Still perfect: RMU holds on and takes down Bryant

What a night.

In front of a national TV audience on ESPNU the Colonials, who still only had eight players available, pulled out a tight 79-76 win to move to 7-0 in NEC play.

The win puts the Colonials a full two games up on second place Bryant --and they own the tiebreaker with two head-to-head wins-- and at least three games ahead of every other team in the league. So yeah, it was crucial.

Thoughts:

First off, amazing job by the players, coaches, and of course, the RMU student body.

The place was packed, and the student section was huge, loud, and wild. Just as it should be. The Crazies brought their A game. I mean try to find something better to do then that in Moon Township? Create that atmosphere every game, and the team will win, and the fans will go home entertained (Yes! yes! yes!)

Myers Pate led the Colonials
to the win (AP).

As for the guys on the court, it was once again another gutsy performance from all eight guys. Our man Andrew Chiappazzi has a full gamer with quotes over on Colonialscorner.com, so check that out here.

I've probably already typed too many words without mentioning Anthony Myers Pate. Simply put, he was the difference maker. 21 points on 8-9 shooting including 3-3 from downtown, and he added five rebounds. His shots were big time buckets too, including some clutch free throws to help maintain a late lead. Of yea, he did it all with the flu.

The second player I need to mention? David Appolon. You look at the box score, and you say "why?", but if you watched the game, you would have saw Dave making big play after big play, especially on the defensive end. He was the ultimate glue guy last night, and that's something RMU needs with the current roster situation.

I could probably do a paragraph on every player, because they all played well for the most part. Even Lucky Jones, who struggled from the floor shooting just 1-12, once again found ways to make a big impact in other areas --as he always does-- grabbing eight boards and dishing out four assists.

MVP? Yessir:

While Robert Morris continues to distance themselves from the rest of the NEC, Karvel Anderson continues to distance himself from all other candidates in the Player of the Year discussion. Another big night for Karvel, shooting 8-16 from the field, and finishing with a team high 24 points. He also added a highlight reel block on a breakaway.

The league has a lot of good players, including Alex Francis who scored 30 on the Colonials for the second time this year, but Anderson has built a solid gap between him and other candidates. With his team at a perfect 7-0, Anderson already has a few memorable performances, and continues to carry a heavy load on his shoulders.

Some of the shots he hits, you can't help but think he has a shot at playing in the Association. The Kobe esk fadeaway's, hitting shots with one and two guys draped all over him. The guy is a top notch scorer, and I'm happy he got to show off that skill-set on national TV.

Don't stop now:

As awesome as that night was, and that win was, it won't mean much if RMU can't sustain this play. They have a very winnable game Saturday against CCSU and should be 8-0 at the halfway point. They're in a great situation moving forward, and have a very good shot at securing home court in the NEC tournament. That will continue to be the goal, and one way of doing that is protecting home court. You hear that Crazies? Bring that energy, and the Colonials won't lose at home. If they don't lose a home game the rest of the season, they will be in the NCAA tournament, so don't stop now Crazies.

--@Kunkel5
--Lee Kunkel

Not much more that needs to be added on. RMU has a pretty clear blueprint right now on how they need to win: Don't turn the ball over and get to the free throw line. RMU only had 11 turnovers last night and went 16-17 from the line. One of the only true silver linings of not having Mike McFadden and Jeremiah Worthem on the team is RMU's walk-rate per game went down 98 percent. That's not a real fact, but it sure seems like it.

Eight really is enough for the Colonials right now. Something that the players and coaches stressed in interviews this week is most of the teams in the NEC only play eight guys most of the time anyway. The only difference with this team is they cannot afford an injury. Even still, RMU has now beaten Wagner and Bryant with an eight man rotation.

Every individual has stepped up with the suspensions but none bigger than Anthony Myers-Pate. He is just feeling it right now. I've never seen Ant shoot the ball like that. The first interview I ever did at RMU was actually with Anthony a few years back. At that point, he was struggling to find his shot and was struggling with his confidence. My point? It always has been and always will be about confidence with Myers-Pate. And he's feeling it now.

Another benefit to Ant feeling it is how much more effective the two point-guard set is. Having the ball handlers is nice, but now Ant can play truly more of a two guard and teams have to respect his shot. There was a point in the second half Bryant tried to press the two point guard lineup and, to the surprise of absolutely no one in the arena, it lead to an easy lay-in.

Like Lee said, David Appolon had a very good game. He started the game off by grabbing a few boards and  causing a few turnovers. That's what Appolon is in there for. I love his energy.

Karvel Anderson is the MVP of the NEC. I wanted to do an MVP chant when he was at the line yesterday but Lee yelled at me, so I didn't. Great game from him. He could make a tutorial on his footwork.

That's all I have, nice win and we'll have a CCSU preview up later.

--Chris Cappella
--@C_Cappella

Round II: Robert Morris vs Bryant

Robert Morris (11-10, 6-0) vs Bryant (13-8, 5-1)
When: Thursday, January 30th, 8pm
Where: Charles L. Sewall Center, Moon Twp PA
KenPom: RMU 159, Bryant 161
Storyline: The Colonials will once again be undermanned as they take on their new-found rival, the Bryant Bulldogs, on national TV with first place in the NEC on the line. The Chuck needs to be ROCKIN.
Link: Televised on ESPNU, online at WATCHESPN

First Off... #PackTheChuck:

Before we get to the actual game, let's make it very clear that the Chuck needs to be packed, loud, and crazy. It's an 8pm tip, so there is plenty of time to get out of class, get some food, and get some pre-game "energy" in you if you know what I mean.

The Red Sea needs to be rockin.

I mean seriously, the stage is set. 6-0 RMU vs 5-1 Bryant. First place, and likely home court in the NEC tournament, on the line. National TV on ESPNU! Backs against the wall again, as the Colonials will likely have only eight guys.

It's not Kentucky, but there won't be a bigger regular season game for Robert Morris in a long time that gets this type of coverage. The Colonial Crazies section needs to be loud and packed. Heck, even I'm making the trip from Philadelphia PA for the game!

I'm hearing it's a #RedOut, so get those red shirts on, and bring it.

What's at stake:

It's hard to make these predictions given injuries, suspensions, etc....BUT I truly believe that if the Colonials find a way to win this game Thursday, and follow that up with a win over CCSU, who they should be able to beat, that RMU will win the regular season championship and, more importantly, host every game in the NEC tournament.

They would be a perfect 8-0 at the halfway point, and it still appears 12-4 would be enough to win the league. They would have both wins over Bryant, so they would own that tie-breaker, and have wins over Mount and Wagner already tallied, not to mention an easier schedule second half.

They would also own a two game lead over every team in the conference at the end of the night Thursday if they are to win.

Even with eight guys the rest of the way, I can't see the Colonials going any worst then 5-3 the second half of the schedule, which would be a 13-3 overall record, which wins the league nine times out of ten.

Another huge key? Getting that aforementioned tie-breaker over the Bulldogs in case both teams finish with the same record.

As you can see, there is a lot at stake on Thursday night. Throw in ESPN, and you get the biggest regular season game of the season in the NEC.

Down But Not Out:

Hawk needs to stay out of foul trouble.
(RMU Sentry Media)

It's pretty well known now that RMU is down to eight guys. Is it a disadvantage? Yes, but not as big a disadvantage as you would think.

