Niagara University, N.Y. – The
Robert Morris University men's basketball team christened its 2017-18 campaign Friday night with a 73-70 victory over Niagara at the Gallagher Center in an exhibition game to help raise awareness and financial support for continued hurricane relief efforts.
The Colonials held the Purple Eagles to just 32.1 percent (9-for-28) shooting in the second half and 40.7 percent (22-for-54) overall while also posting a 42-39 edge on the glass in earning the victory.
Leading, 42-39, at halftime, Niagara opened the second half with a 13-2 run to grab a 52-44 lead at the 16:15 mark. Dominic Robb was the main offensive force for the Purple Eagles, scoring seven points while also rejecting a shot on the defensive end.
RMU weathered the surge and scored the game's next 10 points to jump back in front, 54-52. Junior guard
Matty McConnell scored four points for the Colonials, including a layup off a steal that gave the Colonials the advantage.
The contest featured 13 ties and 13 lead changes and bogged down in the second half, as the two teams combined for 38 attempts at the free-throw line in the final 20 minutes of action. Robert Morris went to the stripe 21 times during that stretch, converting 17 (81 percent). Overall, RMU knocked down 75 percent (21-for-28) at the free-throw line.
McConnell led all scorers in the game with 27 points for the Colonials and also added five rebounds and five steals. He shot 7-for-12 from the floor, including 4-for-8 from deep, while going 9-for-10 at the free-throw line. He played 37 minutes and was the only student-athlete on the roster from last year who played against the Purple Eagles.
Two true freshmen (
Jon Williams,
Charles Bain) and a redshirt freshman (
David Cole) were featured in the starting lineup, while freshman
Koby Thomas, junior college transfers
Taevon Ashmeade and
Malik Petteway and grad transfer
Ronnie Gombe, helped make up the rotation.
Williams was key for Robert Morris in the first half, as he knocked down a trio of three-pointers, the third of which gave the Colonials a 40-39 edge with 45 seconds left before the break. Greg Kuakumensah missed a three-pointer of his own on the final possession of the half for Niagara, and Williams drove the lane and converted a layup with 3.1 seconds left to give RMU the edge at halftime.
In 35 minutes, Williams scored 17 points and dished out seven assists, while Thomas contributed nine points and a game-high 13 rebounds.
As a team, Robert Morris shot 36.1 percent (22-for-61) from the floor, including 30.8 percent (8-for-26) from beyond the arc. The Colonials drained eight of their 18 attempts from downtown in the first half but were 0-for-8 after the break.
RMU is next in action Monday, Oct. 30, with a 7:00 p.m. tip at the Carey Center in Latrobe, Pa., in an exhibition tilt against Saint Vincent.
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