GAME 18
Saint Francis (9-6 / 3-1 NEC) vs. Robert Morris (10-7 / 4-0 NEC)
Thursday, January 11, 2018 • 7:00 p.m.
PPG Paints Arena (19,000) • Pittsburgh, Pa.

Radio: ESPN 970 AM & 106.3 FM
Talent: Chris Shovlin (pxp) & Jim Elias (color)
TV: ESPN3
Talent: Dave Popkin (pxp) & Joe DeSantis (color)
 
Quick Hits
 
- The Robert Morris University men's basketball team concludes a three-game homestand Thursday by hosting Saint Francis U at PPG Paints Arena for a 7:00 p.m. tip. The game can be seen live on ESPN3.
 
- RMU is 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. Thursday's game against the Red Flash is the fourth of eight contests at PPG Paints Arena.
 
- The Colonials are 4-0 in the Northeast Conference for the first time since 2013-14 as well as the sixth time overall in program history. RMU is tops in the NEC this season in turnover margin at +3.12.
 
- Freshman forward Koby Thomas was named the Northeast Conference Rookie of the Week for the fourth time, a league high, Jan. 8, 2018. In wins over the Terriers and Blackbirds, Thomas averaged 16.5 points and 9.5 rebounds while shooting 48 percent (12-for-25) from the field.
 
- Robert Morris ran its winning streak to four courtesy of an 88-79 win over LIU Brooklyn (1/6/18) at PPG Paints Arena. Sophomore guard Dachon Burke led five players in double figures for the Colonials with 20 points while adding six rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. Freshman forward Koby Thomas added 17 points and seven rebounds against the Blackbirds.
 
- Also in the win over LIU Brooklyn (1/6/18), junior guard Matty McConnell finished with 15 points and three steals, freshman guard Leondre Washington scored 12 points off the bench and notched three steals and freshman guard Jon Williams contributed 11 points and five assists.
 
- RMU opened its three-game homestand with an 80-79 overtime victory over St. Francis Brooklyn (1/4/18) at the A.J. Palumbo Center. Junior guard Matty McConnell converted a layup with 10.8 seconds to go in the extra frame and completed the and-one with a free throw courtesy of a foul by Glenn Sanabria of the Terriers to help lift the Colonials to their third consecutive victory.
 
- St. Francis Brooklyn had one last chance to win, but a three-pointer by Rasheem Dunn was strong, and freshman forward Koby Thomas came down with the rebound to seal the triumph. Thomas recorded his first career double-double in the victory with 16 points and a career-high 12 caroms.
 
- Sophomore guard Dachon Burke led Robert Morris in its win over the Terriers with 17 points and also tallied eight rebounds, two assists, a block and four steals. Junior guard Matty McConnell contributed 13 points, six boards and four thefts, while freshman forward Charles Bain scored all 11 of his points in the first half off the bench.

LINKS:
- Game Notes (PDF)
- Game Notes (ISSUU)
- Audio
- Video
- Live Stats
 
LIU Brooklyn Tidbits - Robert Morris earned its third consecutive victory over the Blackbirds and improved to 45-31 (.592) in the all-time series ... The Colonials established season highs in points (88) and field goals (32) ... RMU improved to 3-0 this season when scoring at least 80 points ... Robert Morris shot 57.6 percent (19-for-33) from the field in the second half and 48.5 percent (32-for-66) overall ... Graduate transfer Ronnie Gombe established a career high with three blocks ... Both the Colonials and Blackbirds finished with 42 points in the paint, with RMU establishing a season high in the category ... Robert Morris finished with four dunks, including the first career flush for both freshman forward Charles Bain and junior guard Matty McConnell.
 
Protect The Paint - Robert Morris has posted a perfect 3-0 record at PPG Paints Arena, and the duo of sophomore guard Dachon Burke and freshman forward Koby Thomas have taken well to the surroundings. Burke is averaging 20.0 points and 6.0 rebounds at PPG Paints Arena while shooting 48.9 percent (22-for-45) from the field, including 50 percent (10-for-20) from beyond the arc. Thomas, meanwhile, contributes averages of 19.3 points and 6.0 rebounds at PPG Paints Arena while shooting 57.1 percent (24-for-42) from the floor. Overall this season, Thomas leads RMU in home games with averages of 18.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per contest.
 
Deep Thoughts - Freshman guard Jon Williams has ... Knocked down each of his last four attempts from beyond the arc ... Shot 87.5 percent (7-for-8) from beyond the arc over the last three games ... Converted 66.7 percent (8-for-12) of his attempts from deep in Northeast Conference play ... Connected for at least two three-pointers in 10 of the last 11 games and has shot 61.4 percent (27-for-44) from beyond the arc in the last 11 games. Williams enters Thursday's game against Saint Francis U ranked second in the NEC in three-point field goal percentage (.477). The Colonials are 4-1 (.800) when Williams reaches double figures in scoring.
 
Man In The Middle - Graduate transfer Ronnie Gombe has made the most of his increased role since being inserted into the starting lineup in RMU's non-conference finale against Canisius (12/22/17). In his five games as a member of the starting five, Robert Morris has posted a record of 4-1 (.800). During that stretch, Gombe is supplying the Colonials with averages of 4.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game while shooting 45.8 percent (11-for-24) from the field. Gombe played a total of 26 minutes in RMU's first eight games of the season, but over his last nine games is converting 51.1 percent (24-for-47) of his attempts from the field in averaging 5.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest.
 
Depth Charge - Freshman guard Leondre Washington came off the bench and scored 12 points in an 88-79 win over LIU Brooklyn (1/6/18). It marked the sixth time the rookie has reached double figures off the bench this season, and overall in 2017-18 the Colonials have received 13 double-figure scoring games off the bench from four different players. In 17 games in 2017-18, RMU is averaging 21.2 points per game from its reserves.
 
Only The Young - As Robert Morris continues its Northeast Conference slate, rookies have played a key part for the Colonials in 2017-18. Freshman have supplied 52.1 percent (632-of-1,212) of RMU's scoring output. Overall, newcomers have scored 63.7 percent (772-of-1,212) of the points for Robert Morris this season.
 
Dunk You Very Much - Freshman forward Koby Thomas is proving to be extremely capable around the rim, as he has posted 21 dunks in 17 games 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).
 
Offensively Speaking ... Thanks to a shooting percentage of 53.1 percent (26-for-49) in an 81-74 victory @ Youngstown State (11/29/17), RMU improved to 38-5 (.884) when shooting 50 percent or better from the field in eight seasons under head coach Andrew Toole, including a mark of 29-1 (.967) against NEC opponents. Broken down against league foes, Robert Morris is 26-1 (.963) in the regular season and 3-0 in the NEC Tournament when converting at least half of its shots.
 
... Defensively Speaking - Robert Morris is 4-0 this season when holding opponents to less than 60 points. In eight years under head coach Andrew Toole, the Colonials are 53-7 (.883) when turning the trick. Dating back to last season, RMU has won six consecutive games when yielding under 60 points in a contest.

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