After taking a look at some of the box scores, nobody has had a dramatic increase in minutes, and many teams shorten up their bench this time of year to about eight guys. This may be a little skewed because RMU destroyed Sacred Heart, but that's one advantage to beating down a team, you can rest certain players.

Where it hurts is, one, the lack of options. Andy Toole has these eight, and just these eight to choose from, and the lack of size.

Stephan Hawkins MUST stay out of foul trouble, especially Thursday night, if the Colonials are going to have a chance moving forward. He's the only guy on the roster that can protect the rim, and that's important in this 2-3 zone.

Wagner really took advantage of that lack of size at times, and there is no doubt Bryant forward Alex Francis will make life difficult. Hawk needs to stay out of foul trouble, and it wouldn't hurt if RMU attacked Francis and got him in foul trouble.

(Update: It has been announced by the Post Gazette's Craig Meyer that Wrothem, Lee, Tolson-Ford, and Grey have been suspended for one year from the school.)

Keep Starks in Check:

Slowing this man down will be important.
(Bryant Athletics)

In the last matchup, the Colonials held Bryant's top scoring threat, Dyami Starks, to 5-14 shooting including 3-10 from downtown. He scored 13 points, but never really got going.

Starks is the type of scorer that when he gets going, you're in a lot of trouble. See last year's meeting at the Chuck when Starks caught fire, and the Bulldogs stunned the Colonials in their NEC opener. In that game he went for a career high 29 (he has bested that since) and made 7 of 12 threes.

The 2-3 will once again need to be active and wary of where Starks is at all time.

Let Him Chuck:

Okay, that's a really bad headliner. Sorry guys. But seriously, let Chuck Oliver chuck it!

Chris wrote a really good feature on Charles here, I recommend you give it a read.

In the two games since Jeremiah Worthem has been suspended, Oliver, along with a few others, have seen not only an small increase in playing time, but also more opportunities to put up shots.

Oliver has taken advantage in the small sample given since the suspensions.

Oliver has scored 13, and 9 points in each of the two games, and made 4 of 8 three pointers. He's also gotten to the free throw line more in the two games, especially against Sacred Heart.

It was clear that Worthem was becoming the third scoring weapon, behind Karvel Anderson and Lucky Jones, something the Colonials lacked in the non-conference. The freshman was the key man, scoring a career high 21 in the Colonials big win at Mount St Mary's, his last game played.

Who can be that third weapon? Mr. Oliver can.

Thursday night, the Colonials will need him. Bryant can really score, and RMU will have to run and gun with the Bulldogs. There is little doubt that Karvel and Lucky will get theirs, but it's key that RMU have that third weapon.

If Oliver can continue to put up right around 10 to 15 points-per-game, the Colonials will be in good shape even with just eight guys.

KenPom Prediction: 

KenPom has the Colonials winning this game, 80 to 75. That's a lot of points and would certainly be a fun night. I think that's pretty accurate. Not expecting too much defense. I think Karvel and Lucky match Starks and Francis, but the other Colonials outplay the rest of the Bryant team and RMU wins a nail biter.

Enjoy the game, and one more thing... #PackTheChuck

--Lee Kunkel
--@Kunkel5

Women's action: lady Colonials win sixth straight, improve to 7-1 in NEC

by Aaron Hartman, Contributor

The RMU Women’s team won their sixth straight game against Farleigh Dickinson Monday night to improve to 7-1 in the NEC.

The FDU game was not the prettiest game the women’s team has ever played, as they won 67-58. The score was tied very late in the second half against a team that has one win all season and zero wins in the NEC. However, the ladies proved that even if they are not playing their best game, they have the poise to finish a game strong. The Colonials began to pull away with about two minutes left and at that point they won the game from the free throw line.

The team has been playing easily their best basketball of the season during this win streak. Their average margin of victory during the streak is over 12 points. In conference play, the ladies are averaging 69.8 points per game and holding their opponents to 62 points per game. They are rebounding at a rate of 46.5 rebounds per game and holding their opponents to 38.5 rebounds per game.

Artemis Spanou is dominating the NEC (p/c: Chris Bombardo)

The only blemish on their conference record is a 14 point loss at Sacred Heart in the second conference game of the season. Luckily, the ladies get another chance at Sacred Heart on February 10 in the Sewall Center, where they have not lost since before winter break.

At this point, Artemis Spanou is a shoo-in for NEC player of the year. She is making a serious case for the best player in NEC women’s basketball history. So far in 2014, Artemis has had a share of the team high in points and in rebounds for every game. Not to mention she set the all-time NEC record for rebounds during the home Fairleigh Dickinson game earlier this season. She also holds the NEC double-double record. Both records were previously held by former WNBA player Jess Zinobile.

The whole team has been playing spectacular basketball, but two players in particular have looked very good as of late. Freshman point guard Janee Brown has been great at the 1 spot for the entire season. Nothing on the stat sheet jumps out, but where she excels is having a great amount of poise at a position that is not easy to play and handling it well. Redshirt Junior Jolie Olingende has taken over at the 5 spot over Cassie Oursler, and has played very well. She adds a nice amount of points from the paint and takes a good bit of pressure off of Artie.

Freshman guard Anna Niki Stamolamprou has been impressive all season. She can play point guard, but can also move over to shooting guard when Janee is on the court as well. She shoots the 3 ball as well as anybody on the team, and she makes her free throws better than anybody on the team.

The youth on the team is certainly encouraging. Three freshmen (Stamolamprou, Oursler, Brown) get regular playing time. Britta Emberg, Kelly Hartwell, and of course, Artemis Spanou are the only players who will be graduating in spring.

The team could certainly improve their free throws. Artemis has taken 126 free throws, which is more than double any other player’s free throw total, but is only shooting .683. If there is a chink in Spanou’s armor, it’s her free throw percentage. Only two ladies are shooting over .700, Anna Niki Stamolamprou, and Rebeca Navarro.

In terms of depth, there are nine ladies who play over ten minutes per game. The bench play is solid, especially by the guards. With so many diverse athletes on the team this year, Coach Sal has a great deal of players to choose from for multiple occasions. One point of concern is that Artemis is averaging 36.7 minutes per game. She played every second of the FDU game. I don’t believe fatigue will be a factor for Artie by the end of the season, but it is certainly something to notice.

The next game is Saturday, February 1 at Mount St. Mary’s. This will be a crucial game against one of the few opponents the Women’s team has not faced this season. The Mount boast a 5-3 conference record, and are very much in the hunt for first place.

Hopefully, the team can carry this momentum into their future contests and come away at the end of this season as NEC regular season Champions. They certainly have the talent to. Currently, the Ladies sit in a very good spot as they are the sole holders of first place. As long as the team keeps playing the way they have during this streak, next to nothing can stop the ladies from securing the regular season conference championship.

For Charles Oliver, it's always about basketball

by Chris Cappella

You couldn’t help but laugh.

There was 10:55 left in last Saturday’s NEC showdown against Wagner when Kavon Stewart led a fast break, turned around, and dished it to Chuck Oliver. Oliver launched a three from the wing that was short, but that didn’t stop the ball from clanking the rim, the top of the backboard, and through the net.

I turned to my broadcast partner on press row and smiled. Oliver smiled. When things are going right, the ball has a tendency to find the bottom of the net, and things are finally going right for Oliver.

