GAME #10
Delaware State Hornets (2-6, 0-0 MEAC) @ Robert Morris Colonials (2-7, 0-0 NEC)
Tuesday, December 18, 2018 // 10:00 AM // Moon Township, Pa. – North Athletic Complex (1,000)
Live Video: NEC Front Row // Live Stats: RMUColonials.com
Play-by-Play: Adam Gusky, Color Commentary: Justin Pyles​​​​​​​
Notes Package: Robert Morris
Musket Shots
> The Robert Morris University women's basketball team will look to string together consecutive wins for the first time this season when it hosts Delaware State on Tuesday, Dec. 18 for a special 10:00 AM (ET) tip on Career & Education Day. The Colonials are coming off a 73-53 victory over Pitt-Johnstown this past Saturday to snap a six-game losing streak, while the Hornets last fell to Cornell, 94-59.
> This is the seventh straight season that the Colonials have played a contest with a 10:00 AM (ET) opening tip, previously playing a pair last year with the opening of the North Athletic Complex.
> This six-game home stand is the longest this season for the Colonials. RMU's first home stand was just two games, and it doesn't have more than two straight home games over the remainder of the 2018-19 campaign.
> Third-year head coach Charlie Buscaglia sits a win shy of 50 for his career following last Saturday's triumph against Pitt-Johnstown. Buscaglia is looking to reach 50 victories faster than any other coach in program history, the record currently held by Dan Swalga at 78 games. His father, Sal Buscaglia, reached the 50-win mark at RMU on Dec. 28, 2006 after 96 contests in charge of the Colonials.
Series History w/ Delaware State
Overall: 2-1 | Home: 0-0 | Away: 1-0 | Neutral: 1-1 | Streak: W2
Last Meeting: Dec. 6, 2017; Dover, Del. – Robert Morris 65, Delaware State 42
> This will be the first time in four meetings that the Robert Morris/Delaware State series has been played in Moon Township. The teams have played a pair of neutral-site games in Buffalo, N.Y. and Greenville, N.C. at the Canisius Invitational and East Carolina Thanksgiving Classic.
> Last season in Dover, the Colonials held the Hornets to 27.7 percent shooting in a 65-42 victory. RMU received a near double-double from Megan Smith '18, who led the visitors with 19 points (6-12 FG) and nine rebounds. Nneka Ezeigbo and Jocelynne Jones '18 added 10 points each, while RMU as a team outrebounded DSU, 48-30.
> Kelly Hartwell '14 and Artemis Spanou '14 both tallied 20 points in a 75-67 win over the Hornets to close the 2011 ECU Thanksgiving Classic.
Scouting the Hornets
> Led by first-year head coach David Caputo, Delaware State owns a 2-6 record after winning just six contests last season. The Hornets picked up wins over Post (65-53) on Nov. 17 and Cheyney (79-59) on Dec. 5.
> Senior forward NaJai Pollard was named to the Preseason All-MEAC First Team after averaging 18.4 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game in 2017-18. DSU was picked to finish 10th out of 12 teams in the MEAC standings, according to a poll of the league's head coaches and sports information directors.
> Pollard is pacing the Hornets in scoring (22.1 PPG), rebounding (9.5 RPG), blocks (19), and steals (11), while shooting 49.7 percent from the floor. Junior guard Lanayjha Ashe is also averaging double figures with 13.0 points per game, adding a team-best 17 assists and 11 steals. Senior guard Keke Barber paces DSU beyond the arc with 11 three-pointers made on a 34.4 percent conversion rate.
Isa Rookie of the Week
> Isabella Posset earned her first career start this past Saturday against Pitt-Johnstown and didn't disappoint the coaching staff, earning NEC Rookie of the Week accolades following a 16-point performance.
> Posset went for a career-high and team-best 16 points against the Mountain Cats, converting 5-of-8 attempts from the field and 4-of-7 from deep. She added three rebounds, an assist, block, and steal to go with her scoring efforts in 29 minutes at point guard.
> The Rookie of the Week plaudit is the first of Posset's career. She's the 13th Colonial in program history to earn the award and the fifth active player, joining Megan Callahan, Shakema Dashiell, Nneka Ezeigbo, and Honoka Ikematsu.
Outstanding Ozzy
> Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu enjoyed her best collegiate performance against Pitt-Johnstown, posting her first career double-double with 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting and 16 rebounds.
> The team's leading rebounder at 6.9 per game, Ozzy-Momodu now has a pair of double-digit efforts on the glass, previously pulling down 13 against La Salle. The 16 caroms are the most for a Colonial since Dec. 14, 2014 when Judith Sole grabbed 17 against Duquesne.
Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes
> For the first time this season against Pitt-Johnstown, Robert Morris rolled out a different starting lineup with Isabella Posset and Honoka Ikematsu entering the first five.
> While Ikematsu had an off day shooting the ball in her first start since the 2018 Postseason WNIT, the sophomore guard from Japan swiped four steals in 19 minutes, matching her personal single-game high.
> Nina Augustin had a strong afternoon coming off the bench, scoring a season-best 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting. Augustin converted 2-of-5 attempts from deep and added a pair of assists and steals in 20 minutes, while also avoiding turning the ball over for the first time in 2018-19.
Ezeigbo Knows
> After a slow start to her junior campaign, Nneka Ezeigbo has heated up over the holiday season. Ezeigbo has scored in double figures in four of the last five games, bumping her scoring average from 7.8 to a team-best 10.7 points per game.
>Â Ezeigbo established a new season-high on Dec. 7 against Kent State, scoring 18 points on 8-of-14 from the field. Over this five-game stretch, the junior is averaging 13.0 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game, while shooting 57.4 percent (27-47) from the floor.
> Thanksgiving might be Ezeigbo's favorite holiday. She's now made back-to-back All-Tournament Teams at both the ShareSLO Holiday Beach Classic and LMU Thanksgiving Classic, averaging 11.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, and 2.0 steals over the last two Turkey Day tourneys. Ezeigbo is shooting 55.6 percent (20-36 FG) from the field and 77.8 percent (7-9 FT) at the stripe during those games.
The Defense (Never) Rests
> Defense has been the Colonials' calling card over the last few seasons, and 2018-19 isn't shaping up to be any different. RMU held La Salle to just 39 points on Nov. 11 and Rhode Island to 46 on Nov. 13, the 24th and 25th times since 2016-17 that it has limited an opponent to 50 points or fewer. On Dec. 7, the Colonials held Kent State to a 26.5 percent (13-49) clip from the floor, making the Golden Flashes the 17th different opponent to shoot under 30 percent since 2016-17.
> The Colonials forced 25 turnovers against Pitt-Johnstown, the sixth game in which they have made their opponent make 20 or more mistakes. They're averaging 20.78 forced turnovers a game, a mark that leads the NEC and ranks 49th nationally. Last season, RMU forced 20 or more turnovers on 15 occasions.
> Through nine games, RMU currently paces the NEC in scoring defense by allowing 59.4 points per game. The Colonials have established a new school record two years running in scoring defense, limiting opponents to 57.0 PPG in 2016-17 and 54.1 PPG last season. Last season's mark also ranked eighth nationally.
Insurmountable Lead
> Robert Morris has never lost a game in which it has held the lead at the end of the second half. The Colonials are 2-0 in such situations this season and went 25-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 600-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
Follow the Colonials: Facebook |  Twitter | Instagram
Â
