Women's Basketball | 1/10/2020 12:10:00 PM
Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University women's basketball begins a season-long four-game home stand on Saturday, Jan. 11 at 4:00 p.m. when it hosts Wagner at Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center. The Colonials are one of three teams to remain unbeaten in Northeast Conference (NEC) play after the league's opening weekend, picking up victories at Central Connecticut (86-56) and Merrimack (68-62).
GAME #14
Wagner Seahawks (4-9, 0-2 NEC) @ Robert Morris Colonials (7-6, 2-0 NEC)
Saturday, January 11, 2020 // 4:00 p.m. // Moon Township, Pa. – Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center (4,000)
Live Video: NEC Front Row // Live Stats: RMUColonials.com
Notes Package: Wagner // Robert Morris
Tickets: Ticketmaster
History w/ Wagner
Overall: 35-31 | Home: 17-14 | Away: 15-16 | Neutral: 3-1 | Streak: W8
Last Game: March 2, 2019 – Staten Island, N.Y. – Robert Morris 77, Wagner 57
Robert Morris has dominated the series against Wagner as of late, winning the last eight meetings to take a 35-31 lead overall. Six of the triumphs over this stretch have been by double-digits, including a pair of 30-plus victories on Feb. 27, 2016 (79-49 away) and Feb. 11, 2017 (74-41 home).
The Colonials won last year's NEC regular-season crown outright with a 77-57 win in Staten Island on March 2, 2019. RMU scored 32 points in the first quarter, the most it has ever done to open a game in the four-quarter era.
Nneka Ezeigbo (20 pts),
Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu (16 pts), and
Isabella Posset (14 pts) all reached double figures in the triumph.
The last meeting in Moon Township was on Jan. 26, 2018, and it finished 69-46 to the Colonials. RMU held Wagner to just three points in the fourth quarter and converted 50 percent of its field goals in the second half.
Honoka Ikematsu buried her 100th career three-pointer in the win and shared high honors in scoring with
Nina Augustin, as the then-sophomore duo tallied 14 points each.
Nneka Ezeigbo added 13 points and a career-high 17 rebounds for a double-double.
Scouting the Seahawks
Led by fourth-year head coach Heather Jacobs, Wagner is still searching for its first NEC victory and owns a 4-9 mark overall. The Seahawks won four of their first seven games, but have lost their last six outings - all by double digits.
Sophomore forward Emilija Krista Grava leads the team in scoring (15.7 PPG) and field goal percentage (.497), ranking fourth and third in the NEC in those respective categories. She is one of three Wagner players averaging double figures on the scoresheet, with junior guard Khaleah Edwards (12.3 PPG) and freshman guard Alex Cowan (11.8 PPG) joining her.
The Seahawks are one of the league's better offensive units, ranking second in assists (14.15), fourth in field goal percentage (.380) and three-pointers made (7.08), and fifth in scoring offense (62.85). They struggle on the defensive end, however, slotting nine in turnover margin (-2.92), ninth in three-point field goal percentage defense (.352), 10th in blocked shots (1.92), and dead last in scoring defense (75.62) and field goal percentage defense (.444).
Protect Ya Nneka
Nneka Ezeigbo has carved out one of the best careers in program history, and she has done so despite sharing time at the center position with
Mikalah Mulrain '18 and
Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu. On Jan. 2 at Central Connecticut, the senior achieved an impressive accomplishment for the seventh time in her career, as she recorded more points than minutes played.
Ezeigbo finished with 24 points (10-12 FG, 4-5 FT) in 22 minutes against Blue Devils, marking the second time she has done that this season. She also accomplished this on Nov. 24 at Kent State, tallying 18 points (8-9 FG, 2-3 FT) in 17 minutes. The five other instances include her career-high 30-point performance (13-20 FG, 4-4 FT) in 28 minutes against LIU Brooklyn last season, a 21-point effort (9-10 FG, 3-4 FT) in 18 minutes in the 2018 NEC Tournament semifinals, and a 1.23 point-per-minute outing as a freshman against Mount St. Mary's (16 pts, 13 mins).
#NECNewYear
With victories at Central Connecticut and Merrimack last week, Robert Morris has opened the conference slate with a 2-0 record for the 15th time in program history. The Colonials have achieved this in each of the last three seasons, and started 2-0 in five straight campaigns from 2008-09 to 2012-13.
RMU is 15-1 in conference openers since 2004-05 after an 86-56 victory against the Blue Devils on Jan. 2. The lone blemish during that stretch came on Dec. 31, 2016, a 69-59 loss at Sacred Heart.
The margin of victory in those 15 wins has been 16.5 points per game, with 11 of those triumphs coming by double-digits. The Colonials are now 22-13 all-time in ECAC Metro / NEC opening contests, with the largest margin of victory coming on Dec. 2, 2010 in a 72-36 triumph over St. Francis (N.Y.). 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.
The Defense (Never) Rests
Robert Morris prides itself on its defense and this season is no different. The Colonials rank 11th nationally in turnovers forced (22.46), 12th in turnover margin (+7.15), and 19th in steals (11.4) - all of those numbers topping the conference circuit.
Last season, RMU slotted 12th in the NCAA in scoring defense (55.3), 24th in turnovers forced (20.18), 26th in turnover margin (+4.18), and 32nd in steals (9.9). The Colonials have posted a top-25 scoring defense in each of the last three seasons, coming in at 25th in 2016-17 (57.0), and eighth in 2017-18 (54.1). The 2017-18 mark in a school record, breaking the previous standard set the year prior.
RMU is in the midst of an impressive streak, causing double-digit turnovers in each of its last 144 games. In 66 of those contests, the Colonials have forced 20 or more turnovers from their opponent - a number that includes eight such instances this season.
Bench Brigade
RMU's bench came to play in its 86-56 win at Central Connecticut on Jan. 2, scoring a season-high 30 points. The Colonials followed that up with 29 points from their bench at Merrimack, marking the 10th straight game that the reserves have tallied double-digit points, and the 12th time overall this season.
Charlie Buscaglia has always had a strong bench since taking over as head coach prior to 2016-17. RMU is averaging 21.0 points per game from its bench this season, after getting 23.5 in 2018-19 and 20.0 in 2017-18.
The Colonials are 13-1 since 2016-17 when they receive 30 or more points from their bench.
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 7-0 in such situations this season, and went 22-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 627-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
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