****

Charles “Chuck” Oliver grew up in Scotch Plains, New Jersey. Oliver said by the time he was nine and playing AAU ball at a competitive level, he knew basketball was his passion.

“When I first traveled to nationals for AAU I was nine years old and that’s when I knew it was serious,” he said. “Back then I played against Austin Rivers, Brandon Knight, and they’re all in the NBA. The level of competition was crazy and that’s when I knew it was something I wanted to do.”

Playing and observing great players didn’t stop at the AAU level. Oliver grew up in a neighborhood rich of basketball talent. He has played with Sterling Gibbs (Seton Hall), Myles Mack (Rutgers), Kyle Anderson (UCLA), and Dez Hubert (North Carolina) just to name a few. Also from Scotch Plains is Lance Thomas, Derik Caracter, and Ashton Gibbs, who Oliver calls family.

“Just watching them grow up, that only made me say ‘man I want to play basketball, I want to do what they’re doing’ and drove me even more,” he said.

The influence of basketball didn’t just come from friends in the streets. Hell, Oliver’s younger sister plays at the Division III level and his mother, Sylvia, was an outstanding player at Scotch Plains High School.

Chuck Oliver heads to the rim at OK State (p/c: Michael Wyke)

“She put the ball in my hand and we’re both actually 1,000 point scorers at the same high school, I don’t know if there are many mother-son 1,000 point combinations,” he said. “She played in college too so she knows the game and she coached in high school for six, seven years so she’s seen it from a basketball standpoint too. She’s not just seeing it as a basketball mom hootin and hollering. She doesn’t really hoot and holler, she just sits there, watches the game and will tell me what she thinks, what I can improve on, and things like that. I really value her opinion because I know it’s someone who has been in my situation.”

By the time Oliver was a senior in high school he was averaging 21.8 points per game and Scotch Plains had a 20+ win season, a rarity for the school. Eventually, it was time for Oliver to announce his future plans and he settled for Rider University, about an hour from his home.

As a freshman at Rider Oliver averaged about seven minutes per game but decided before the season was over he wanted to leave to work on his game. Oliver said that his departure had nothing to do with his relationship with the coaches and players.

“I just wanted the opportunity to really develop my game,” he said. “I had a couple of division I schools looking at me but I honestly didn’t want to sit out a year because I thought I might lose interest. Not so much for the game but already not playing much my freshman year and sitting out another year would be almost two years of not playing basketball and I was trying to play immediately.”

That took the man they called Chuck to Lakeland, Ohio. Ohio is not New Jersey.

****

“It was a culture shock for me, I had never been that far from home for that long. I was gone from home four or five months at a time I was getting homesick,” Oliver said.

It wasn’t that Lakeland Junior College was a bad place. Lakeland was a good program and gave Oliver a chance to develop his skills at a competitive level. Still, being away from home can wear a man down, Oliver being no exception.

“I’m real close to my family,” he said.

Homesick or not Oliver got the chance prove to scouts he could seriously ball. Lakeland started off the season slow (“we were a bunch of individuals, not a team”) but got hot to end the year and the team ended up winning the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference. Oliver might not say so, but the team won largely on his back. He led the team in scoring at 19.3 points per game, was conference player of the year (over James Kelly, who plays at Miami), and was NJCAA D-II All American first team.

After one impressive season, Oliver was able to move slightly closer to home at Moon Township.

***

It didn’t start pretty for Charles Oliver at Robert Morris. Really, it didn’t start pretty for anyone.

Robert Morris went 3-7 in their first ten games and the defense was atrocious. Head coach Andy Toole was shortening his bench like a madman and Oliver was being pressed for minutes.

“I went through a little slump there where I wasn’t shooting well,” he said.

Indeed. Oliver went through a four game stretch late in November into December when he shot 0-11 from the field and was only playing six minutes a game. Things started to turn around for him when he put more of an emphasis on his preparation for practices and games.

“I’d go in the coaches office daily and watch film not just of games but of practice to have a better practice and better games. Also, having more energy and being more urgent in practice, playing with a sense of urgency,” he said.

The dividends immediately paid off. Since the Toledo game, where Oliver saw a season low three minutes, he has shot 51 percent from three in 15 minutes per game. Oliver also added he feels more comfortable with his role on the team.

“I’m still learning my way game by game. I’m more comfortable now that we’re into conference play but early on in the season I was just trying to find my way, my niche, where I could help this team out and put us in a position to win ball games,” he said.

Oliver said he knows his role is to come off the bench and provide some energy and a scoring boost. Oliver doesn’t have any qualms about not starting-- in fact he prefers it.

“It’s basically like before a test looking over a study guide before you take it,” he said

Oliver made clear he’s not just a three point shooter too. He posses a more complete game where he can take it to the hoop and finish. In fact, Oliver’s 80 percent field goal percentage at the rim is highest on the team, according to the site hoop-math.

“There are a lot of shooters who can’t really put the ball on the floor but I can,” he said. “I’m not the most athletic but I know how to be a little crafty in the lane, shoot floaters, or just awkward looking shots sometimes I just get them to fall.”

  

It has been a wild ride for Oliver. From Rider, to Lakeland, and now at Robert Morris, the junior only has one goal everywhere he goes: win.

“That’s what it’s all about. Whichever way I can help the team, that’s what I’m going to do,” he said. 

Week three in review

Week three in the NEC has passed, and there was a lot of news, upsets, thrilling games, and movement in the NEC standings. CTC is here to take a look.

Before we get to the NEC standings, we must note the busy few days that Andy Toole and company have had.

Tate played big on Saturday
(p/c Jason Cohn)

First off, to the eight guys who are currently playing. Well done. I mean really, amazing job. Win by almost 30, hours after finding out your four teammates are suspended, then follow that up with a win over the preseason favorites with the same eight guys.

In that second game against Wagner, the only big forward, Stephan Hawkins, fouled out and played only 13 minutes. The undersized Arron Tate played a huge role, and played his ass off. He was dead tired, and gave Toole everything he had. Well done Aaron.

There was even even a time when Lucky Jones played center, and the 6'3 Chuck Oliver was the "power forward."

Everyone stepped up.

Kavon Stewart, who is known to struggle with his shot from time to time, goes to the line and makes 10 of 12, including four down the stretch to help ice the game.

Lucky, Ant Myers-Pate and Karvel Anderson were incredible, making winning play after winning play on both ends.

The bench was phenomenal. David Appolon provided a ton of energy getting two spot starts.

The UK win was nice, but this has been
Toole's best job (ESPN).

Then there is Toole and his coaching staff. You know those highlights where Miguel Cabrera gets completely fooled by a change up, and still gets a hold of it and hits a home run? That's the type of job Toole and his staff did.

Enjoy the Penn grad now RMU, he's going to be in the ACC, Big East, or some other big conference soon. He's one hell of a coach, and he proved it again this past weekend.

No excuses, just find a way to get the job done. They did just that, and their players followed suit.

The Colonials are back over .500 at 11-10, but more importantly, a perfect 6-0 in the Northeast Conference.

As for what will happen moving forward? Well here is what we know. The four players, Jeremiah Worthem, Britton Lee, Evan Gray, and Shaire Tolsen-Ford, are all suspended from the school and the program. How long? We don't know, but we will likely get an answer this week.

It appears the players could be out awhile, but again nothing is official until the university finishes its investigation.

