Moon Township, Pa. – Junior guard
Kavon Stewart hit a runner from the left block with 1:08 to go that gave the
Robert Morris University men's basketball team a 69-67 lead and the Colonials held on for their second win of the year over Lehigh Thursday night at the Charles L. Sewall Center.
The Mountain Hawks, who slipped to 1-8 overall on the 2015-16 campaign, had two chances in the final minute to either tie or take the lead, but Kahron Ross turned the ball over twice. His second turnover, a traveling violation, came with just 4.3 seconds remaining after a 30-second Lehigh timeout.
Robert Morris shot a season-high 53.1 percent (26-for-49) from the field and held a 60-50 advantage with 9:16 to go after freshman guard
Matty McConnell connected from beyond the arc.
Lehigh didn't wilt, using an 11-3 surge to pull within 63-61 with 5:16 left in the game after Justin Goldsborough hit a pair at the free-throw line. Austin Price scored five points during the run, while Jesse Chuku hit a pair of jumpers.
RMU weathered the storm, as senior guard
Rodney Pryor hit a pair of jumpers to push the lead for the Colonials to 67-61 with 4:27 remaining.
The Mountain Hawks mounted one last charge, as layups from Goldsborough and Leufroy, plus a jumper from Price with just 1:26 to go, tied the game for the fifth time, 65-65. Stewart followed by coming through for Robert Morris, as his off-balance jumper hit the side of the rim, bounced up and then fell through the cylinder.
"During our losing streak we were searching for small wins, whether it was our play in spurts during a game or individual performances," head coach
Andrew Toole said. "Tonight was the definition of a small win. The good thing is we can take a lot of positives from tonight and use them as teaching tools."
Tied, 10-10, in the first half, Robert Morris reeled off a 16-6 run that gave the Colonials their first double-digit advantage of the 2015-16 season, 26-16, with eight minutes to play before the break. Five different players scored, including five points from Stewart and four from Pryor.
Lehigh slowly chipped away, closing to within 31-29 at the 2:06 mark of the first half thanks to a layup from Leufroy. RMU eventually entered the break with a 36-34 lead as Price hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to make it a one-possession game.
Ross tied the game, 41-41, early in the second half thanks to a three-pointer before a 12-4 run by Robert Morris gave the Colonials a 53-45 edge. Sophomore forward
Elijah Minnie and Pryor each connected from beyond the arc to bolster RMU.
Yet every time Robert Morris looked to pull away, Lehigh had an answer. The Colonials were able to seal the win late thanks to a pair of big defensive stands.
"We had good activity and energy on defense late in the game," Toole said. "We moved on the flight of the ball instead of waiting until the ball reached where it was going to go. That's key. We also turned them over at a high rate."
Pryor garnered game-high honors in scoring with 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the floor and also led the Colonials in rebounds (6) and assists (5). McConnell finished with 13 points, while Stewart contributed 11 points and four dimes.
Price led Lehigh with 19 points and four assists. Ross and Chuku each scored 14 points, while Goldsborough grabbed a game-high seven boards, including six on the offensive glass.
Robert Morris takes to the road for its final two non-conference games of the 2015-16 slate, beginning with a 2:00 p.m. tip against Duquesne at the A.J. Palumbo Center in Pittsburgh, Pa., Saturday, Dec. 19.
Stat Of The Night4 – Consecutive games senior guard
Rodney Pryor has scored at least 20 points. During that span he is averaging 25.5 points per contest.
Tweet Of The Night
