CENTRAL CONNECTICUT BLUE DEVILS    
Monday, February 8 // 7:00 p.m.
Moon Township, Pa. // Charles L. Sewall Center
 
The Capsule
Robert Morris will be seeking its third consecutive victory when it hosts the Central Connecticut Blue Devils in a 7:00 p.m. game on ESPN3 at the Charles L. Sewall Center Monday, Feb. 8. The Colonials handed previously unbeaten Bryant its first NEC loss of the season Saturday while the Blue Devils upended Saint Francis by 20 that same day.
 
The Series vs. Central Connecticut
Robert Morris leads the all-time series against Central Connecticut, 19-14, with the Blue Devils having won two of the last three games. RMU has won 16 of 20 games over the last decade and holds a 13-3 advantage at the Chuck.
 
Milestone Watch
> Ashley Ravelli has 999 career points and needs one to become the 21st RMU player to score 1,000 career points
 
Doing It With Defense
According to the most recent NEC statistics, Robert Morris leads the league in points allowed (60.0) and field goal percentage defense (.383) and was second in three-point FG defense (.289) and rebounding margin (+2.5).
 
Run-diculous / Surge-ery
The Colonials put together a 27-2 run over the final minute of the first half and the first seven minutes of the second half against Bryant. RMU scored 18 straight during the surge, going 10-of-13 from the field, receiving points from seven different players and causing eight Bryant turnovers. RMU turned a 16-point deficit into a nine-point lead in 8:28.
 
The Rain From Spain
Junior Rebeca Navarro, a native of Galicia, Spain, leads the Northeast Conference in three-point shooting at 45.7 percent. She is 37-81 this season and is fourth all-time at Robert Morris shooting .378 from beyond the arc for her career.
 
Coach Sal Sailing On
The 2015-16 season will be the last for 13th year RMU head coach Sal Buscaglia who will retire at the conclusion of the season after 38 years on the bench. Coach Sal, as he is respectfully called, has won 705 games at four schools and has 436 wins as a Division I coach.
 
Musket Shots
> RMU is 128-37 (.775) at the Sewall Center since 2004-05, including 87-17 (.836) in NEC games
> The Colonials shot 57.1% against Mount St. Mary's, the fourth-best shooting percentage in team history
> Junior Janee Brown tied her career high with 14 points at Mount, going 6-of-7 from the field
> Sal Buscaglia became the winningest coach in RMU history winning his 212th game against Sacred Heart Jan. 2
> Buscaglia won his 700th career game with a 64-44 victory against Wagner Jan. 4
> Anna Niki Stamolamprou became the 20th RMU player to reach 1,000 career points eclipsing the mark Jan. 2 vs. SHU
> Rebeca Navarro leads the NEC in three-point shooting converting at 45.7 percent (37-81)
> RMU hit 12 three-pointers against both Northern Kentucky and Sacred Heart, second-most in program history
> Stamolamprou is fourth at RMU with 188 three-pointers and Ashley Ravelli is fifth with 175
> Mikalah Mulrain is sixth all-time at RMU with 86 career blocks in just 52 career games
> RMU set team records for points (124), scoring margin (+65), FGs (49), assists (37) and rebounds (67) vs. WV Wesleyan
> The Colonials were selected first in the 2015-16 NEC Preseason Poll garnering seven first place votes
> Stamolamprou was named Preseason All-NEC by the league coaches
> Robert Morris has made the NEC playoffs 10 times in the last 12 seasons under Sal Buscaglia
> Eight of the Colonials 15 players hail from outside the United States
> RMU has won three of its five NEC Championships with Buscaglia on the bench
 
Sharp Shooting
The Colonials shot 57.1 percent (28-49) at Mount St. Mary's, tying the fourth-highest field goal percentage in team history. RMU was 22-31 — 71.0 percent — on shots from inside the arc and 6-18 on three-pointers.
 
Two With Double-Digit Boards
Mikalah Mulrain and Megan Smith each had 12 rebounds against Saint Francis U. It was the first time since March 3, 2014, that a pair of Colonials had 10 or more boards.
 
Seven Score More
Robert Morris has had seven different players lead the team in scoring this season. Anna Niki Stamolamprou, Ashley Ravelli, Mikalah Mulrain, Leah Wormack, Megan Smith, Rebeca Navarro and Jocelynne Jones have all finished games with top scoring honors for RMU.
 
Double-Double for Double-J
Jocelynne Jones, who is not called Double-J by anyone, recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds against Mount St. Mary's. She came off the bench to play 26 minutes and recorded eight offensive boards.
 
What Can Brown Do For You?
Junior guard Janee Brown tied her career high with 14 points while making her first start of the season against Mount St. Mary's. She went 6-of-7 from the field and 2-of-2 from the chalk. Brown added four assists and two steals.
 
BCT Sportsperson of the Year
RMU head coach Sal Buscaglia was named the Beaver County Times Sportsperson of the Year. The 13th-year RMU head coach was selected as much for his promoting and growing women's athletics as for his on the court accomplishments.
 