As for the two other players who stepped away for personal reasons, Juanie Newton and Mike McFadden, they could in theory still come back, but nothing is known there.

After reading this piece by the PG's Craig Meyer,  I do believe Newton will come back at some point. That's simply an opinion after reading the piece, and nothing more than an opinion.

Will Toole add players from other sports to the team? Maybe, but again that is still a very fluent situation. We should no more by Thursday's game against Bryant.

As for the current eight players, they showed they can win even given the situation. They need to continue to do just that, because home court advantage in the NEC tournament is now VERRRYYYYY important, if it wasn't already. The Colonials need every advantage they can get, and that's a big one.

They good news? They helped themselves out a lot this weekend going 2-0 and getting a little help from others around the league.

Here are the current standings:

Via ESPN.

The Colonials have a game up on every team in the league, and already have wins over Bryant (away) Wagner (home), and Mount (away). If they defeat Bryant Thursday night, they will have a vice grip on the league before the halfway point.

As for this past weeks games, there were a few surprises.

The biggest came last Thursday as winless CCSU went to Wagner, and shocked the Seahawks. As we know, Wagner followed that up with a loss at RMU Saturday, so they did not have a good weekend.

Fairleigh Dickinson continued to impress, taking down St. Francis Brooklyn at home in a game they stole in the last minute. The Knights followed that up with a win over CCSU, and sit alone in third. That has to be the biggest surprise in the NEC this season.

The Terriers, like Wagner, continued to struggle as they lost Saturday to Bryant on the road.

LIU Brooklyn picked up a huge win Saturday, taking down Mount St. Mary's at home, moving them to 2-4 in the NEC.

At the top challenging the Colonials are the Bryant Bulldogs. They took down LIU on national TV in front of a CRAZY crowd (match it Colonial Crazies!) then followed it up with a nice win over St Francis Brooklyn setting up the biggest game of the year in the NEC.

Can the Crazies match the dog pound?
(p/c Bryant Athletics)

RMU, at 6-0, will take on Bryant, 5-1, at the Chuck as they renew their rivalry on ESPN U at 8pm on Thursday. CTC will have tons of coverage, and I'm sure we will get a little roster news between now and then, so we will have you covered.

RMU sits in first place, continues to battle despite some major adversity, so they deserve a huge crowd for this nationally televised game. #PackTheChuck

--Lee Kunkel
--@Kunkel5

Robert Morris fights off Wagner, wins 74-70

Once again, Robert Morris was down to just eight player as they hosted pre-season favorite, Wagner on Saturday evening. Once again, the available players showed their toughness, as they gutted out a 74-70 win, moving them to 6-0 in Northeast Conference play.

Myers Pate and the Colonials moved to
6-0 in the NEC.

It was a back-and-fourth affair as RMU struggled with Wagner's size. Hawk picked up a quick three fouls and once he was out of the game, Wagner attacked the paint.

RMU hung around, and then Karvel Anderson and Chuck Oliver made their move. The two sharp shooters knocked down back-to-back threes including Anderson's in transition that gave RMU the lead back.

Kavon Stewart, on his birthday, knocked down some HUGE free throws down the stretch and RMU held off Wagner, maintaining their lead in the NEC.

That lead will be up for grabs as Bryant travels to Moon Township Thursday. The game will be an 8pm tip, and nationally televised on ESPNU.

As for the players not currently on the team, we should have some news over the next few days on length of suspensions, etc.

Thoughts: 

Kavon Stewart has found his confidence and is another weapon on the perimeter for the Colonials. He gets into the lane so easily, and creates scoring opportunities for himself, and his teammates. He also knocked down 10 of 12 free throw attempts including four down the stretch that helped seal the win.

While Karvel, Luck and Ant are the big names for RMU, Hawk will be the key player for RMU moving forward. He is really starting to play well, but needs to avoid foul trouble. His absence on the court almost cost RMU the game. Thursday, when Bryant comes in, he will need to stay on the court.

A lot more to come on CTC, but for now, enjoy your Saturday night. The Colonials are 6-0, and alone in first place.

--Lee Kunkel
--@Kunkel5

Great work on the recap Lee. To begin with... wow, what a game! That was just a really great mid-major basketall game. I enjoyed every second of it and was impressed with RMU's grit to come back down seven in the second half. They started off flat in the second half but really picked it up and the Sewall Center crowd could sense that and picked up their energy too. I was talking to Andrew Chiappazzi at halftime and he said if RMU and Wagner were to meet in the NEC championship come March, it would probably be the best mid-major conference championship match-up in the country. That gives you an idea the level these two teams are at.

Game ball goes to Aaron Tate. I've been critical of Tate at points in this season but he is playing some outstanding basketball. Stephan Hawkns was in foul trouble early in the game and Tate responded with seven first half boards and nine in the game. He even had a nice back down in the low post for a lay-up. Tate went 1-4 from the free throw line but hit a wild one when it mattered most that ended the game. Good for Aaron; he did more than hold his own at the five against the biggest team in the conference.

-RMU played some funky lineups today and will continue to with eight guys. Just when you think Toole couldn't go any smaller, he ran a two point guard set, had Karvel at the three, Chuck at the four, and Lucky at the five. That's right, Lucky Jones was the center. Wagner might have been a little offended by that lineup and threw down an alley-oop the first possession it was out, which is pretty funny in hindsight.

-Karvel Anderson started to go bonkers again and it was awesome. He's got two pretty unstoppable shots that he displayed again tonight. The first is the handoff at the wing for three. Teams don't know whether to hedge or switch on it and Karvel simply takes the ball and shoots it, no dribble or anything. The second is his free throw jumper, which he displayed early in the game off a tough fadeaway. Besides that, his heat check three in the second half about brought the roof down at the Chuck, and it was all up in Dwaun Anderson's grill which made it that much better.

-Lucky Jones only shot 3-13 but grabbed some key rebounds and brought a ton of energy. Honestly, that stat line doesn't really do justice to how he played.

-Anthony Myers-Pate was awesome. You can just see the confidence is playing with. He hit not one but two HUGE three pointers. I am always a proponent of two point guard sets and he and Kavon Stewart continue to play so well together. Ant said after the game he knows he has to start hitting some shots with how much teams are going to focus in on Karvel and he did so tonight big time.

Overall GREAT energy at the Chuck and a great game. Loved every second of it. Thursday's game will be on ESPNU at home, so it's time to represent ourselves like we know how. More to come tomorrow.

--Chris Cappella
--@C_Cappella

Robert Morris vs. Wagner preview

Robert Morris (10-10, 5-0) vs. Wagner (9-9, 3-2)
When: Saturday, January 25 at 4 p.m.
Where: Charles L. Sewall Center
KenPom: RMU 151, Wagner 236
Storyline: RMU will look to open up conference play 6-0 for the first time in school history while playing with an undermanned squad.
Link: NEC Front Row, ESPN radio 970 AM, RMUradio.com

Getting to know the Seahawks
Wagner came into the year as pre-season favorites in the NEC, just ahead of the Colonials. Wagner is lead by guard Latif Rivers, who averages 14 points per game. Wagner has plenty of other weapons outside of Rivers, like transfer Jay Harris who can knock it down behind the arc and defending NEC defensive player of the year Kenny Ortiz.

