Women's Basketball | 1/26/2020 9:40:00 AM
Moon Township, Pa. – The
Robert Morris University women's basketball team looks to complete its third consecutive unbeaten January on Monday, Jan. 27 at 7:00 p.m. at St. Francis Brooklyn. The Colonials moved to 7-0 in the Northeast Conference (NEC) with a 70-59 comeback victory at Long Island on Saturday, and top the table with a two-game edge in the loss column ahead of Saint Francis U (6-2) and Mount St. Mary's (5-2). This is the fourth time in program history that RMU has begun conference play at 7-0.
GAME #19
Robert Morris Colonials (12-6, 7-0 NEC) @ St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers (5-13, 1-6 NEC)
Monday, January 27, 2020 // 7:00 p.m. // Brooklyn Heights, N.Y. – Generoso Pope Athletic Complex (1,200)
Live Video: NEC Front Row // Live Stats: SFCAthletics.com
Notes Package: Robert Morris // St. Francis Brooklyn
Hello Brooklyn (History w/ St. Francis Brooklyn)
Overall: 46-21 | Home: 25-9 | Away: 20-12 | Neutral: 0-0 | Streak: W3
Last Game: Jan. 13, 2020 – Moon Township, Pa. – Robert Morris 69, St. Francis Brooklyn 44
Robert Morris owns a 46-21 edge in the all-time series against St. Francis Brooklyn, and has won the last three meetings by an average of 20.3 points.
Just two weeks ago, the Colonials overcame a slow start to defeat the Terriers, 69-44. RMU outscored the visitors, 21-1, in the third quarter to turn a five-point lead into a 25-point one.
Nneka Ezeigbo led the way for the hosts, finishing with a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double.
In the last meeting at Brooklyn Heights, the Colonials clamped down the Terriers' high-scoring offense in a 75-56 win on Jan. 12, 2019. Ezeigbo recorded another double-double with 16 points and 15 rebounds, tallying eight points, five boards, and two blocks in the fourth quarter.
Esther Castedo added 13 points off the bench.
The Blueprint
St. Francis Brooklyn has struggled as of late, dropping its last five games. Guided by second-year head coach Linda Cimino, the Terriers enter Monday's meeting with a 5-13 overall record and 1-6 mark in NEC play, with its lone league win coming on Jan. 8 in the Battle of Brooklyn against Long Island (88-63).
Senior guard Jade Johnson is the team's leading scorer at 16.7 points per game and has made a team-high 40 three-pointers. Junior forward Ally Lassen has provided a strong presence inside with per-game averages of 14.7 points and 6.2 rebounds, while freshman guard Nevena Dimitrijevic is right behind Johnson and Lassen in the scoring category at 14.3 points per contest. Dimitrijevic, a four-time NEC Rookie of the Week and one-time NEC Player of the Week honoree, paces the circuit in assists (6.3) and has recorded a team-high 2.0 steals per game.
The Terriers feature a strong offensive attack, ranking first in the NEC in free throw percentage (.767), third in assist-to-turnover ratio (0.82) and turnover margin (+1.00), and fourth in scoring offense (65.17) and field goal percentage (.391). Defensively is a different story, however, as they slot dead last in scoring defense (73.78), field goal percentage defense (.441), rebounding margin (-9.61), and blocks (1.00).
Run This Town
Senior center
Nneka Ezeigbo and sophomore guard
Isabella Posset have met a pair of milestones over Robert Morris' last two games, and joined exclusive company with their respective achievements. Ezeigbo now has 100 career blocks after collecting a pair at Long Island on Saturday, while Posset surpassed 100 career steals last Monday against Sacred Heart.
Ezeigbo is the seventh player to reach 100 career blocks, and is now the fourth player in program history to accumulate 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 100 blocks, and 100 steals in a career. The senior joins Elise James '00, Maebeth Schalles '93, and Artemis Spanou '14 as the only Colonials to meet those numbers.
Posset, the reigning NEC Player of the Week, collected her 100th career steal as part of a historic eight-steal performance. The sophomore is the 27th player in program history to reach that milestone, and did so in just 50 collegiate appearances - the fourth quickest time behind Kathy Frederick '88, Sugeiry Monsac '07, and Angela Pace '10.
Can't Knock The Hustle
Robert Morris prides itself on its defense and this season is no different. The Colonials entered the weekend ranked 10th nationally in turnovers forced (22.00), 14th in steals (11.4), 21st in turnover margin (+5.88), 36th in scoring defense (57.3), and 63rd in field goal percentage defense (.368) - the first four numbers also 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 149 games. In 69 of those contests, the Colonials have forced 20 or more turnovers from their opponent - a number that includes 11 such instances this season.
The Ruler's Back
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 Monday against Sacred Heart, the senior recorded more points than minutes played for the eighth time in her career, and the third time this season.
Ezeigbo finished with 24 points (9-17 FG, 6-6 FT) in 23 minutes versus the Pioneers, a performance that joined Jan. 2 at Central Connecticut (24 pts, 10-12 FG, 4-5 FT, 22 min) and Nov. 24 at Kent State (18 pts, 8-9 FG, 2-3 FT, 17 min) in 2019-20. 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).
Change Clothes
The Colonial bench has produced all season long, averaging 22.6 points per game and 9.7 more than their opponents' reserves. The unit has tallied double-digit points in 15 consecutive games and 17 contests overall, while hitting the 20-point mark in seven 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 last Saturday. Since 2016-17, RMU is 14-1 when it receives 30 or more points from its reserves.
Politics As Usual
Robert Morris has opened the conference slate with a 7-0 record for the fourth time in program history. The Colonials have achieved this in each of the last three seasons and also started 7-0 in 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.
Public Service Announcement
Robert Morris has never lost a game in which it has held the lead at the end of the second half. The Colonials are 12-0 in such situations this season, and went 22-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 632-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
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