Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University men's basketball team will open Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center Tuesday, November 12, 2019, by hosting the University of Pittsburgh for its inaugural game.
"We're extremely thrilled to open the UPMC Events Center against the University of Pittsburgh," head coach
Andrew Toole said. "Going up against a quality, local opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference that is extremely well coached is a great opportunity for our program. The opening of our new arena with our first game against the Panthers will be a historic day not only for our program but for the Robert Morris University community and the region."
Tickets for RMU's first game will go on sale Monday, April 8, 2019, at 10:00 a.m. through Ticketmaster. In order to purchase tickets for the game against Pitt, season tickets must be purchased.
"Playing in the inaugural game at RMU's new venue is a terrific opportunity for our program to face a quality non-conference opponent in what is sure to be an outstanding road environment," said University of Pittsburgh head coach Jeff Capel. "Coach Toole has built a very good program and we are excited to help RMU open their new building."
Construction on Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center is expected to be completed this spring. It replaces the Charles L. Sewall Center, where RMU posted a record of 278-149 (.651) from 1985 to 2017. The Colonials won four Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament championships (1989, 1990, 1992, 2009) at the Sewall Center and also earned arguably its biggest victory in school history with a 59-57 win over Kentucky in the first round of the 2013 NIT.
Under Toole's guidance, Robert Morris has posted a record of 168-139 (.547) in nine years, including a mark of 102-58 (.638) in the NEC. The Colonials earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2015, have played twice in the NIT (2013, 2014) and twice in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT) (2012, 2019) under Toole.
Senior guard
Josh Williams was named to the 2019 All-NEC Third Team and is leading the Colonials in scoring with an average of 14.6 points per game in 2018-19. He led RMU to a 98-89 overtime win over Cornell (3/14/19) in the first round of the 2019 CIT at the North Athletic Complex by scoring a game-high 36 points.
Senior guard
Matty McConnell has produced averages of 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game in 2018-19 and thanks to five three-pointers in the win over the Big Red pushed his career total in triples to 202. He joins former guard Jeremy Chappell (2005-09) as the only student-athletes in program history to eclipse career totals of 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists, 200 steals and 200 three-pointers.
In the last 12 years, Robert Morris has posted an overall record of 241-170 (.586), an average of 20.1 victories per season. During that span, the Colonials own three appearances in the NCAA Tournament (2009, 2010, 2015), three in the NIT (2008, 2013, 2014) and two in the CIT (2012, 2019).
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