loss snapped a five-game winning streak under Toole when heading to the extra frame, as RMU's last overtime loss came in an 85-82 setback @ LIU Brooklyn (3/9/11) in the 2011 NEC Tournament final. Under Toole, Robert Morris is 6-3 (.667) in overtime, including 3-3 (.500) on the road. All-time in the program's 40-year Division I history, the Colonials own an overall overtime record of 28-25 (.528).
 
Picking Up Where He Left Off - Senior guard Rodney Pryor, who was tabbed to the 2015 Preseason All-NEC Team, picked up where he left off from last season in RMU's first five games of the 2015-16 season. Thanks to 13 points @ New Mexico State (11/24/15), Pryor enters Friday's game @ Tennessee Tech having reached double figures in scoring in each of his last 15 games dating back to last season. During that stretch, Pryor is averaging 20.1 points per contest while converting an average of 3.00 three-pointers per game. Pryor is looking to become the seventh player in program history to score in double figures in 16 consecutive games Friday @ Tennessee Tech. He would become the first member of the Colonials to turn the trick since former guard Velton Jones (2008-13) reached double figures in 19 straight games in 2011.
 
Block Party - Sophomore forward Elijah Minnie set an RMU single-season school record for blocks in his rookie campaign last year by recording 36 rejections, and he continues to protect the rim early in the 2015-16 season. Minnie finished with a pair of rejections @ New Mexico State (11/24/15) and through the first five games of the year has blocked seven shots, giving him 43 for his career. Suffice to say, should Minnie stay healthy he has a chance to become to become the program's all-time leader in rejections. The current leader is former forward Magdi Bilall, who finished with 101 blocks from 1987 to 1992.
 
Snow Cone - Sophomore forward Andre Frederick registered the first double-figure scoring game of his career in RMU's home opener against Bucknell (11/18/15) with 10 points, hitting five of his seven shots from the floor. He also added three rebounds and a pair of steals in a career-high 23 minutes. Frederick chipped in eight points on perfect 4-of-4 shooting from the floor @ New Mexico State (11/24/15) and through the first five games of the year is shooting a team-high 61.1 percent (11-for-18) from the field.
 
The Chase for 1,000 - Senior guard Rodney Pryor is RMU's active leading scorer with 644 points as the Colonials continue play in the Air Force Classic Friday @ Tennessee Tech. Pryor has scored a team-high 98 points in five games, a year after leading the Colonials with 546 points last season, and he is looking to become the second player in the last three years to eclipse the 1,000-point plateau in just two seasons at RMU. Former guard Karvel Anderson scored 1,123 points in 69 career games from 2012 to 2014. Pryor needs to average 13.7 points over RMU's final 26 games of the 2015-16 campaign to eclipse 1,000 career points. He would be the fourth player in school history, and third at the Division I level, to score at least 1,000 points playing just two years.
 
Liftoff - In search of a secondary scorer behind senior guard Rodney Pryor, sophomore forward Elijah Minnie had a breakthrough offensive performance @ New Mexico State (11/24/15). Minnie paced RMU with a career-high 29 points, shooting 11-for-18 from the field, including a 5-for-10 performance from beyond the arc, while going 2-for-2 at the free-throw line. In two games of the Air Force Classic, Minnie is averaging 19.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks while shooting 48.4 percent (15-for-31).
 
Onions - Isaiah Still wasted no time coming through in the clutch for Robert Morris in his rookie season, as the freshman guard drilled a three-pointer from the wing with 8.6 seconds left in regulation to tie the game, 67-67, and send the Colonials to overtime @ New Mexico State (11/24/15). RMU eventually fell to the Aggies in the extra frame, 81-71, but it marks the second straight year a true freshman sent a game to overtime with a clutch three-pointer. Last year, former guard Marcquise Reed (2014-15) hit a three-pointer at the end of regulation @ Mount St. Mary's (1/22/15) in an eventual 63-59 victory.
 
Billy The Kid - Billy Giles put forth the most complete effort of his young Robert Morris career @ New Mexico State (11/24/15), as the junior forward contributed nine points and five rebounds in 30 minutes of action against the Aggies. Giles shot 3-for-6 from the field and 3-for-4 at the free-throw line and after being held scoreless in his first two games in an RMU uniform has averaged 6.3 points and 3.7 rebounds over his last three games. During that stretch, Giles is shooting 53.8 percent (7-for-13) from the field.

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