Wagner is extremely athletic and doesn't have much interest in settling for jump shots. The Seahawks are going to attack and attack and attack and try and wear down the interior defense of teams. Wagner as a whole isn't an entirely efficient offensive team but averages 71 points per game because they are outstanding rebounders.

Wagner might have the most sweltering defense in the NEC. As you read above, Ortiz is an outstanding one on one defender and will likely see a lot of time trying to smother Karvel Anderson. It's deeper than Ortiz though, as Wagner can substitute in a number of guards and big men who can check their opponent one-on-one or protect the rim

Playing shorthanded? 
All signs point to RMU being without Mike McFadden, Juanie Newton, Jeremiah Worthem, Britton Lee, and the two walk-ons for not just this game but the rest of the year. Expect RMU to have a three man bench and for David Apoon to get the start again today.

Attacking
In the past two games, RMU has only attempted 21 three's, which is the total for most games. Toole said in Thursday's postgame press conference they made a conscious effort to attack the basket, and it paid off by shooting 36 free throws (and making 27 of them). RMU also seemed to make it a point to work it inside to the bigs early and it paid off. Stephan Hawkins had 11 first half points en route to tying a career high 12. Even Aaron Tate had a nice, quick move to the bucket early.

Staying undefeated
RMU is looking to open up conference play 6-0 for the first time in school history. The team has now started 5-0 three times.

--Chris Cappella
--@C_Cappella

Could Jeremiah Worthem (and others) be done for the season?

It’s never a dull moment when covering RMU basketball. Last week we learned, center Mike McFadden and guard Juanie Newton had left the team. Last night, RMU played with a noticeably short three man bench. Not included on the bench: Jeremiah Worthem, Britton Lee, Evan Grey, and Shaire Tolson-Ford.  

We were left with a lot more questions than answer’s in Toole’s postgame press conference mostly because Toole didn’t know much as well. Here are the facts CTC has gathered:

-The four players absent from last nights game broke university policy.

-Whatever happened occurred right around 4:30 p.m. yesterday in the dorms.

-The team was unaware of the situation until warm-ups.

-It is an ongoing investigation and we likely won’t know anything for a while.

-McFadden and Newton’s statuses are “up in the air”.

With that being said, CTC has learned Toole has reached out to at least one athlete to bring in for a workout today. One would only assume if the staff is going through these measures, the investigation on Worthem, Lee, and the walk-on's is serious enough where it’s a real possibility they will not be back this season.

--Chris Cappella

--@C_Cappella

Colonials roll past Sacred Heart, 5-0 in NEC play

RMU moved to 5-0 in NEC play, back to .500 at 10 and 10 overall, with a 91-65 win over Sacred Heart on Thursday night, a surprising result given the news that broke just before tip off.

RMU, who was already without Mike McFadden and Juanie Newton due to personal decisions, was without Jeremiah Worthem and Britton Lee Thursday night due to a violation of university rules. Still no word on how long they will be out.

Stewart played his best game in a RMU uniform with
multiple players suspended. 

With two walk-ons suspended as well, likely due to the same violation/situation the Colonials only had eight players available.

It didn't matter, at least not Thursday night.

The Colonials did whatever, whenever they wanted to. Every player scored, and the defense was suffocating despite the lack of bodies.

Stephan Hawkins got the Colonials started, scoring five of the Colonials first seven points, and controlling the paint, not allowing Sacred Heart second chance points, something they lived off of in the teams first match up. From there, the rest of the team took over.

Hawk finished with a career high 12 points and four rebounds.

Karvel Anderson continued his strong play, scoring 15 points and not forcing his shot as the Pioneers were focused on him. He did drop 36 on them a few weeks ago.

Lucky Jones once again did it all, tallying another double-double with 18 and 11. He once again did it all, showing why he is deserving of an All-NEC first team selection.

Chuck Oliver (13 points), David Appolon (5 points), Aaron Tate (6 points, 4 rebounds), Ant Myers Pate (11 points, 4 assists) all chipped in there points and played strong D. The team really couldn't have played any better given the situation, leading by 30 for most of the second half.

Hawk stepped up big time on
Thursday night (p/c RMU Sentry).

To go along with Hawkins, freshman Kavon Stewart played maybe his best game in a Colonials uniform, more on his performance later.

Stewart finished with 11 points five assists.

The win moved Robert Morris to 5-0 in NEC play. RMU has started 5-0 just twice, in 05-06 and 90-91. The Colonials have never started 6-0.

Next up, RMU has two HUGE home games, starting with Wagner Saturday (and then Bryant Thursday). The Seahawks were upset by CCSU Thursday night, so first place won't be on the line, but this is still a big one. The status of Worthem and Lee is still unknown, but there is a solid chance RMU may once again be with only eight players.

--Lee Kunkel
--@Kunkel5

Game day: Sacred Heart at Robert Morris

Robert Morris (9-10, 4-0) vs Sacred Heart (4-15, 1-3)
When: Thursday, January 23rd, 7pm
Where: Charles L. Sewall Center, Moon Township PA
KenPom: RMU 155, Sacred Heart 284
Storyline: The Colonials look to stay undefeated in conference play as they return home to start a vital four game home stand at the Chuck (#PackTheChuck). The stand kicks off against Sacred Heart, who is 1-3 in the NEC. The Colonials defeated the Pioneers two weeks ago, back on January 9th, 79-70 as Karvel Anderson went for a career high 36 points.
Link: NEC Front Row

Getting to Know the Pioneers:

Karvel went for 36 two weeks ago against
Sacred Heart (p/c PSR).

Not too much to talk about here, as the Colonials and their fans should already know all about Sacred Heart, after all you did read our preview for the January 9th game, right?

In the past few games, not much has changed for the Pioneers. They can score it at a decent rate, led by one of the better passers in college basketball, Phil Gaetano. 

In the last meeting, Mostafa Abdel Latif gave the Colonials some fits on the glass, collecting a game high 12 rebounds, and a Pioneer high 17 points. With Mike McFadden no longer on the team (he also didn't play last meeting), RMU will be very thin up front. Look for Abdel Latif to attack.

Sacred Heart really struggled defensively, and has all season. They're giving up 113.9 points-per-100 possessions, that number is the 317th worse in college basketball. RMU hasn't changed in the past two weeks. They can still really score it, and still have a wide array of weapons. The Colonials shouldn't have many problems putting up points.

Louis Montes and Chris Evans are two others to keep an eye on. Both average in double-digits at 12 points-per-game. Steve Glowiak will once again be the top three-point threat. RMU needs to contain him or things could become much more difficult.

Zone Adjustments:

Other then getting killed at the rim, RMU has been
good defensively in their first four NEC game.
(KenPom)

It's been well documented on CTC that RMU's zone has saved the teams abysmal defense. It's been really good the past four games against NEC competition allowing 103.4 points-per-100 possessions. That's actually better then the division one average. In the non-conference they were hovering around the 109 mark or higher for much of the season.

The Colonials are also forcing more turnovers, and it's allowed the team to play with more aggression because they aren't doing as much thinking. It's always better to just play, not think and play.

In NEC play, they lead the league in turnover percentage, turning teams over 23 percent of the time. This leads to extra possessions, and easy baskets in transition.

