Women's Basketball | 2/14/2020 11:26:00 AM
Moon Township, Pa. – Off to its best Northeast Conference (NEC) start in program history at 12-0, the
Robert Morris University women's basketball team returns home for Senior Day on Saturday, Feb. 15 against Fairleigh Dickinson. The Colonials lead the NEC standings by 2.5 games and have won nine straight contests by double-digits, coming away with an average margin of victory of 26.4 points over this stretch.
GAME #24
Fairleigh Dickinson Knights (8-14, 5-6 NEC) @ Robert Morris Colonials (17-6, 12-0 NEC)
Saturday, February 15, 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: Fairleigh Dickinson // Robert Morris
Tickets: Ticketmaster
History w/ Fairleigh Dickinson
Overall: 43-26 | Home: 27-9 | Away: 16-16 | Neutral: 0-1 | Streak: W9
Last Game: March 11, 2019 – Moon Township, Pa. – Robert Morris 64, Fairleigh Dickinson 38 [NEC Quarterfinals]
Robert Morris has won nine straight games against Fairleigh Dickinson and owns a 43-26 lead in the all-time series. The teams have met in four of the last five NEC Tournament quarterfinal rounds (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019), with the Colonials emerging victorious each time.
In last year's NEC quarterfinals, top-seeded RMU outscored FDU, 52-27, over the final three frames in a 64-38 victory. The Colonials made half of their 48 field goals, with
Nina Augustin (13),
Nneka Ezeigbo (13), and
Honoka Ikematsu (12) all reaching double figures in scoring.
Two years ago, the Knights were the Colonials' Senior Day opponent and put a scare into the hosts. RMU trailed by 10 in the third quarter, but used a 23-9 fourth-quarter difference to win 62-49. Ikematsu led all scorers with 12 points on 4-of-8 from deep, while Augustin and
Mikalah Mulrain '18 provided 10 points each.
Scouting the Knights
First-year head coach Angelika Szumilo has Fairleigh Dickinson in contention for a home-court NEC Tournament game, currently ranking fifth in the standings at 5-6 and 8-14 overall. The Knights have dropped four of their last five games, but own an impressive 56-47 victory against third-place Saint Francis U on Jan. 8.
FDU's offensive production starts with its post players, namely junior Madison Stanley and senior Lauren Francillon. Stanley paces the team in scoring (12.3 PPG) and is shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 83.8 percent at the free throw stripe. Francillon is behind her in a points-per-game basis (10.3), but paces the team in field goal percentage (.474), rebounding (6.7), and blocks (1.2) despite just starting five games this season. Sophomore guard Rachael Niles has started all but one contest, averaging 9.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 35.0 minutes per game.
The Knights are one of the best defensive teams in the NEC, ranking third in scoring defense (63.18), field goal percentage defense (.397), and rebounding margin (+1.95). They do, however, struggle defending the three-point line (8th, .331), and slot near the bottom in turnover margin (9th, -2.50) and steals (10th, 5.05). FDU also ranks third in assist-to-turnover ratio (0.81) and three-pointers made (7.00).
Oops, We Did It Again
For the third consecutive season, Robert Morris broke the program record for best conference start, opening up at 12-0 with a 77-35 win at Wagner this past Monday. The Colonials previously went 9-0 in 2017-18 to establish a new standard, then topped that in 2018-19 with an 11-0 start. In both seasons, RMU finished with a 16-2 record in the NEC.
The Colonials are the fourth team since 2000 to start 12-0 in the NEC, joining 2004 Saint Francis U, 2009 Sacred Heart, and 2013 Quinnipiac. All three of those teams finished unbeaten at 18-0. This current RMU squad has a larger average margin of victory (23.2 PPG) than the aforementioned three (SFU - 18.7, SHU - 14.7, QU - 17.2), and has 10 double-digit conference wins thus far.
Bench Brigade
The Colonial bench has produced all season long, averaging 25.1 points per game and 12.1 more than their opponents' reserves. The unit has tallied double-digit points in 20 consecutive games and 22 contests overall, while hitting the 20-point mark in 12 straight.
