GAME 13
Canisius (5-7) vs. Robert Morris (6-6)
Friday, December 22, 2017 • 7:00 p.m.
A.J. Palumbo Center (4,390) • Pittsburgh, Pa.

Radio: ESPN 970 AM & 106.3 FM
Radio Talent: Chris Shovlin (pxp) & Jim Elias (color)
Video: RMUColonials.com • NECFrontRow.com
 
Quick Hits
 
- The Robert Morris University men's basketball team concludes the non-conference portion of its 2017-18 schedule Friday with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Canisius at the A.J. Palumbo Center on the campus of Duquesne University.
 
- The Colonials are playing eight home games at PPG Paints Arena and four at the A.J. Palumbo Center on the campus of Duquesne University in 2017-18 while construction of the UPMC Events Center takes place on RMU's Moon Township campus.
 
- In its final non-conference road game of the 2017-18 regular season, RMU dropped an 81-69 decision @ N.C. State (12/19/17). Junior guard Matty McConnell led the Colonials with 17 points and added three rebounds, two assists and a pair of steals.
 
- Sophomore guard Dachon Burke contributed 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds against the Wolfpack, while graduate transfer Ronnie Gombe and freshman guard Leondre Washington each scored 11 points off the bench for Robert Morris. Gombe also grabbed six rebounds, while Washington dished out five assists.
 
- The Colonials opened a two-game road trip with an 86-70 setback @ Buffalo (12/16/17). Sophomore guard Dachon Burke paced the Colonials with 18 points while adding four rebounds, three assists and three steals. Freshman forward Koby Thomas also reached double figures in scoring with 13 points while grabbing five boards.
 
- RMU wrapped up a two-game homestand at PPG Paints Arena with a 74-60 victory over Drexel (12/10/17). Sophomore guard Dachon Burke led the Colonials with 25 points and added four rebounds and five steals while setting a career high with six three-pointers.
 
- Freshman forward Koby Thomas added 21 points and a team-high six rebounds in the win over the Dragons, while junior guard Matty McConnell registered his third career double-double courtesy of 10 points and a career-high 11 assists.
 
- The win over Drexel marked RMU's 600th victory as an NCAA Division I program. All-time the Colonials are 600-627 (.489). It also marked the 250th game on the sideline for eighth-year head coach Andrew Toole. Only Jarrett Durham (340) has coached more games in the 42-year Division I history of Robert Morris basketball.
 
- Robert Morris has received seven weekly honors from the Northeast Conference through the first six weeks of the 2017-18 season. Sophomore guard Dachon Burke won three-consecutive NEC Player of the Week accolades, while freshman forward Koby Thomas has been named NEC Rookie of the Week three times. In addition, freshman guard Jon Williams was named NEC Rookie of the Week Dec. 4, 2017.
 
- The Colonials enter Friday's game against Canisius leading the Northeast Conference in turnover margin at +3.08 while ranking 13th in NCAA Division I in turnovers forced per game (18.75).

LINKS:
- Game Notes (PDF)
- Game Notes (ISSUU)
- Audio
- Video
- Live Stats
 
North Carolina State Tidbits - RMU fell to 0-2 in the all-time series with N.C. State in the first meeting between the two programs since 1991 ... Robert Morris finished with more turnovers (13) than the Wolfpack (12), as N.C. State became just the second opponent in 12 games in 2017-18 to finish with fewer miscues than the Colonials ... Junior guard Matty McConnell tied a season high with four three-pointers, as he also connected for four triples in RMU's season opener @ Ohio State (11/10/17) ... Freshman guard Leondre Washington tied a career high with five assists ... The Colonials finished with 15 offensive rebounds against the Wolfpack, the third time this season RMU has recorded at least 15 offensive boards in a game.
 
Shot Ready - Freshman guard Jon Williams has hit at least two three-pointers in each of his last six games entering RMU's non-conference finale Friday against Canisius at the A.J. Palumbo Center. It marks the longest streak for a member of the Colonials with multiple three-pointers in a game since former guard Rodney Pryor (2014-16) closed out the 2014-15 campaign with at least two triples in 10 consecutive games. During the last six games, Williams is knocking down 59.3 percent (16-for-27) of his attempts from deep and is averaging 9.0 points and 4.0 assists per contest.
 
The Man In The Middle - Ronnie Gombe has made the most of his opportunity in the front court in recent weeks, and that bore fruit @ N.C. State (12/19/17). The graduate transfer established career highs in both points (11) and rebounds (6), shooting 4-for-7 from the field and 3-of-5 at the free-throw line. Gombe also posted a team-high four offensive caroms among his six boards. In the first eight games of the season, Gombe played a total of 27 minutes. However, in the last four contests, Gombe is averaging 7.3 points and 3.5 rebounds while playing an average of 15.3 minutes per contest. His field goal percentage during the last four contests sits at 56.5 percent (13-for-23).
 
Depth Charge - Graduate transfer Ronnie Gombe became the fourth different member of the Colonials to come off the bench this season and register a double-figuring scoring game thanks to a career-high 11 points @ N.C. State (12/19/17), joining freshmen Charles Bain and Leondre Washington and junior forward Malik Petteway. Gombe's performance helped RMU receive 28 points from its bench, just one point off the season-high 29 points the Robert Morris reserves scored in a 75-53 win over Norfolk State (11/24/17). The Colonials have received at least 20 points from their reserves in 10 of 12 games this season and are supplying an average of 22.2 points per contest.
 
Court Vision - Junior guard Matty McConnell notched his third career double-double in a 74-60 victory over Drexel (12/10/17), scoring 10 points while dishing out a career-high 11 assists. Thanks to the performance, Robert Morris improved to a perfect 7-0 under eighth-year head coach Andrew Toole when a student-athlete compiles at least 10 assists in a game. McConnell enters RMU's final non-conference game of the 2017-18 campaign Friday against Canisius ranked second in the Northeast Conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.90) thanks to 40 dimes on the season against just 21 turnovers. He also ranks 11th in assists with an average of 3.33 per game.
 
Dunk You Very Much - Freshman forward Koby Thomas is proving to be extremely capable around the rim, as he has posted 15 dunks so far this season. The most dunks in a season by an RMU student-athlete in eight years under head coach Andrew Toole is 30, which came in 2015-16 by former forward Billy Giles (2015-17).

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