Raleigh, N.C. – The
Robert Morris University men's basketball team concluded the road portion of its 2017-18 non-conference schedule Tuesday with an 81-69 setback to North Carolina State at PNC Arena.
The Colonials, who led for 28:27 of the contest, couldn't withstand a late charge by the Wolfpack and the inside play of Omer Yurtseven and Lennard Freeman.
Leading, 39-36, entering the second half, a dunk from Abdul-Malik Abu and a layup from Yurtseven pushed N.C. State (9-3) in front, 40-39. The Colonials (6-6) came back to grab the lead, 42-40, when junior guard
Matty McConnell, who tied for game-high honors in scoring with 17 points, buried a three-pointer.
Yurtseven would tie the game, 42-42, with another layup, but Robert Morris answered and pushed its lead to 52-48 when freshman guard
Leondre Washington connected from beyond the arc. It was one of 10 three-pointers in the game for RMU, the sixth time in the last eight contests the Colonials have reached double figures in triples.
The Wolfpack followed with a 9-0 spurt to grab their biggest lead of the contest to that point, 57-52, and did most of their damage at the free-throw line during the run, going 5-for-8 at the chalk.
RMU answered, getting a layup from freshman forward
Chris Coalmon and a three-point play from graduate transfer
Ronnie Gombe to tie the game for the final time, 57-57, with 7:33 to play. The Wolfpack then used a 12-1 run to take control, opening up a 69-58 advantage with 3:46 remaining.
"We were almost there," head coach
Andrew Toole said. "We had an opportunity down the stretch to make it a close game, but their size and strength really affected us. It's one thing to have the size and strength affect you, it's a second thing not to do what we work on every day. Getting to the front, hedging the ball screen properly and boxing out. Those were some of things that were really killer and helped them build their lead."
LINKS: Boxscore (PDF) | Updated Statistics
Robert Morris jumped out to a 9-2 lead early in the contest as freshman guard
Jon Williams connected for a pair of triples. The opening surge forced N.C. State to call timeout, but the Colonials continued to shoot well in the first half, converting at a 50 percent (13-for-26) clip in the first 20 minutes, including 53.8 percent (7-for-13) from deep.
Those numbers dipped in the second half, as RMU converted just 25 percent (10-for-40) of its attempts after the break, including 3-for-18 from beyond the arc.
McConnell finished 5-for-15 from the field, including 4-of-12 from deep, and also added three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Sophomore guard
Dachon Burke added 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Washington and Gombe each contributed 11 points.
For Gombe, he established a career high in points while also grabbing six boards and recording a block and steal. Washington added a team-high five assists.
Torin Dorin led the Wolfpack with 17 points and also recorded 10 rebounds. Joining him with double-doubles for N.C. State was Yurtseven (12, 10) and Freeman (11, 12). Abu contributed 15 points and seven boards.
Robert Morris concludes its non-conference slate Friday, Dec. 22, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Canisius at the A.J. Palumbo Center on the campus of Duquesne University.
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