Women's Basketball | 3/16/2019 1:26:00 PM

GAME #32
#4 Saint Francis U Red Flash (16-16, 11-7 NEC) @ #1 Robert Morris Colonials (21-10, 16-2 NEC)
Sunday, March 17, 2019 // 2:00 p.m. // Moon Township, Pa. – North Athletic Complex (1,000)
2019 Northeast Conference Championship Game
TV: ESPNU // Live Stats: RMUColonials.com // Live Audio: ESPN 970 AM
- Melissa Lee, play-by-play; Mike Thibault, color commentary (ESPNU)
- Adam Gusky, play-by-play; Justin Pyles, color commentary (ESPN 970 AM)
 
Notes Package: Saint Francis U // Robert Morris

2019 NEC Tournament Information (Parking, Ticketing)

Musket Shots
> For the sixth consecutive season and 12th time overall, the Robert Morris University women's basketball team will compete in the NEC Championship Game when it hosts in-state rival Saint Francis U on Sunday, March 17, broadcast live on ESPNU. This is a rematch of last year's title tilt, one that the Red Flash won over the Colonials, 66-56. RMU is looking for its sixth NCAA Tournament berth with a win, while SFU seeks its 13th NCAA bid.
> RMU is the top seed in the NEC Tournament for the fourth time in program history, owning a 9-1 mark when headlining the bracket. The Colonials are 23-2 in home postseason contests, with the only blemishes coming in the 1996 play-in game and 2015 title tilt, and 7-4 in the championship game.
> Including postseason contests, the Colonials have won their last 31 home games against NEC foes, last falling to Saint Francis U, 70-55, on Jan. 16, 2017. RMU has won 11 this season, all 11 last season, and its last nine in 2016-17.
> This is the final game played at the North Athletic Complex, which served as the Colonials' temporary home for two seasons while the UPMC Events Center is under construction. Nicknamed the NAC, RMU owns a 27-5 record at the facility with a 14-3 mark this season. The Colonials closed out their previous arena, the Charles L. Sewall Center, with a 65-52 victory over Bryant in the 2017 NEC Championship Game.
 
Series History w/ Saint Francis U
Overall: 45-41 | Home: 25-14 | Away: 16-25 | Neutral: 1-2 | Streak: W2
Last Meeting: March 7, 2019; Moon Township, Pa. – Robert Morris 66, Saint Francis U 53
> This will be the 87th chapter of the Robert Morris-Saint Francis U rivalry and its fourth in a NEC Championship Game. The Colonials own a 45-41 edge in the all-time series, earning a regular-season sweep against the Red Flash for the first time since 2012. SFU is 6-4 against RMU in the postseason, including titles in 2005 and 2018. The Colonials were victorious in the 2014 NEC Championship Game.
> RMU closed the regular season with a 66-53 triumph over the Red Flash. The Colonials tied a school record with 13 three-pointers made, led by Nina Augustin's four-trifecta effort. Augustin paced the hosts with 14 points, while Isabella Posset added 13 on 3-of-6 shooting.
> In their first meeting, RMU outscored SFU, 11-4, over the final three minutes to bring home a 66-60 road win. Augustin scored a career-high 18 points on 6-of-12 from deep, as the Colonials fired a school-record 39 three-point attempts against the Red Flash zone.
 
Scouting the Red Flash
> Under the direction of interim head coach Susan Robinson Fruchtl, Saint Francis U will be looking to make it back-to-back NEC Tournament championships after topping fifth-seeded Bryant, 91-78, in the quarterfinals, and second-seeded Sacred Heart, 68-60, in a road semifinal matchup. The Red Flash own a 16-16 overall record and went 11-7 in NEC regular-season play.
> SFU is led by senior guard Jessica Kovatch, who is now the two-time NEC Player of the Year. Kovatch is averaging 30.5 points over the team's two postseason games, adding to her league-leading scoring average of 21.8. She also paces the circuit in three-pointers made (3.8), ranks second in free throw percentage (.861), and fourth in three-point percentage (.392). Sophomore forward Haley Thomas (9.6 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 43.9% FG%, 83.1% FT%) made the All-NEC Third Team, while fourth-year center Courtney Zezza is at the top of the conference in blocks (2.8) and ranks 12th in rebounding (6.1).
> The Red Flash boast the NEC's top team in blocks (4.2) and three-pointers (9.6), while ranking second in scoring offense (72.3) and steals (8.8). SFU also slots third in field goal percentage (.404), three-point percentage (.340), and rebounding offense (37.4). The Red Flash are near the bottom of the league in three-point field goal defense (.329, 8th), scoring defense (75.5, 10th), and rebounding defense (41.1, 10th).
 
