At a glance: Robert Morris at St. John's

Robert Morris (21-13) at St. John’s (20-12)

Where: Carnesecca Arena

When: Today! March 18, 2014

Tip: 7:00 p.m.

KenPom: RMU 185, St. Johns 38

Link: ESPNU, ESPN radio 970

Storyline: RMU will look to repeat some of last years NIT magic as they travel to New York to take on the Red Storm

The Skinny

St. John’s is a team that didn’t miss out on the NCAA tournament by much and was rewarded with a one seed in the NIT. Believe it or not, the NIT isn’t a bad tournament. It’s not like we’re watching a couple of sea otters trying to juggle rings of fire (that takes place in the CBI), this is legitimate D-I top level competition and good place for a mid-major program like Robert Morris to continue to try and make a name for themselves.

Our man Norman from SB Nation’s Rumble in the Garden gave us the low down on the Red Storm earlier and I encourage you to give that a read if you haven’t already. He covers just about everything you need to know about St. John’s in a delivery much better than mine. If you’re too lazy to click on that link, just know St. John’s is a big, athletic team who will defend the hell out of you. Their top scorer is D’Angelo Harrison.

NIT Magic?

Certainly the circumstances are different, but RMU has another chance to prove themselves against top level competition in the NIT. The Kentucky win in 2013 was impressive but I might come away more impressed if the Colonials can go on the road and take down a solid St. John’s squad.

One last time

This could very well be the last time Karvel Anderson and Anthon Myers-Pate play basketball for the red, white, and blue. This could very well be the last time Myers-Pate plays competitive basketball period. Enjoy it.

Offensive defense

Robert Morris lost in the NEC championship game because of its inability to get stops on the defensive end. In said game (which will now be referred to as “the loss”), Mount St. Mary’s shot 60 percent from the field and 44 percent from three. Toole has talked all year about how the zone defense should severely limit at least one aspect of a teams offense. Sometimes it’s three point shooting, other times it’s driving to the rim, etc. etc. RMU was unable to do any of that. It’ll be interesting to see what adjustments were made for this game, especially when it comes to guarding the high post, which really gave RMU troubles in “the loss”.

NEC Pride

During commercial breaks, kick it to the Mount St. Mary’s-Albany NCAA game. This could be a big day for the Northeast Conference. Best of luck to our companions in Maryland.

--Chris Cappella

--@C_Cappella