Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University men's basketball team concluded a four-game homestand Monday at Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center with a 67-55 victory over Sacred Heart. The Colonials posted a 3-1 (.750) mark during its homestand and improved to 5-2 (.714) in its new venue.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Tied, 7-7, at the 15:13 mark of the first half, RMU used a 16-0 spurt to open up a 23-7 lead with 8:34 left before halftime. Junior forward
AJ Bramah began the run with a dunk, while sophomore guard
Jalen Hawkins contributed five points, including a three-point play. Bramah provided Robert Morris (9-10 / 5-1 NEC) with a boost in the first half, notching a double-double in the first 20 minutes of action with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
EVEN SHOV DIDN'T SEE THAT
The first half was part of an all-around effort from Bramah, who after tying a career high in scoring in each of his previous four games broke through by leading RMU with a career-high 18 points on a perfect 9-for-9 shooting performance against the Pioneers. It was his effort on the glass, however, that turned heads. Bramah tied a 40-year Robert Morris record by grabbing 20 rebounds, a record that was originally established by former forward Mike Morton (1978-80) in a 67-63 loss @ Baltimore Jan. 12, 1980. A span of 1,213 games went by between the two performances.
QUOTABLE
"Winning is a big deal, and that's what I focus on," Bramah said. "E.J. is a very physical player and is very talented. He knows how to rebound. I knew I had to come out here today and own the glass, and that's what I tried to do. I think I had a little luck today."
CLOSING IN
Sacred Heart (10-9 / 3-3 NEC) was able to trim its deficit to single digits at halftime, 34-25, before the Colonials used an 8-1 surge to match their biggest lead of the contest, 48-31, with 12:51 remaining. Senior guard
Sayveon McEwen scored five consecutive points for Robert Morris, necessitating a timeout from the Pioneers. SHU responded with an 11-0 run to close to within 48-42, but RMU weathered the storm, with Bramah providing a dunk and sophomore guard
Jon Williams a three-pointer to get the lead for the Colonials back to double-digits, 53-42.
QUOTABLE
"I thought that at times we had great energy, both offensively and defensively," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole said. "Our energy ebbed and flowed unfortunately a little bit too much. That allowed Sacred Heart to keep making runs at us. Some of the breakdowns we had were routine things. Fortunate to get the win and get enough offense to get by."
PERFECT SHOOTING NIGHT
Bramah is the fourth student-athlete to produce a perfect shooting night at home in 10 seasons under Toole. Former guard Karvel Anderson (2012-14) shot 10-for-10 from the field in an 84-76 win over Ohio (12/1/12) at the Charles L. Sewall Center. Former forward Mike McFadden posted a 7-for-7 performance in an 89-46 win over Fairleigh Dickinson (2/23/13), while former forward Conrad Stephens (2014-17), who was in attendance Monday night, was the last student-athlete to turn the trick with a 6-for-6 performance in a 64-58 win over Fairleigh Dickinson (1/16/16).
QUOTABLE
"About as high level an effort as you can imagine," Toole said on the game by Bramah. "Having him and E.J. Anosike go at each other the way they did was really, really impressive. He was everywhere tonight. Some really good blocks, some really good wall ups. He stood up to the challenge really well and made play after play for us offensively."
BENCH SPARK
The RMU bench outscored the Sacred Heart reserves, 35-7. McEwen added 12 points and two rebounds off the bench for the Colonials. Senior forward
Yannis Mendy led the starters with nine points as Robert Morris shot 51.9 percent (28-for-54) from the field, including 63.6 percent (14-for-22) in the second half. For Sacred Heart, Anosike registered a game-high 20 points, 17 rebounds and three steals.
QUOTABLE
"Your focus is a like a muscle," Toole said. "You have to start flexing it more so it gets stronger. Some guys were engaged at different parts of the game but shortly thereafter became disengaged. You can't do that if you want to consistently beat some of the better teams in our league."
UP NEXT
RMU returns to the road for its annual swing through Brooklyn, N.Y., beginning Thursday, Jan. 23, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against St. Francis Brooklyn at the Pope P.E. Center in Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.
Follow The Colonials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Snapchat | YouTube
