Moon Township, Pa. – The Robert Morris University women's basketball team began the defense of its Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament championship with a 68-35 victory over eighth-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson this afternoon from the Charles L. Sewall Center.
Robert Morris (20-10) let its defense carry them to an NEC Tournament semifinal berth – the program's seventh consecutive trip to the league semifinals – as Fairleigh Dickinson (8-22) became the eighth team this season to shoot under 30 percent against the Colonials. The Knights converted on only 27.8 percent (15-of-54) of their field goals and were held to 35 total points, which is the fewest RMU has allowed since Feb. 28, 1980 in an 85-24 victory over Chatham.
"I was very proud of our performance today," said head coach Charlie Buscaglia. "We came out with a great mentality, didn't look for any excuses, and just got after it. I was very proud of the pace we played at early, setting the tone and just continuing to grind through mistakes to win the next possession."
Megan Smith posted her third double-double of the season to lead the Colonials, tallying 15 points on 7-of-11 shooting and 10 rebounds. Anna Niki Stamolamprou also scored 15 points, sharing high scorer honors with the junior forward, while Nadège Pluviose added a career-high 13 points (5-5 FG) in 18 minutes off the bench.
RMU continued its strong first quarter play, opening up a 24-11 advantage after the first 10 minutes. After Madelynn Comly's layup trimmed the gap to 15-7, the Colonials rattled off a 9-0 run thanks to a Stamolamprou three, Smith jumper, and four points from Ja'lynn Burton-Jones.
Pluviose made her imprint on the game in the third quarter with the hosts ahead 39-20. The rookie from Montreal, Quebec buried a jumper off a Shakema Dashiell assist, then made a layup on RMU's next trip down the floor. After Pluviose split a pair of free throws, Nia Adams found the freshman just inside the three-point arc for another open jump shot, concluding a 7-0 individual stretch. That run was bookended by a pair of Smith layups, moving the Colonial advantage to 48-20 thanks to their largest unanswered rally (11 points) of the game.
"I saw a young player come out with a great mindset," said Buscaglia, referring to Pluviose's performance. "She has had moments like that this season. We saw her rise to the occasion before [at Iowa], and today she took her shots with confidence and didn't rush anything despite [the NEC Tournament] being a new experience."
RMU shot 43.3 percent from the floor and had an assist on 17 of its 26 field goals this afternoon. The Colonials also dominated the glass, owning a 48-30 edge in that department.
Amina Markovic was the lone FDU player in double-figure scoring, registering 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting.
The 33-point margin of victory is tied for the largest in program history for a postseason game, sharing the honor with a 72-39 NEC Tournament quarterfinal win over Central Connecticut on March 5, 2005.
With the triumph, RMU has now reached the 20-win mark for the 10th time in school history.
Robert Morris continues its pursuit of a seventh NEC Tournament title and fifth NCAA bid when it hosts sixth-seeded Central Connecticut in a semifinal matchup at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 8. The Colonials won both meetings this season and own a 16-3 all-time record at home against the Blue Devils.
