Emmitsburg, Md. – The
Robert Morris University men's basketball team concluded a three-game road trip Thursday by extending its winning streak to six with a 77-60 victory over Mount St. Mary's at Knott Arena. The Colonials improved to 15-11 overall on the 2019-20 campaign with the win, including 11-2 in the Northeast Conference.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Leading at halftime, 33-30, RMU used a 17-6 surge to open the second half to grab a 50-36 lead. The three-pointer was a key point of the attack, as junior guard
Jon Williams hit one, junior forward
Charles Bain knocked down a pair and redshirt senior guard
Josh Williams added another. Junior forward
AJ Bramah added five points during the run, including a three-point play.
QUOTABLE
"Different guys stepped up at different times tonight," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole said. "Those are things that you like to see when guys are playing the right way and are connected. It helps when you make shots, but I thought we did a really job of keeping them out of the paint, especially in the second half."
ON A ROLL
Junior forward
AJ Bramah led all scorers in the contest with a career-high 25 points off the bench for the Colonials. He also recorded seven rebounds and a career-high four assists while not turning the ball over in 30 minutes of work. He shot 11-for-18 from the field and was a perfect 3-for-3 at the free-throw line in registering the first 20-point performance of his career with the Colonials. It marked the 21st consecutive game that Bramah has scored in double figures for Robert Morris.
THREE'S COMPANY
Mount St. Mary's hit each of its first four attempts from beyond the arc to open the game but closed the contest by converting just two of its next 12 shots from deep. RMU, meanwhile, knocked down 11 triples. Guards
Josh Williams and
Jon Williams combined to convert six of their nine attempts on the evening, as each hit a trio of three-pointers.
Josh Williams registered 11 points and six boards in the victory, while
Jon Williams posted nine points and six assists against no turnovers. Off the bench, senior guard
Sayveon McEwen finished 2-for-3 from downtown and finished with 12 points, two assists and a steal in the triumph.
INSIDE EDITION
Freshman
Olisa Ngonadi received the most extensive playing time of his rookie campaign Thursday in the win over the Mount, playing nine minutes as senior forward
Yannis Mendy battled foul trouble, including three in the first half. Despite not scoring, Ngonadi finished with four rebounds, including two offensive caroms, and also recorded his first collegiate block.
QUOTABLE
"O has really been trying to compete in practice," Toole said. "(Malik) Jefferson is a tough matchup for our guys. He's so physical and so strong. Yannis got in some foul trouble, and O is big, strong, he's physical and he's got great length. I thought he played with great activity. He gave us some length and he gave us some minutes. Obviously he needs to clean up some of the details, but as long as he's being aggressive and flying around, he can have an impact on the game."
LOVE BOAT CAPTAIN
Robert Morris sported its red uniforms for the second time on the 2019-20 campaign Thursday at the Mount and improved to 2-0 when wearing the threads. Both wins have come on the road, as the previous victory was a 64-59 triumph @ Florida Gulf Coast (12/17/19).
UP NEXT
A three-game road trip complete, Robert Morris returns home to Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center Saturday, Feb. 15, for a 1:00 p.m. tip against Fairleigh Dickinson.
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