NEC's Finest
> RMU won four NEC postseason honors on Monday, including a pair of major awards and the team's eighth All-NEC First Team selection in the last nine seasons.
> For the third consecutive season, Charlie Buscaglia was named Brenda Reilly NEC Coach of the Year. Buscaglia is the first league coach to win the award in three straight years, and now is one shy of tying Bill Sheahan of Mount St. Mary's and Ed Swanson of Sacred Heart for the conference record. The third-year coach became the fastest to reach 50 career wins in program history, nabbing the victory in his 76th try - a 64-63 win over Delaware State on Dec. 18.
> Nneka Ezeigbo collected NEC Defensive Player of the Year and All-NEC First Team accolades. Ezeigbo - the program's first DPOY recipient since Angela Pace '10 in 2010 - was the league's only player to rank in the top eight of both blocks (1.4, 4th) and steals (1.7, 8th), collecting multiple steals in 16 contests and two or more blocks in 10. She also slots fourth in rebounding (7.7), 10th in field goal percentage (.484), and 11th in scoring (12.6) despite playing just 24.6 minutes per contest. Ezeigbo previously made the Rookie and Second Teams in her previous two seasons.
> Isabella Posset became RMU's 11th All-NEC Rookie Team selection since 2009-10. A three-time NEC Rookie of the Week winner, Posset paces the Colonials in minutes (25.6), assists (2.7), and steals (1.9), while slotting second in scoring (7.7). She ranks fifth in the NEC in steals and 12th in assists, and paces her rookie counterparts in both categories.
 
Turn Off the Lights
> The North Athletic Complex has served as Robert Morris' temporary home for two seasons, but Sunday's NEC Championship Game will be its last hurrah. The Colonials are 28-5 in the facility, including a perfect 21-0 against NEC opponents. RMU will move into its new home, the UPMC Events Center, prior to the 2019-20 season.
> The Colonials were in a similar situation for the 2017 NEC Championship Game, as they played their final game at the Charles L. Sewall Center, home of both basketball teams and volleyball since November 1985. Top-seeded RMU defeated fourth-seeded Bryant, 65-52, to close "The Chuck" with an NCAA Tournament dance.
 
Firing On All Cylinders
> Nneka Ezeigbo has been as reliable as they come down the stretch. In the last nine contests, the junior is averaging 17.2 points on 59.1 percent shooting, 8.7 rebounds, 2.0 blocks, and 1.6 steals. She has scored in double figures in nine of those 10 games and posted a trio of double-doubles. Ezeigbo tallied a career-high 30 points on Feb. 25 against LIU Brooklyn, and matched her career best with five blocks on March 7 against Saint Francis U.
> Nina Augustin has played the best basketball of her career over the last seven games, averaging 12.4 points on 44.2 percent shooting from deep, 3.0 rebounds, 2.9 three-pointers, 2.6 assists, and 1.5 steals. After coming off the bench since Dec. 15 against Pitt-Johnstown, the sophomore returned to the starting lineup on Feb. 16 at Mount St. Mary's and scored a career-high 18 points (6-12 3PT) two days later at Saint Francis U.
 
Leap, Not Slump
> One of the NEC's most improved players has to be Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu. As a freshman in 2017-18, she averaged just 0.9 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 3.6 minutes per game in 17 contests. After reaching double-figures scoring for the seventh time this season at Wagner (16 points), she's upped her per-game averages to 6.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 15.2 minutes as a sophomore.
> Ozzy-Momodu doesn't have quite enough field goal attempts to qualify, but if she did, she would rank first in the NEC in field goal percentage (.576). According to the women's basketball analytics website, HerHoopStats.com, the sophomore ranks second nationally in defensive rebounding rate (32.7%) and seventh in total rebounding rate (23.7%).
 
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. Nine times this season, RMU has held its opponent to 50 points or fewer - Nov. 11 against La Salle (39), Nov. 13 against Rhode Island (46), Jan. 7 against Fairleigh Dickinson (49), Jan. 14 at LIU Brooklyn (37), Jan. 26 against Wagner (46), Jan. 28 against Sacred Heart (46), Feb. 2 at FDU (43), Feb. 11 against Central Connecticut (40), and March 11 against Fairleigh Dickinson (38). The Colonials held the Knights to a 27.3 percent (12-44) clip from the floor, making them the 21th different opponent to shoot under 30 percent since 2016-17.
> The Colonials forced 20 turnovers against FDU, the 18th game in which they have made their opponent make 20 or more mistakes. They're averaging 20.29 forced turnovers a game, a mark that leads the NEC and ranks 24th nationally. According to HerHoopStats.com, RMU's defensive turnover rate is 25.5 percent, which is the sixth best behind Hartford, Lamar, Quinnipiac, Kentucky, and Florida Gulf Coast.
> Through 31 games, RMU currently paces the NEC in scoring defense by allowing 54.9 points per game, which also slots 12th nationally. 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 21-0 in such situations this season and went 25-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 619-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.

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