Now we get to see what teams will do against the zone the second time around. This will be interesting. It's one thing to see a defense on tape, it's another to play against it for 40 minutes, dissect what worked and what didn't, and make adjustments. Sacred Heart will be the first NEC opponent to get a second look at the zone, and it will be interesting to see what they do.

Saturday's opponent, Wagner, will get their first look at the 2-3 zone, but Bryant will be the second team next Thursday to get a second look. This will be something to watch.

Moving On: 

Thursday night will be the second game that RMU will play since McFadden stepped away from the team. Still no word on Juanie Newton. Chris wrote this piece on McFadden, and some of the adjustments the Colonials will make without their starting center.

Here are my quick thoughts:

One, I hope Mike gets healthy and makes a comeback in a few weeks (like last season). He's battled so many injuries over the years so I cant blame him for calling it quits. RMU will no-doubt need some depth as the season goes on, and let's not forget Mike dominated an NBA front line less then a year ago (UK).

CTC would love to see more Chuck Oliver.
(p/c RMU Sentry Media)

If he is gone for good, I wish him nothing but the best. I've said it before, Mike's free throw's in mid-March gave me, and many others, my best memory at RMU. He's an RMU legend, and nothing will change that. Good luck with everything Big Mike.

As for this team, I think Chris covered everything. Hawk will need to stay out of foul trouble, but RMU has the bigs to hold serve most nights. Expect a little more small ball with Luck --the best rebounder on the team-- at the four spot.

More Chuck Oliver? I hope so. Chuck is a baller.

Take Care of Business: 

RMU enters a four game home stand, with two of the games against fellow contenders Bryant and Wagner, at 4-0 in NEC play. Undefeated. I detailed here what it means for the Colonials moving forward.

Quick summary, four wins here at home, and RMU is looking really good after the first eight games, the halfway mark, to secure home court throughout the NEC tournament. Even a three-and-one home stand will put the team in solid position.

With games against Bryant and Wagner lurking, it's important RMU get off on a good foot and take care of business against an inferior opponent that RMU has already beaten. This seems elementary, but remember it took a mini-miracle comeback against St. Francis PA to secure an "easy win" just one week ago.

KenPom has the Colonials winning this one 83-70. Hopefully he's dead on.

--@Kunkel5
--Lee Kunkel

How will the team respond to McFadden calling it quits?

RMU received some unfortunate news earlier in the past week when they learned center Mike McFadden had quit the team. As some may recall, McFadden left the team last year but came back after a few games. McFadden has dealt with numerous injuries throughout his collegiate career.

Mike McFadden is no longer with RMU (p/c: Toledo 

Blade)

My thoughts on Mike’s game this year has been well documented on this blog and on-air. He is a very talented player but the expectations for him were raised and instead of getting better he seemed to plateau and fell in love a little too much with his jump shot. McFadden was averaging 7.8 points on 43 percent shooting and was third on the team in rebounds per game, grabbing 3.8.

I’m not fully convinced Mike is calling it a career. History has a tendency to repeat itself and it’d be foolish to totally throw out the notion that Mike gets the itch to play ball again, so we’ll see. Under the assumption that McFadden has called it a career, here are some of the impacts that can be seen:

-Growing thin on the frontcourt: Due to the likes of Keith Armstrong leaving, Lijah Thompson and Vaughn Morgan transferring, and McFadden quitting, there is relatively no depth in the frontcourt. This means Stephan Hawkins, Aaron Tate, and Jeremiah Worthem are going to have to play smart basketball and avoid foul trouble or it could put the team in a tight spot when it comes to rebounding.

-More minutes for Hawkins: Stephan Hawkins is certainly starting to play better and will have to continue to play at an elevated level. Even if McFadden were to return, Hawkins would likely remain the starter (sort of what we saw with Velton Jones and Anthony Myers-Pate last season). The thing I like most about Hawkins is he is starting to find his identity. He can hit that baseline jumper, rebound, and is doing well with his defensive positioning.

-More small ball: I’m always a big proponent of a smaller lineup because RMU’s guards are simply better than just about anyone else. A lineup that see’s Chuck Oliver at the three and Lucky Jones at the four will space the floor and has the potential to shoot the lights out. The biggest knock on Oliver has been his defense but as the season has gone on Chuck has come into his own on that side and can take over a game offensively. This obviously will thin out the bench even more (Worthem is the only one who can come off the bench and score in this situation) but I can live with it. The positives outweigh the negatives.

-Back to the basket: Offensively, McFadden was the only guy on the team who had a polished game working with his back to the basket. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Hawkins back anyone down before and Worthem is still raw in that aspect. RMU is going to have to get creative if they want to score points in the paint.

-Talking about practice: One of the more underrated aspects of McFadden (and Juanie Newton) leaving is practice. When the team wants to run 5v5 scrimmages in practice, the drop off in talent from the first to second unit is much larger. That’s not a slight to a walk on like Shaire Tolson-Ford, it’s just the truth. Everyone’s role on the team has gotten larger.

--Chris Cappella

--@C_Cappella

NEC Review/Look Ahead

Another wild weekend in the NEC has past, and for the second straight week it was the Robert Morris University Colonials who made maybe the biggest statement. Let's take a look at what happened, and what lies ahead for the 10 members on the NEC, as we get ever-closer to March.

First off, you can't start a review without the standings, so here you go, the up to the second NEC standings.

Last weekend, RMU defeated both Saint Francis PA (after blowing a 14 point lead) and went on the road an took down Mount St. Mary's. The two wins leave the Colonials as the only team left in the NEC that is unblemished in conference play, at 4-0. 

Lucky Jones and the Colonials are 4-0
in NEC play. (p/c Matt Freed/Post-Gazette)

St Francis Brooklyn and Bryant both went 2-0, keeping with in a game of RMU, and maintaining an all important top-4 spot. The Terriers beat CCSU and Sacred Heart, while the Bulldogs took down Sacred Heart and FDU.

Wagner split their two road games, beating St. Francis PA on the road Saturday, bouncing back from a loss at Mount (which was their first loss in NEC play).

FDU is a surprising two and two, beating LIU handily on the road Thursday, but the Knights aren't quite ready for the NEC elite, as Bryant handled them on Saturday.

Speaking of the defending champs, they won at CCSU Saturday avoiding an 0-4 start. That win is big for the banged up Blackbirds as they look to find their way.

St Francis PA, Sacred Heart, and Central Connecticut all went winless.

Got all that?

Oh yea, RMU freshman Jeremiah Worthem won his second Freshman of the Week award. I still think he's the front-runner for freshman of the year. Here's that story. Wayne Martin of St. Francis Brookyn is his biggest competition. 

What does it all mean? 

It can be understated just how big the Colonials win over Mount (and Braynt) was on Saturday. They now own a game lead on the conference through four games, three of which were on the road, and they beat two other "contenders" on their home court. 

Now RMU needs to make their move.

The Colonials will play four straight at the Sewall Center, two of which will be against other contenders (Wagner, Bryant). The game against Bryant is another showcase game in the conference/program, as the game will be on ESPNU.

The other two games are "easy wins" (if there is such a thing) against Sacred Heart and Central Connecticut, two teams that are a combine 1-7 in NEC play.

If RMU goes 4-0 on this home-stand, they will be 8-0 with eight games to go. They would own a win over Mount on the road, two wins over Bryant, and a home win over Wagner. They would have at least a two game lead on everyone in the conference accept maybe SFNY, who they play twice in the second half.

