Women's Basketball | 11/16/2019 3:59:00 PM
Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University women's basketball looks to build off back-to-back wins, as it hosts Columbia this Sunday, Nov. 17 in its second game at Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center. The Colonials are in the middle of a stretch where they're playing five of six games at their new 4,000-seat facility, including three straight beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 27.
GAME #4
Columbia Lions (1-3, 0-0 Ivy League) @ Robert Morris Colonials (2-1, 0-0 NEC)
Sunday, November 17, 2019 // 12:00 p.m. // Moon Township, Pa. – Peoples Court at UPMC Events Center (4,000)
Live Video: NEC Front Row // Live Stats: RMUColonials.com
Notes Package: Columbia // Robert Morris
History w/ Columbia
Overall: 0-1 | Home: 0-1 | Away; 0-0 | Neutral: 0-0 | Streak: L1
Last Game: Dec. 30, 2009 – Moon Township, Pa. – Columbia 64, Robert Morris 63
This will be the second meeting between Robert Morris and Columbia in their histories, and the first one in nearly 10 years.
The first matchup was a heartbreaker for the Colonials, as the Lions' Lauren Dwyer buried a three-pointer as time expired to give the visitors a 64-63 win. Angela Pace '11 led the team with 22 points on 10-of-16 shooting and seven rebounds. Kristine Silaraja '12 added 12 points with a 4-of-6 effort from deep.
Robert Morris is 5-17 all-time against Youngstown State, but won the last meeting in Moon Township in 2017. The Colonials' last two victories over the Penguins have been by a combined 62 points.
Scouting the Lions
Guided by fourth-year head coach and school alumna Megan Griffith, Columbia is 1-3 in the early portion of the season with a victory over reigning Atlantic 10 Tournament champion Fordham. The Lions knocked off the Rams at home last Sunday, 70-51.
Columbia was one of two Ivy League teams to return multiple all-conference selections, as sophomore Sienna Durr was the league Rookie of the Year and senior Janiya Clemmons earned Honorable Mention designation. But it's been freshman guard Abbey Hsu who has led the way thus far, as she's averaging 17.0 points on 51.9 shooting and 6.0 rebounds through her first four collegiate contests. Fellow first-year Kaitlyn Davis has also been a major contributor, coming off the bench to average 9.8 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
The Lions are shooting 41.5 percent from the field and 75.6 percent at the free throw stripe, but are struggling from deep with just a 28.2 percent conversion rate. Columbia has been excellent on the glass, owning a rebounding margin of 8.0 caroms per game.
New Season, New Home
Robert Morris opened its new 4,000-seat arena, Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center, with a 58-43 victory over Youngstown State on Wednesday. The win was the Colonials' first to open a new home venue since the program started at the John Jay Center, as they fell in their Charles L. Sewall Center (1985-2017) and North Athletic Complex (2017-19) debuts.
RMU lost its opener at 'The Chuck', 78-60, to Youngstown State on Dec. 4, 1985. In the inaugural game at 'The NAC', the Colonials fell in overtime to Bowling Green, 64-62.
While RMU is happy to have its new arena to play in, it surely enjoyed its two seasons at the North Athletic Complex. The Colonials went 29-5 (.833) at the two-year temporary home - a mark that included a perfect 22-0 (1.000) record against NEC opponents.
Nneka Nears 1,000
Senior center
Nneka Ezeigbo is on the verge of joining the 1,000 point club, needing 17 more points to reach the milestone. Ezeigbo would become the 24th player in program history to meet the mark, and first Colonial since
Megan Smith '18 (Dec. 31, 2017 at Sacred Heart) to achieve the feat.
It's been a steady climb in the scoring category for Ezeigbo over her career. Primarily a key reserve in her first two seasons, she averaged 6.8 points per game as a freshman before increasing that mark to 10.4 as a sophomore. Last season, the center averaged 12.5 points per contest and entered 2019-20 just 64 points shy of the milestone. Ezeigbo is currently averaging 15.7 points per game, thanks in part to performances of 21 points at La Salle and 17 points against Youngstown State the last two contests.
Turn 'Em Over
In the Colonials' first win of the season last Saturday, the defense was opportunistic against the Explorers, forcing 33 turnovers from the hosts. The 33 caused turnovers are the most for RMU since Nov. 15, 2011, when it forced 36 in a 78-44 win over Kent State.
After turning Youngstown State over 25 times on Wednesday, Robert Morris ranks 16th nationally in caused turnovers with a per-game average of 25.00. The Colonials ranked 24th in that category last season, averaging 20.18 per game. They forced 20 or more turnovers on 19 occasions in 2018-19, and kept all its opponents in double figures.
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 22-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 622-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
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