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 five times this season, highlighted by hitting a season-high 39 points on Feb. 1 against Central Connecticut. Since 2016-17, RMU is 18-1 when it receives 30 or more points from its reserves.
In February, We Wear Pink
It has been a tradition for Robert Morris to don pink alternate jerseys during select February games to raise breast cancer awareness. It has also been a tradition for the Colonials to win those contests. Since the 2013-14 season, RMU has accumulated a 28-1 record when wearing pink jerseys.
RMU has averaged 16.4 more points than its opponents in the tint, with 23 of its 28 triumphs coming by double figures. Last season, the Colonials went 6-0 in pink with a 13.8-point average margin of victory, and finished 3-0 in 2017-18 and 4-0 in 2016-17.
30 Rock
Robert Morris topped its single-season program record for 30-point victories with its sixth on Monday, a 77-35 win at Wagner. The Colonials previously defeated Bryant (69-39), Central Connecticut (86-56, 80-42), Pitt-Johnstown (63-30), and Sacred Heart (73-43) by 30 or more points.
RMU was tied with the 2006-07 side with five 30-point triumphs, and now has 60 wins of 30 points or more in its all-time history. The 42-point rout of the Seahawks on Feb. 10 is 13th largest margin of victory in program annals, and the third biggest road triumph.
The Defense (Never) Rests
Robert Morris prides itself on its defense and this season is no different. The Colonials enters the weekend ranked 11th nationally in scoring defense (54.2), 13th in turnovers forced (21.43), 16th in turnover margin (+6.17), 17th in steals (10.9), 19th in three-point field goal defense (.270), and 24th in field goal percentage defense (.354).
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 154 games. In 72 of those contests, the Colonials have forced 20 or more turnovers from their opponent - a number that includes 14 such instances this season.
Share The Wealth
Junior center
Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu became the third Colonial to capture NEC Player of the Week accolades on Wednesday, as she was bestowed the honor after averaging 18.0 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in wins at Sacred Heart and Wagner.
Ozzy-Momodu joins
Nneka Ezeigbo (Dec. 2, Jan. 6) and
Isabella Posset (Jan. 22) as RMU recipients of the award in 2019-20. No other school has had multiple players earn the recognition, and this is the first time in school history three different Colonials have been named Player of the Week in a season.
Double Trouble
The center duo of
Nneka Ezeigbo and
Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu has been dominant in the NEC this season. On Feb. 8 at Sacred Heart, the pair each posted a double-double, marking the second time that has happened in their careers (Jan. 28, 2019 vs. SHU) and the first time it was accomplished on the road since Jan. 27, 2014 at Fairleigh Dickinson. Ezeigbo finished with team highs in points (15) and rebounds (11), while Ozzy-Momodu provided 13 points and 10 caroms off the bench.
In conference games, the two are combining for an average of 25.5 points on 57.9 percent shooting, 18.1 rebounds, 3.0 steals, and 1.4 blocks. They rank third (Ozzy-Momodu) and fifth (Ezeigbo) in the NEC in rebounding and have posted 10 double-doubles between the two of them.
New Season, New Home, Same Standard
Robert Morris opened its new 4,000-seat arena, Peoples Court at the UPMC Events Center, this season and its stellar record against NEC foes hasn't changed with the fresh facility. Including the NEC Tournament, the Colonials have now won 38 consecutive home contests against league opponents, with the last loss coming on Jan. 16, 2017 (55-70 vs. Saint Francis U).
RMU won its debut at the new arena on Nov. 13, 2019, a 58-43 victory over Youngstown State. The triumph was the Colonials' first to open a new home venue since the program started at the John Jay Center, as they fell in their Charles L. Sewall Center (1985-2017) and North Athletic Complex (2017-19) debuts.
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 17-0 in such situations this season, and went 22-0 last season. All-time, RMU is 637-0 when holding the lead at the final whistle.
Follow the Colonials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
