Women's Basketball | 1/19/2020 10:49:00 AM
Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University women's basketball team concludes its season-long four-game home stand on Monday, Jan. 20 at 1:00 p.m. when Sacred Heart makes its debut at Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center. The Colonials remained the lone Northeast Conference (NEC) unbeaten with a dominant 72-50 victory against Merrimack on Saturday, and have Saint Francis U (5-1) and Mount St. Mary's (4-1) a game behind them in the loss column.
GAME #17
Sacred Heart Pioneers (6-10, 3-2 NEC) @ Robert Morris Colonials (10-6, 5-0 NEC)
Monday, January 20, 2020 // 1:00 p.m. // Moon Township, Pa. – Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center (4,000)
Live Video: NEC Front Row // Live Stats: RMUColonials.com
Building Bridges Through Basketball
Notes Package: Sacred Heart // Robert Morris
Tickets: Ticketmaster
History w/ Sacred Heart
Overall: 15-24 | Home: 10-8 | Away: 5-16 | Neutral: 0-0 | Streak: L1
Last Game: March 4, 2019 – Fairfield, Conn. – Sacred Heart 54, Robert Morris 45
Robert Morris trails Sacred Heart in the all-time series, 24-15, but has won four of the last five and eight of the last 12 meetings.
Two days after clinching the outright NEC regular-season title last year, the Colonials fell on the road to the Pioneers, 54-45.
Nneka Ezeigbo finished with 14 points (7-14 FG) and nine rebounds, but RMU struggled to shoot the ball, converting just 27.0 percent of its field goal attempts - a mark that included a 6-of-30 effort from deep.
The Colonial center duo of Ezeigbo and
Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu were the difference in the last home matchup, a 64-46 triumph on Jan. 28, 2019. They both posted double-doubles, combining for 30 points on 13-of-20 shooting and 22 rebounds, and held SHU's top scorer Katherine Haines to seven points (2-10 FG) and four caroms.
Scouting the Pioneers
Seventh-year head coach Jessica Mannetti has maintained one of the most consistent programs in the NEC since taking over, and this season's squad is no different. Sacred Heart sits at 3-2 in the league, picking up victories over Merrimack (63-60), Wagner (79-65), and Central Connecticut (66-58).
Three players are averaging double figures in scoring, and junior guard Adrianne Hagood leads the way at 16.1 points per game on 40.9 percent shooting. Redshirt junior guard Nikki Johnson is at 10.9 points per contest, while third-year guard Jayla Davis averages 10.4. Another junior, Jessica Woods, is the Pioneers' leader in rebounding (6.8) and blocks (1.6), and averages 9.3 points per game.
The Pioneers rank second in the NEC in blocks (4.00), third in three-point percentage (.324), and fifth in scoring defense (67.67). They slot at the bottom of the league in three-point percentage defense (.357, 10th), rebounding margin (-5.40, 10th), assists (10.60, 11th), and assist-to-turnover ratio (0.59, 11th).
New Year's Resolutions
Since the calendar flipped over to 2020, junior center
Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu and sophomore guard
Isabella Posset have raised their games up a level. Off the strength of career performances against Merrimack, they - along with senior center
Nneka Ezeigbo - are averaging double-digit points in the Colonials' five NEC contests.
Ozzy-Momodu posted a 17-point, 17-rebound double-double on Saturday against the Warriors, and is averaging 12.2 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.2 blocks, and 1.0 steals in 17.2 minutes per game. She is also converting at a 57.8 percent conversion rate from the floor this calendar year. Posset tallied a career-tying 16 points (6-9 FG, 4-4 3PT) versus Merrimack, and is averaging 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.0 steals in league play. The Beaver, Pa. product has made half of her 20 three-point attempts during this stretch, and has scored in double figures in five of her last seven games.
The Defense (Never) Rests
Robert Morris prides itself on its defense and this season is no different. The Colonials entered the weekend ranked 12th nationally in turnovers forced (21.87), 22nd in turnover margin (+5.67) and steals (10.9), and 58th in scoring defense (58.7) - 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 147 games. In 68 of those contests, the Colonials have forced 20 or more turnovers from their opponent - a number that includes 10 such instances this season.
#NECNewYear
Robert Morris has opened the conference slate with a 5-0 record for the sixth time in program history. The Colonials have achieved this in each of the last three seasons, and also started 5-0 in 2005-06, 2009-10, and 2010-11.
RMU is 15-1 in conference openers since 2004-05 after an 86-56 victory at Central Connecticut 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 lidlifter 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.
Bench Brigade
The Colonial bench has produced all season long, averaging 22.6 points per game and 8.7 more than their opponents' reserves. The unit has tallied double-digit points in 13 consecutive games and 15 contests overall, while hitting the 25-point mark in five straight contests.
Charlie Buscaglia has always had a strong bench since taking over as head coach prior to 2016-17. RMU received 23.5 points per game from its reserves in 2018-19 and 20.0 in 2017-18.
The Colonial bench has scored 30 or more points twice this season, highlighted by a season-high 34-point effort in a 72-50 win against Merrimack on Saturday. Since 2016-17, RMU is 14-1 when it receives 30 or more points from its reserves.
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 10-0 in such situations this season, and went 22-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 630-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
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