Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU men's basketball team concluded a three-game road trip to open its 2021-22 season by continuing play in the Kentucky Classic Monday, dropping an 85-71 decision to Ohio U at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio. The Colonials dipped to 0-3 overall on the 2021-22 season.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
In its best offensive performance of the young season, the Colonials grabbed an early 10-8 advantage after a turnaround jumper from forward
Kahliel Spear, who scored six early points and pushed RMU in front thanks to an offensive rebound. Forward
Justin Winston extended the lead for the Colonials to 15-12 after a three-pointer but was whistled for a technical foul. That seemed to spark the Bobcats, who used a 21-9 surge to grab a 33-24 cushion with just under four minutes remaining in the first half. Ben Vander Plas and Jason Carter did the majority of the damage for Ohio U (3-0), combining for 21 points in the first 20 minutes of action.
CRASHING THE GLASS
In the second half, the Bobcats were able to keep the Colonials at bay by hitting glass, racking up nine offensive rebounds after the break in owning a 10-3 advantage in second-chance opportunities. Ben Roderick, one of five Bobcats to score in double figures, hit a three-pointer at the 16:33 mark to give Ohio its biggest lead to that point, 47-35, and a Vander Plas dunk off an offensive rebound with 12:45 remaining stretched the advantage to 57-43. The Colonials chipped away, closing to within 62-55 on the strength of a 12-5 run that featured nine consecutive points from Spear and was capped by a three-pointer from forward
Jaron Williams. RMU would get no closer, however, with the Bobcats using a 10-2 surge of their own to open up a 72-57 lead.
QUOTABLE
"There certainly was some improvement, but we just ran out of gas, and we were especially fatigued mentally," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole said. "You have to be so locked in mentally, especially against a team that played in the NCAA Tournament last year and beat Virginia in the first round. We were behind on a lot of our defensive possessions. You have to sustain your effort for 40 minutes. That's one of our standards. We had some good stretches and some good runs, but we have to be able to play both sides of the floor."
LOCKED IN
Spear paced the Colonials against Ohio U by tying a career high with 22 points. He shot 8-for-15 from the field and 6-for-7 at the free-throw line while also registering eight rebounds, an assist and a steal. Spear has now scored in double figures in each of his last five games dating back to the 2020-21 season, averaging 14.8 points and 6.0 rebounds over that stretch. He also scored 22 points in RMU's final game of the 2020-21 campaign in the first round of the 2021 Horizon League Tournament at Detroit Mercy (2/25/21).
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
Off the bench, Williams produced his most efficient offensive performance as a member of the Colonials with 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting, including a 3-for-6 performance from beyond the arc, while also grabbing five boards. RMU shot 49.1 percent (27-for-55) from the floor against the Bobcats and was also successful on 73.3 percent (11-of-15) of its chances at the free-throw line. Also scoring in double figures was Winston, who contributed 11 points and six rebounds.
QUOTABLE
"Jaron was aggressive and played well tonight," Toole said. "We've seen that in stretches during practice, and we definitely want to keep seeing improvement on the defensive end. We want him to continue to be aggressive. If we could develop a few more guys off the bench that can come in and contribute, it will make a huge difference. We need a little more depth to come out and hit the court with productivity."
UP NEXT
RMU concludes play in the Kentucky Classic by hosting Mount St. Mary's for a 7:00 p.m. tip in its 2021-22 home opener at the UPMC Events Center Friday, Nov. 19. Fans can receive a ticket to the game as part of
FansGiving with either a $5.00 donation to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank (the Food Bank) or a donation of five non-perishable food items. Fans can also receive additional tickets for every $5.00 or five items donated. Fans can donate virtually either online at
RMU FansGiving 2021 or they can text "rmu21" to 50155 to make a donation.
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