It’s always said that a team wants to finish a regular season strong and with momentum before heading into the postseason and that’s what Robert Morris has done.
Not only did the Colonials (22-7, 17-1) finish strong but they did so in a near record breaking fashion as they defeated St. Francis, PA Thursday night, 62-29, at the UPMC Events Center. This is the seventh time this season that RMU has won a game by 30 or more points, adding to the school record.
How dominant was Robert Morris on defense? They were able to hold St. Francis to just 18.4% shooting, and the 29 points allowed were the fewest by a Colonial opponent since February 28, 1980 against Chatham (85-24). The point total was the third fewest since 1977-78- the first season RMU competed at the AIAW level.
The trio of Honoka Ikematsu, Nneka Ezeigbo and Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu led the way for Charlie Buscaglia’s team. Ikematsu scored a game-high 17 points while Ezeigbo finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds and Ozzy-Momodu also finished with a double-double, 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Ezeigbo continued to add to her legacy at Robert Morris as she moved up to 7th on the all-time scorers passing Stacy Ritter (1992-96). Ezeigbo’s 1,342 points are just five shy of passing Kim Mong (1981-85) for sixth place.
“I’m very proud of our team,” said head coach Charlie Buscaglia. “Last year we were in this situation and didn’t handle it very well. We were outworked (last season at Sacred Heart), and today was that challenge. When we’re in this position, we have to be able to work and play hard, and it was nice to get a good lead, get some new faces in, and rest some players that have gotten bulk minutes. I’m very proud of the effort, we worked hard for 40 minutes.”
Next up for the Colonials is the start of the NEC Tournament as they take on Wagner in the quarterfinals. Tipoff from the UPMC Events Center is at 7:05 PM.
