RMU Men’s Basketball: Four Stars Of The Game In Capturing The Northeast Conference Championship
By Larry Snyder
The Robert Morris University men’s basketball team is going back to the Big Dance for the first time since 2010 with their 66-63 victory Tuesday over St. Francis Brooklyn in the Northeast Conference tournament championship.
More from Robert Morris University
- Big Week for Robert Morris University Colonials Athletics
- Three Rivers Classic: Hometown team RMU prevails, wins championship
- Three Rivers Classic: Robert Morris vs Penn State recap
- Three Rivers Classic preview: Robert Morris vs Penn State showdown
- Rodney Pryor, RMU guard, named Northeast Conference Player of the Week
Coming into the matchup at the Pope Physical Education Center in Brooklyn Heights, RMU was the No. 2 seed. The Colonials enhanced their record to 19-14 overall in capturing their eighth NEC Tournament title. They claimed a 12-6 mark in the conference during the regular season. It is the first time for Robert Morris to make the NCAA Tournament under head coach Andrew Toole.
The Terriers were the No. 1 seed and saw their season end with a record of 23-11 overall, and 15-3 in the conference. SFC is one of five original Division I schools, going back to 1948, that has never made the NCAA Tournament.
The Colonials went on a 16-3 run that gave them a 57-47 lead with 6:51 left in the second half. It came down to St. Francis senior forward Lowell Ulmer rebounding Lucky Jones’ free-throw miss with one second remaining on the clock and launching an 80-foot shot that bounced off the back of the rim and out. The victory belonged to RMU.
Robert Morris was good on 8-of-16 three-point attempts while SFC shot 8-of-26. The Colonials held the edge in points off turnovers 20-8. The Terriers took care of business on the boards with a 47-27 advantage. RMU led in steals 13-8.
Live Feed
Busting Brackets
Let’s look at four players that helped the Colonials claim the NEC Title and win their sixth consecutive contest since an 80-76 loss Feb. 19 to Sacred Heart.
1) Rodney Pryor led the RMU attack with 17 points. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound junior guard also had four steals. The Evanston, Illinois native was named the NEC Tournament Most Valuable Player.
2) The second leading scorer was forward Elijah Minnie, who contributed 14 points against the Terriers. The 6-foot-8, 215-pound freshman led the team with nine rebounds and four blocked shots. The Monessen, Pa., native also added one steal and one assist.
3) Coming off the bench, Jones supplied 12 points on the scoreboard. The 6-foot-6, 210-pound senior guard from Newark, NJ also grabbed five rebounds.
4) Kavon Stewart chipped in 11 points and three steals. The 6-foot, 180-pound sophomore guard was the leader in assists with six.
Junior guard Tyreek Jewell led the Terriers with 19 points and was second on the club in assists with four. NEC Player of the Year and senior forward Jalen Cannon and freshman guard Glenn Sanabria were tied for second in scoring with 10 points apiece. The 6-foot-6, 230-pound Cannon was the leader in rebounds with 12.
Up Next: Selection Sunday will take place on March 15 on CBS. That is when the Colonials will learn their slot in the tournament bracket. We will also find out which teams will round out the field of 68.
The 2015 NCAA Tournament tips off March 17-18 with the Final Four played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. The championship game is set for Monday, April 6.
From The Clipboard: Freshman guard Marcquise Reed had 10 points, two assists and two steals in 17 minutes of play…While five RMU players concluded the contest in double figures, a total of six Colonials scored on the night…Attendance was 1,013 …The officials for the game were Paul Faia, Robert Riley, Donnie Eppley.