Winner, Winner, Carmine's Dinner
Head coach Sal Buscaglia, who's favorite on-the-road dinner destination in Carmine's in New York, became the winningest coach in RMU history when the Colonials beat Sacred Heart, 78-63, on Jan. 2 in the team's NEC opener. The victory was the 212th for Buscaglia who surpassed Dan Swalga (1978-90) for the record.
 
A Dozen Threes, Please
Robert Morris buried a dozen three-pointers twice this season, the second-most made treys in team history. RMU hit a dozen in a two-point setback against Northern Kentucky and also nailed 12 in its NEC opening victory against Sacred Heart.
 
Thessaloniki Thousand
Anna Niki Stamolamprou, a native of Thessaloniki, Greece, became the 20th player to record 1,000 career points when she tallied 22 points against Sacred Heart on Jan. 2. She joins all-time great Artemis Spanou (2010-14) as the only two Greek players in the club.
 
Chuck's Charms
The Charles L. Sewall Center, a.k.a. "The Chuck", has lent a certain advantage for the Colonials over the past 12 seasons. Since 2004-05, RobertMorris is 128-37 (.775) in home games, including an even more impressive 87-17 (.836) record in Northeast Conference opponents.
 
Things To Look For
Two-thirds of the way through the schedule, some statistical patterns have begun to emerge. RMU is 11-1 when tied or leading at the half and 13-1 when leading at the end of the third quarter. They are 2-6 when trailing at half and winless, 0-7, when trailing at the end of the third quarter. RMU is 10-2 when winning the rebounding battle, 11-2 when holding opponents to less than 60 points, and 10-0 when outshooting its opponent.
 
Tres, Trois, Tpia,Tre
The Colonials foreign born players have accounted for all but nine of the team's 149 three pointers this season.
 
Consecutive Games With a Three
Robert Morris has hit a three-pointer in 91 consecutive games dating back to Feb. 18, 2013. That streak includes a trey in every game from 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons. It's a long way off of the team record of 285 consecutive games stretching from Jan. 7, 2002 through March 8, 2011.
 
Depth Coming Through
The Colonials have had at least eight players score in all but four games this season and have had 10 or more players find the scoring column six times. RMU is averaging 21 points off the bench and nine players are averaging over 12.0 minutes per game.
 
Six Reach Double-Digits
Six Colonials hit double-digits in the scoring department in its season opener, the first time that's happened in a home since 2008, and the first time overall since the end of the 2013-14 season. Mikalah Mulrain led all scorers with 20 points, Anna Niki Stamolamprou and Rebeca Navarro added 15 each, Jocelynne Jones a career-best 13 along with Lou Mataly and freshman Nia Adams tacking on 11 points.
 
Preseason Favorite
Robert Morris earned seven first-place votes in the 2015-16 NEC Preseason Poll and was selected first in the preseason poll for the third straight season. They won the NEC Tournament in 2014 and made it to the championship in 2015 as the preseason leader. This marks the fifth time overall that the Colonials are the preseason favorite.
 
Fantastic Four
Anna Niki Stamolamprou, who wears number four, was named to the All-NEC First Team as a sophomore. She finished 2014-15 ranked 15th in the nation shooting 42.0% from three-point range while leading the team in scoring (15.2 ppg) and rebounding (5.6 rpg). Her 81 three-pointers last season rank second in single season history.
 
Postseason Prizewinners
A trio of Colonials players received post-season accolades from the coaches in 2014-15. Anna Niki Stamolamprou was named to the All-NEC First Team honor. Mikalah Mulrain and Megan Smith both earned spots on the All-Rookie team, the third consecutive season RMU has had two members on the league's all-rookie squad.
 
Coach In Waiting
With the imminent retirement of head coach Sal Buscaglia, associate head coach Charlie Buscaglia, will take over the reins of the program in 2016-17. Coach B, as he is respectfully called, is in his 13th season with the Colonials.
 
Near Playoff Perfection At Home
Robert Morris is 16-2 all-time in home playoff games. The squad had won 14 consecutive home playoff contests before falling to St. Francis Brooklyn in the 2015 NEC Final.
 
Decade of Dominance
From 2004-05 through 2014-15, Robert Morris posted a record of 141-57 in Northeast Conference play and won four regular season titles. The Colonials .712 winning percentage is second only to Sacred Heart (149-49, .753) with each team claiming four regular season championships and three tourney titles.
 
Insurmountable Lead
Robert Morris has never lost a game in which it has held the lead at the end of the game. The Colonials are 13-0 in such situations this season. All-time, RMU is 508-0 when leading at the final whistle.
 
Nationally Known
Robert Morris has played in a national tournament in six of the last nine seasons. In 2007 and 2008, the Colonials took part in the NCAA Tournament. A Preseason WNIT berth followed in 2008-09 and a Postseason WNIT in 2009-10. The 2011-12 season ended with the top seed in the Women's Basketball Invitational before RMU returned to the Big Dance in 2014.
 
International Love
The Robert Morris roster once again features members from all over the world. The Colonials 14-player roster features seven international players and seven domestic products. RMU's imported players hail from Canada, France, Greece, Italy and Spain.
 
Perennial Playoff Potential
Robert Morris has missed the NEC playoffs just once since 2004-05. RMU had eight consecutive playoff appearances from 2004-05 through 2011-12 and finished first in three of those seasons, earning the tournament's top seed in 2010.