The conference wouldn't be wrapped up by any means, but RMU would have quite a strangle hold on the league. Even a three-and-one home-stand sets the Colonials up for a nice run. 

The biggest game has to be Wagner. The Colonials already have a road win over Bryant, so if they were to fall to the bulldogs, a season split would already have been achieved. RMU still has to travel to Staten Island to play Wagner in their home gym, so it's crucial RMU win their home matchup.

One other note, Wagner plays a much easier NEC schedule, playing Bryant only once (at home) and St. Francis Brooklyn just one (on the road). That's important, as RMU plays both twice, and plays CCSU and FDU just once. 

So now that you have all that, let's look at this weekend's games, starting with Thursday night.

Thursday January 23rd:

While Saturday is loaded with big time match-ups, Thursday is not. The top five teams all play the bottom five teams. LIU is at Bryant, Sacred Heart at RMU, CCSU at Wagner, Mount at SFPA, and St Francis Brooklyn at FDU.

The Knights likely have the best shot at an upset, and that would be big for RMU. So Colonials fans should pull for FDU. As for the rest of the slate, there probably won't be too many surprises. 

Saturday however, has some huge games.

Saturday January 25th:

The biggest game of the weekend will once again involve the RMU Colonials. This will be the third straight Saturday RMU plays in the game of the day.

As noted above, RMU really needs a win over Wagner, who is likely the biggest contender in terms if taking the number one seed away from RMU in the NEC tournament (Bryant and SFNY will have their say too). The Seahawks still get RMU at home (in the last game of the season) and have the easier schedule. 

Cannon vs Francis will be good stuff.
(p/c Rob Abruzzese)

The other big time match-up is the high powered Bryant offense hosting the stingy defense of St. Francis Brooklyn. Jalen Cannon against Alex Francis will be a great matchup. They're the two best forwards in the league, and there really isn't a guy who can get their name in that conversation at the moment.

Bryant really needs the win. They can't afford to drop a second home game to a team they will battle with for a top-4 spot, they already lost one to RMU. They still have road games at RMU, at Wagner,  at St Francis Brooklyn and at Mount left on the schedule. 

This is a must win for the Bulldogs.

As for the rest of the league, Sacred Heart travels to SFPA in a game that could go a long way to deciding who makes the NEC tournament. 

CCSU, who travels to Wagner two days before, will likely be looking for their first win in NEC play as they travel to FDU. 

The final game, Mount St. Mary's at LIU Brooklyn, could feature a final score of 7326574236578324 to 58678457685497. Neither team plays any D, both have GREAT point guards, so look for a shoot-out in Brooklyn.

Looking forward to some great games in week three of NEC play, we're almost to the halfway point. Look for a Sacred Heart/RMU preview tomorrow. 

--@Kunkel5

--Lee Kunkel

Worthem wins NEC Rookie of the Week

For the second time this year, RMU freshman forward Jeremiah Worthem has won the Choice Hotels NEC Rookie of the Week. Coming off a 2-0 week, Worthem averaged 16.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, and shot 62.5 percent from the field.

It wasn't just about how much Worthem scored as opposed to when he did. His huge three point shot against St. Francis (PA) with three minutes remaining saved what could have been an ugly loss for the Colonials. At Mount, Worthem had a carer high 21 points in a game where Karvel Anderson really struggled to find his shot. RMU needed someone to step up and, like we've seen a few times this year, the freshman played like anything but.

Congrats to Jeremiah on his second Rookie of the Week award. 

--Chris Cappella

--@C_Cappella

RMCMB moves to 4-0, beats Mount 77-69

The Colonials picked up another huge win, going down to the Mount and grabbing an 8 point victory, moving the Colonials to 4-0 in the NEC, 9-10 overall.

The Mount, winners of two straight at home over St Francis Brooklyn and Wagner, were focused on slowing down the hot shooting Karvel Anderson. They did a solid job, holding him to 12 points, but forgot about RMU's freshman sensation Jeremiah Worthem.

Worthem, who played by far the best game of his RMU career, finished with 21 points and including some big buckets late, and ht a few free throws to help seal the win.

Lucky Jones also showed up BIG TIME, tallying a double-double scoring 16 points and 10 rebounds.

RMU's defense showed up, holding the best offensive team in the league to just 69 points.

Some thoughts:

Chuck Oliver had a nice spell in the first half when RMU was struggling, scoring and And 1 at the rim, knocking down a three, and then a no look pass to Aaron Tate for an easy dunk.

This was a "ballsy" win for RMU. They showed a lot of poise and grit that well serve them well moving forward.

The Mount color guy just called you out RMU. He called the Colonial Crazies and the Sewall Center a "morgue." Yikes. RMU has four straight at home. Hopefully the only thing "morgue-ish" will be teams coming to die at the Chuck. When Mount comes to the Chuck on the 15th of February, the Crazies need to be ROCKING. He was also the worse color guy ever, like EVER.

One other big note: Mike McFadden has quit the team according to the RMU radio guys. They made the announcement before Saturday's game. We will see if McFadden is done for good, he did this last year and came back, but if he is, it's a huge blow.

A lot more on this game/the weekend in the NEC to come...For now, awesome win. Let's run away with this thing over the next four games.

--Lee Kunkel
--@Kunkel5

Other thoughts: Great win for the guys. A hot start in conference play was exactly what the doctor ordered. I think RMU could probably finish 8-4 and win the conference.

The defense was very impressive from the Colonials. There was a possession in the first half where Mount airballed a long three, got the rebound, and was forced into another three that was airballed. The pressure the guards put on the ballhandlers at the wing was unbelievable and unlike what we saw versus St. Francis, Mount was unable to work the ball in the high post for most of the game. Even though RMU was down at half, I loved the way they played, they just missed a lot of good looks at the rim.

It's tough to hear McFadden has walked away from the team again. I think the hope is he will take some time off and return like he did last year. RMU could really use him for, at the very least, depth in the frontcourt.

Not a whole lot to ad that wasn't already said. Aaron Tate is playing some really good basketball which is awesome because his minutes are only going to go up. RMU was pretty money from the free throw line and you have to be when you don't shoot the three ball a lot. Also, loved the way both point guards broke the press.

--Chris Cappella
--@C_Cappella

RMU's box from ESPN.

What's Juanie Newton's status?

Something that garnered a little attention last night was the fact that transfer guard Juanie Newton was not dressed or with the team. In fact, he sat in the bleachers with the students. Newton started the season off as a pretty reliable contributor off the bench but for whatever reason has been deep in Toole's doghouse and has not seen the court. 

When Toole was asked postgame about Newton's status he said it was "unclear" and he is still with the team. Newton also responded to some questions of his availability on twitter, stating he has not left the team:

Those who followed the team last year may remember a sort of similar situation with Mike McFadden, where he was not with the team for two games but came back. Of course, the reasons for leaving were different. Mike was struggling with injuries and didn't want to keep tearing down his body while Newton's is playing time related.

Before the game I was told pretty much exactly what Newton tweeted; he left the team but there is a chance he could return. It's unfortunate this situation has progressed  to where it is. I love Juanie's game-- he can hit some shots from behind the arc and brings a ton of energy. The problem is, where is the energy being focused? Toole has proven he will not play guys if they don't want to play defense.

If Juanie does come back to the team, it'll be interesting to see in what capacity. 

