Photo Credit: Purdue Fort Wayne Athletics

Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU men's basketball team opened a two-game swing through the Midwest Friday, falling to Purdue Fort Wayne, 86-62, at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. The Colonials slipped to 3-15 (.167) overall during the 2021-22 campaign, including 1-8 (.111) in the Horizon League.
 
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Freshman guard Tristian Jeffries gave the Colonials an early 12-10 advantage after knocking down a pair at the free-throw line, but the Mastodons used a 33-8 run to grab a commanding 43-20 lead at halftime. During the decisive run, Purdue Fort Wayne knocked down 68.4 percent (13-for-19) of its shots from the floor, including 7-for-9 (77.8%) from beyond the arc, and received a balanced attack offensively, with Bobby Planutis, Jarred Godfrey and Deonte Billups each scoring eight points. The Colonials couldn't get on track, suffering nine turnovers while converting just three of their 12 shots (25%) from the field.
 
QUOTABLE
"We couldn't guard the ball," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach Andrew Toole said. "They were able to drive us wherever they wanted. You give credit where it's due because Purdue Fort Wayne is very unselfish and moves the ball really, really well. I thought a lot of the three-point looks they had tonight were just simple catch and shoot. We were just so out of it on the offensive side that we let it affect us defensively. You don't always have to play well, but you have to play hard. They threw a haymaker in the first half and we didn't respond. We have a few guys that have logged a lot of minutes in college, and to not see a response is disappointing. We have to have a much better mindset when we take the court on Sunday."
 
STEADY
Senior forward Kahliel Spear stretched his streak of double-figure scoring games to seven by leading the Colonials with 16 points while also grabbing a game-high eight rebounds. Entering the game ranked second in the Horizon League in field goal percentage, Spear knocked down eight of his 12 shots from the floor while also dishing out an assist and notching a steal. Also scoring in double figures for RMU was junior guard Michael Green III, who scored 14 points on the strength of an 11-for-11 performance at the free-throw line while also dishing out a game-high six dimes. Damian Chong Qui led four student-athletes in double figures for Purdue Fort Wayne (10-8 / 5-4 #HLMBB) with 20 points.
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
The Mastodons shot 63.6 percent (35-for-55) Friday against the Colonials, the highest field goal percentage since Purdue Fort Wayne shot 64.2 percent (34-for-53) in an 87-82 win over the Colonials at the Hilliard Gates Sports Center Dec. 27, 2020. Of the 35 field goals for the Mastodons Friday, Purdue Fort Wayne handed out 22 assists while also knocking down 62.5 percent (15-for-24) of its shots from beyond the arc.
 
UP NEXT
RMU wraps up its two-game road trip Sunday, Jan. 23, with a 3:00 p.m. tip against Cleveland State at the Wolstein Center.

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