Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU men's basketball team continued a three-game homestand at the UPMC Events Center Saturday, extending its winning streak to three with an 80-60 victory over Milwaukee. The Colonials improved to 14-15 (.483) overall during the 2022-23 season with the win and evened its Horizon League record at 9-9 (.500).
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
A game of runs in the first half, RMU grabbed an early 14-8 lead before the Panthers hung a 13-2 spurt on the Colonials to grab a 21-16 edge midway through the first half. Jalen Johnson connected on a hook shot in the paint to give Milwaukee (18-10 / 12-6 #HLMBB) its biggest lead of the contest before RMU scored 16 consecutive points to grab its first double-digit cushion, 32-21, with 5:42 to go before the break. Senior guard
Michael Green III ignited the run with a three-pointer and scored five points during the burst, while junior guard
Josh Corbin hit a triple of his own and fifth-year forward
Kahliel Spear also supplied five points.
QUOTABLE
"I'm just looking through the box score, and every statistical category we did what we needed to do to beat a good team," Spear said. "We've had games where we had more assists, but we took care of our business at the free-throw line. We could limit the turnovers some more. We lost that battle, but I liked how we honed in on the details. It was a testament to everyone being ready. It's not about who starts on the court, it's about who finishes on the court."
THREE IS FOR ME
Six different Colonials connected from beyond the arc in the win, including a 4-for-7 performance from Green III, who earned the start on Senior Night. He also added five rebounds, two assists and two steals as the Colonials owned a 45-23 advantage on the glass, matched a season high for the third time in the last four games with eight blocks and also posted 11 steals. Corbin tied for game-high honors in scoring with 16 points off the bench on the strength of a 3-for-7 shooting night from beyond the arc, while sophomore guard
Jackson Last set a career high with 16 points, converting five of his nine shots from the field, including 2-for-5 from deep, while going 4-for-4 at the free-throw line.
QUOTABLE
"The crowd was into it, our families were here, it was an amazing experience," Green III said. "We were able to make shots today, and the offense flowed for us. We got open looks and were able to knock them down. I feel we're a resilient team. Tough-minded. Whether we win or lose, no matter what happens the next game we're going to come with the same effort and the same energy. We know our formula works. We just have to keep up with our momentum and keep pushing."
SECOND HALF
Green III opened the scoring after the break with a three-pointer, and a triple from junior guard
Enoch Cheeks saw RMU's lead swell to 48-33. The Panthers were able to close to within 57-49 after BJ Freeman split the defense for a driving layup, but Cheeks was able to extend the lead back to double digits with a layup on the break. That opened a 13-1 surge that was also capped by a layup on the break from Cheeks to give the Colonials a 70-50 lead with 3:51 remaining.
QUOTABLE
"Energy on the ball, gap activity and the defense led us to the victory," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole. "We knew we were going to see 40 minutes of full-court defense. Sometimes that makes it hard to completely organize in the half court. Other than maybe one little stretch in the second half I thought we did a really good job of picking when we should attack and shoot early in the shot clock or get it out and stay organized. Our guys did a good job of being poised against a good, aggressive defense. Our perimeter guys really helped control and make good decisions of when to attack and when to not to."
EARLY DISMISSAL
Cheeks and Last each rejected a pair of shots for the Colonials in the win Saturday, but the block party belonged to Spear, who became the program's all-time leader in the category. The only student-athlete in program history on record to eclipse career totals of 90 blocks and 90 dunks, Spear has racked up 93 career blocks during his career at RMU. The old record was established by former guard Forest Grant, who finished with 89 rejections from 1980 to 1984. Spear also notched his 20th career double-double, including his 11th during the 2022-23 season, with 14 points and 11 boards. The only other student-athlete to post at least 20 career double-doubles is former forward A.J. Jackson (2003-08), who owns the record with 25.
UP NEXT
RMU wraps up the home portion of its 2022-23 regular season Tuesday, Feb. 21, by hosting Youngstown State at the UPMC Events Center in a 7:00 p.m. tip.
Follow The Colonials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn | RMU Athletics Gameday App