--Chris Cappella

--@C_Cappella

A Familiar Foe: Robert Morris at The Mount

Robert Morris (8-10, 3-0) at Mount St. Mary's (6-10, 2-1)
When: Saturday, January 18th, 2pm
Where: Knott Arena, Emmitsburg, Maryland
KenPom: RMU 172, Mount 220
Storyline: It's a quick turnaround for both RMU and Mount as both are coming off big win's Thursday night, but have an even bigger game Saturday with first place on the line.
Link: NEC Front Row

Storyline (continued): The story line section in our lead in is not near big enough to get the who picture painted. RMU will head to Maryland flying high, but last time RMU was flying high, and Mount was in their path, the Mountaineers sent the Colonials packing in the NEC semifinals.

I won't spend too much time on that game last March, mainly because I'll start crying, but it certainly will be in the back of Karvel Anderson, Mike McFadden, Ant Myers Pate, and Lucky Jones (along with the other Colonial Vets) head on Saturday.

Norfleet does it all for the Mount
(p/c MSM).

As for the meaning of this particular game, it's huge. If RMU wins they will be 4-0, a game up on the whole conference, with wins on the road over Bryant and MSM. That would be a HUGE leg up on the league, with four straight games at home upcoming.

A loss, and RMU will slip back with the rest of the pack, including Mount, at 3-1.

Getting to Know the Mount: I really cant wait to watch Karvel battle Mount's star guard Julian Norfleet. 

He's a stud.

For the season, he's averaging 20.7 points-per-game, 5.6 assists-per-game and he just carved up Wagner's defense like it was nothing. Him and Anderson look like the front runners to battle it out for NEC player of the year.

This will be the NEC equivalent to Lebron vs KD. It should be a fun matchup.

As a team, Mount is a highly entertaining group to watch. They score a ton, but don't really stop anyone.

A lot of that is due to their injuries, which have killed their depth and took a lot of the bite out of their "havoc" system.

Mont is great on offense,
but not so good on D.
(KenPom)

The D is allowing 114.3 points-per-100 possessions, that's the second worse in the NEC ahead of only LIU (who is GOD awful). That mark ranks 329th in all of college basketball according to KenPom.

Offensively though, they're as potent as anyone in the league. They score 109.8 points-per-100 possessions, that's the best adjusted offense in the league (RMU is second at just over 107).

Not only is Norfleet a big time weapon, but Rashad Whack -a George Mason transfer who killed RMU in the NEC tournament- is averaging 16.5 points-per-game and Sam Prescott is starting to find his stroke, making Mount that much more dangerous.

All-in-all, both RMU and Mount are REALLY good on offense, but have their struggles on the defensive side.

Colonial Keys: For RMU, it's pretty simple. Attack, attack, attack on offense. Do just enough on defense. If RMU can hold Mount under 80 points, they have a good shot at winning. If not, it will be difficult to out-gun the Mount in their home building.

On offense, RMU must handle the Mount's pressure. They aren't as potent on D this year because of those injuries, but they still get after you. RMU really struggled with the pressure in the NEC tournament last year. If the Colonials break it, they will get a lot of open looks.

This is a huge game for Kavon Stewart and Jeremiah Worthem, as both will get their first look at havoc.

Worthem triggers the ball in, and Stewart is the point guard, so he will obviously have a lot of responsibility in breaking the press. This will be a great test for the two freshman.

How will Kavon Stewart handle his first look
at "HAVOC?" (p/c RMU).

In my opinion, I think this is the toughest matchup for RMU in the NEC. Mount exploits a lot of RMU's weaknesses, like pressuring full court, attacking the rim with their guards, and pushing the pace.

This years RMU team is better equipped to handle some of that, and the new zone wrinkle is something Mount hasn't seen from RMU is years past, but there is no doubt this will be a difficult game.

The Colonials also got ahead of the eight ball by winning at Bryant, so winning this game would be gravy. They have four straight home games coming up, and if they get through this whole stretch 7-1, even 6-2, they will be set up nicely for a second half run.

--@Kunkel5
--Lee Kunkel

Survive, move on.

Jeremiah Worthem stepped up as RMU
survived 73-68 (p/c Josh Verlin).

It wasn't pretty, but RMU survived and stayed perfect in NEC play with a comeback win over St Francis PA, 73-68.

With Mount St Mary's win over Wagner, RMU is in sole possession of first place, and remain the only undefeated team in the league at 3-0, (8-10 overall).

The Colonials were rolling along, as Karvel Anderson hit a step back three with the buzzer sounding to send the team into the break with a 12 point lead, 38-26.

RMU traded baskets at the start of the second half, but the defense did not look good, allowing easy high post entries and wide open threes.

The Red Flash took advantage, and the Colonials went cold. A 14 point lead, turned into an 11 point deficit.

Ben Millaud-Meunier (17 points, 5-8 from three) and Malik Harmon (21 points, 8-11 overall) started knocking down threes, and Earl Brown (11 points, 7 rebounds) did damage on the post, and it appeared RMU was about to lose maybe the ugliest game in the Toole era.

Sr. G Karvel Anderson: "We were slow on some of our rotations. They have shooters all around the perimeter, & we just had to stay urgent."
— RMU Men's Basketball (@RMUMBasketball) January 17, 2014

Then RMU woke up, and showed some fight, something that Toole will love seeing, despite the collapse.

Anderson hit a three, Jeremiah Worthem chipped in with the biggest shot of his RMU career, knocking down another three to get RMU within one, and then Ant Myers-Pate hit a long two to give the Colonials the lead.

A few clutch free throws by Anderson and Worthem, and RMU survived.

Anderson fished with 22 points on 7-14 shooting, Worthem finished with 10 points and four rebounds, and Myers-Pate four points and four assists.

Luck Jones, who hit a couple big shots including a corner three as RMU made their comeback, finished with 12 points and six rebounds.

Thoughts:

First off: Whewwwww. That was close. Nice win, but shouldn't have been that close. With that said, what heart to not fall down and stay down. The team got punched in the face, multiple times, and got back up and won the fight. 3-0 is 3-0.

Second: Awesome crowd. The Crazies were loud, I could here you guys through the NEC Front Row stream, and I truly think it helped the team comeback. After Worthem splashed that three, it was the loudest that building has been since that UK game. Well done students, keep up the good work. Next weeks home games are MASSIVE vs Sacred Heart/Wagner. Especially that game Saturday.

Lucky: I'd like to thank all the fans that came out tonight. I don't think we win without them coming out
— Chris Cappella (@C_Cappella) January 17, 2014

Loudest the Sewall Center has been since the Kentucky game...not a bad showing. #RMU
— Andrew Chiappazzi (@achiappazzi) January 17, 2014

Third: RMU put it into coast mode, and it almost cost them. In this zone, the team needs to be active, once they started playing with less energy out of the half, SFPA had easy looks all over the court. Credit to them, they hit some deep threes, but RMU needs to maintain that active energy for a complete 40 if this zone is going to work.

More to come later....Nice win. Huge game at the Mount on Saturday, 2pm tip NEC Front Row.

Lucky Jones said Jeremiah Worthem is the best freshman in the NEC. Heaped a lot of praise on him. #RMU
— Craig Meyer (@CraigMeyerPG) January 17, 2014

--Lee Kunkel
--@Kunkel5