Women's Basketball | 1/7/2019 7:28:00 AM
GAME #13
Fairleigh Dickinson (3-9, 0-1 NEC)) @ Robert Morris Colonials (4-8, 1-0 NEC)
Monday, January 7, 2019 // 7:00 p.m. // 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: Fairleigh Dickinson // Robert Morris
Musket Shots
> The Robert Morris University women's basketball team looks to complete a sweep on NEC opening weekend when it hosts Fairleigh Dickinson on Monday, Jan. 7. The Colonials have won three of their last four games, previously topping Mount St. Mary's, 70-58, on Saturday. The Knights are coming off a 75-64 defeat at Saint Francis U to open their conference campaign.
> RMU's victory over Mount St. Mary's on Saturday was their 14th in the last 15 NEC lid-lifters, with a 69-59 loss at Sacred Heart to begin the 2015-16 league slate being the only blemish during that period. The Colonials are now 21-13 all-time in conference openers.
> This is the first time since the 2015-16 season that Robert Morris has opened NEC play at home, previously playing at Sacred Heart and Fairleigh Dickinson, respectively, the last two seasons. The Colonials last began league action against the Mountaineers on Jan. 3, 2015, which ended in a 66-44 home victory.
> 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.
Series History w/ Fairleigh Dickinson
Overall: 40-26 | Home: 25-9 | Away: 15-16 | Neutral: 0-1 | Streak: W6
Last Meeting: Feb. 17, 2018; Moon Township, Pa. – Robert Morris 62, Fairleigh Dickinson 49
> This will be the 67th meeting between Robert Morris and Fairleigh Dickinson, and the 35th in Moon Township. The Colonials have won the last six matchups, two of those victories coming in the 2016 and 2017 NEC Tournament quarterfinals.
> RMU started an eight-game win streak in its last meeting with the Knights, topping them in Moon Township, 62-49. The Colonials trailed 40-39 after three quarters, but used a 23-9 difference in the final stanza to come away victorious. Honoka Ikematsu led the Colonials with 12 points on 4-of-8 from deep, while Nina Augustin and Mikalah Mulrain '18 both added 10 points.
> In last season's NEC lid-lifter, RMU brought home a 77-68 win at FDU. The Colonials saw five players reach double-figure scoring, led by Ikematsu's 23 points (7-10 FG, 6-7 3PT). The 23 points was the most for a RMU player in an NEC opener since Jan. 4, 2014.
Scouting the Knights
> Led by 12th-year head coach Peter Cinella, Fairleigh Dickinson owns a 3-9 overall record and 0-1 mark in NEC play, falling it its league opener at Saint Francis U, 75-64. The Knights hold victories over Rutgers-Newark (97-51), NJIT (64-43), and Georgian Court (70-45), but are 0-7 on the road thus far.
> Senior guard Peniel M'Bikata is the lone player averaging double-figure scoring numbers for FDU, pacing the team at 10.8 points per game. Junior forward Lauren Francillon has started just two games, but is contributing 8.2 points and a team-best 5.0 rebounds per contest off the bench. Senior guard Natalie Zamora is the team leader in assists (30) and steals (27), and is shooting 76.7 percent (23-30) from the free throw stripe.
> FDU shares the conference lead in steals per game (10.1) and tops its foes in turnover margin (+2.92) and blocks per game (4.2). The Knights also rank second in free throw percentage (.715) and assist-to-turnover ratio (0.7).
New Year, New Colonials
> A 3-8 non-conference record isn't exactly what Robert Morris wanted entering NEC play, but the good news is that the Colonials have been on the mark in their league opener as of late. After RMU's 70-58 triumph over Mount St. Mary's this past Saturday, it is now 14-1 in its first conference game of the season since the 2004-05 campaign.
> The margin of victory over those 14 wins has been 15.5 points per game. 10 of the triumphs have been by double-digits, with last season's 77-68 win at Fairleigh Dickinson nearly missing the mark. In that contest, Honoka Ikematsu scored a then-career-high 23 points (7-10 FG, 6-7 3PT), Megan Smith '18 tallied 15 points and seven rebounds, and Nneka Ezeigbo posted a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double off the bench.
> RMU is 21-13 all-time in ECAC Metro / NEC opening contests. The Colonials' largest margin of victory in a league curtain-opener came on Dec. 2, 2010 when they doubled up St. Francis (N.Y.), 72-36. In her conference debut, Artemis Spanou '14 registered an 18-point, 13-rebound double-double, while Kristine Silaraja '11 added 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting.
Outstanding Ozzy
> Sophomore center Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu has stepped up in a big way this season, after averaging just 3.6 minutes per game as a freshman. Over the last four games, Ozzy-Momodu is averaging 11.0 points and 9.5 rebounds, while shooting 55.2 percent (16-29) from the floor.
> Against Mount St. Mary's, Ozzy-Momodu scored a career-high 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting, with 10 of those points coming in the fourth quarter. Before this four-game stretch, the sophomore had never scored 10 points in an entire collegiate game.
> Ozzy-Momodu posted back-to-back double-doubles against Pitt Johnstown (11 pts, 16 reb) and Delaware State (10 pts, 10 reb). In the latter contest, the sophomore put in a missed jumper with seven seconds left to push the Colonials past the Hornets, 64-63.
Continuing the Legacy
> With Robert Morris' 64-63 victory over Delaware State, head coach Charlie Buscaglia became the third coach in program history to reach the 50 mark, and the fastest to do so. The Empire State native owns a .654 winning percentage through 78 contests, and has won 83.8 percent (31 of 37) of his NEC games. His 22 wins in 2016-17 established a new school record for a first-year head coach.
> After taking the reins from his father, Sal Buscaglia, prior to the 2016-17 season, Coach B, as he is respectfully called, has continued to raise the bar for the program. He's been named Brenda Reilly NEC Coach of the Year in each of his first two seasons, leading the Colonials two NEC regular-season titles, a NEC Tournament crown and subsequent NCAA Tournament berth, and a Postseason WNIT appearance during that span.
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 22 turnovers against Mount St. Mary's, the eighth game in which they have made their opponent make 20 or more mistakes. They're averaging 20.92 forced turnovers a game, a mark that leads the NEC and ranks 36th nationally. Last season, RMU forced 20 or more turnovers on 15 occasions.
> Through 12 games, RMU currently paces the NEC in scoring defense by allowing 59.6 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 4-0 in such situations this season and went 25-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 602-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
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