Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU men's basketball team opened Horizon League play Thursday, snapping a four-game losing streak with an 80-59 victory over Wright State in Dayton, Ohio, at the Nutter Center. The Colonials improved to 3-5 (.375) overall during the 2022-23 season with the win, including 1-0 in #HLMBB.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
The Raiders wasted no time getting their offense going, taking an early 7-0 lead before junior
Josh Corbin got the Colonials on the board with a three-pointer at 16:53. RMU would battle back to tie it, 9-9, on a layup from fifth-year forward
Kahliel Spear, which was one of four deadlocks in the first 20 minutes of action between the two teams. The first half also featured seven lead changes, the last of which came courtesy of junior guard
Enoch Cheeks, who knocked down a jumper after a steal by Spears to give the Colonials a 34-32 edge at the 4:22 mark. The bucket from Cheeks was part of a 14-5 run RMU used to close out the half and head to the break with a 44-36 advantage.
QUOTABLE
"It was a great team effort," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole said. "Wright State is such a talented offensive team, and they showed that early tonight, but I thought once we got into the flow of the game every time they tried to attack us, we slowed the pace down. We were really locked in defensively against a really good offensive team and responded properly because we did it together. The communication was great, the execution was great and that's what it takes. We know we have some of the pieces. It's just a matter of valuing the details. Whether the ball goes in the basket like it did tonight or doesn't go in the basket we have to continue to pay attention to the details. If we have that urgency on the defensive side, that's only going to help us."
WAVE BUILDING
Sophomore forward
Kevin Martina, earning his first RMU start Thursday against Wright State (5-3 / 0-1 #HLMBB), knocked down a pair of free throws to open the scoring in the second half, and Corbin followed with a three-pointer to push the lead for the Colonials to double digits, 49-36. AJ Braun helped the Raiders close to within 49-40 with a layup after an offensive carom, but Spear canned jumpers on consecutive possessions, both off turnovers by Trey Calvin. That ignited a 10-0 surge that featured eight points from Spear and was capped by a layup from senior forward
Matt Mayers on a dime from senior guard
Michael Green III and allowed the Colonials to open up a commanding 59-40 cushion.
QUOTABLE
"Kahliel was really good and why I think he was really good is because he was strong," Toole said. "He didn't try and rush. When he got to the basket he was on balance. When he gets to those spots and makes those reads and finishes, he can be tough to stop. We need contributions from anybody and everybody. I thought Kevin (Martina) did a nice job tonight. It doesn't always have to be a basket, either. It's communication on defense, it's getting open. Jackson (Last) was another guy that, while at times he was out of position, he came up with some really tough rebounds down the stretch that were really important."
BACK ON TRACK
The Colonials had an 11-game winning streak snapped when holding opponents to under 60 points with a 54-53 setback to Evansville in the Hostilo Hoops Community Classic but improved to 80-9 (.899) in 16 seasons under Toole when turning the trick thanks to the victory over Wright State. In addition, RMU improved to 2-1 (.667) in Horizon League openers thanks to the win since joining the league prior to the 2020-21 season. All three of those openers have come on the road.
QUOTABLE
"I think every win is meaningful," Toole said. "Every possession is meaningful. We're still trying to get everyone locked in and learning how to win. There were some challenges tonight, but we stepped up and made the plays that we needed to in order to get that win. It's something that we can show the guys that I think they can feel good about and will help them as we move forward in a league that is challenging. Every night is going to be a tough game. We know that as coaches. It's our job to get the guys ready for the next one."
INSIDE THE LOST ARK
Spear led four Colonials in double figures against the Raiders by matching a career high with 27 points. He was an efficient 12-for-15 from the floor, which included being true on both of his attempts from beyond the arc, and also added five rebounds, three steals and three rejections. Corbin finished with 15 points on the strength of a 5-for-8 performance from downtown, Cheeks returned to the lineup after missing two games and posted a line of 12 points, five boards, six assists and two blocks and Green III scored 11 off the bench while handing out four dimes.
UP NEXT
RMU heads to Highland Heights, Ky., to conclude the opening weekend of Horizon League play, taking on Northern Kentucky Saturday, Dec. 3, with a 6:00 p.m. tip at Truist Arena.
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