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Robert Morris Basketball

RMU Offense Falters in 69-60 Home Loss to Marshall

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The Thundering Herd stampeded the RMU offense. 

Robert Morris welcomed one-loss Marshall up I-79 from Huntington, West Virginia for non-conference action Saturday night at the UPMC Events Center. 

RMU engaged the crowd early in the first four minutes but never regained the lead after a 4-3 advantage two minutes into the game. Marshall dictated the entire game and proved why it won eight in a row entering play following an opening-night loss. The Colonials (4-7) could not find enough scoring in a 69-60 defeat.

Marshall (9-1) responded with a 9-0 run heading into the under-12 media timeout. The lead would only grow. The Colonials ran into problems on the offensive end, waiting until the shot close was close to expiring to force up a shot or dish a tough pass.

RMU did not score for seven minutes until inside 11 minutes remaining. Michael Green III ended the drought with a three from the right wing to eclipse 1,000 points in his career. 

Kamdyn Curfman connected an ally-oop to Taevion Kinsey to regain a 10-point lead, 19-9 with eight minutes and change still before the next break on the floor. 

Traveling violations were an issue on both sides and Marshall recorded multiple moving screens. 

It took Robert Morris nearly 16 minutes to reach double figures. Green connected on two free throws and cut the deficit to 23-11 before Matt Mayers finished off a three-point play a minute later. 

RMU scored 16 points in the first half. Green displayed the only sign of life by any Colonial but attacked the basket infrequently. It was a rough start for the RMU “big three.” Cheeks shot 1-of-6 for two points and two rebounds along with a team-high three turnovers.

 

Kahliel Spear and Josh Corbin did not score in the first half. Spear missed three field goals and two free throws while in foul trouble. Corbin missed five shots, four threes, in 19 minutes. 

RMU shot 6-of-30 (20%) and 1-of-9 11.1%) from behind the three-point line through 20 minutes. Marshall out-rebounded the Colonials 23-16 while RMU held a 6-4 advantage on the offensive glass. 

Both teams combined for 22 total turnovers and only 10 assists. The Thundering Herd compiled a 12-of-26 (46.2%) clip while making two three-pointers out of 10 attempted shots. Marshall blocked four shots and performed solidly on the defensive side. 

Andrew Taylor paced Marshall, scoring 10 points, and added two steals. Taylor also turned the ball over five times but recorded a 37.81 usage percentage. Kinsey added nine points in 19 minutes and scored Marshall’s first six points in the second half. He began the night averaging 20.3 points per game in over 37 minutes. 

Cheeks scored three and a half minutes after the resumption of play for RMU’s first points. The Thundering Herd stretched the lead to 39-18 four and a half minutes in while not slowing down. 

Spear scored his first points at the 12:21 mark remaining in the game and followed it up by throwing down a one-handed jam the next time down the floor. A Stephaun Walker three-point play gave RMU the same number of points in 10 minutes as it had in the first 20. Walker was the most impressive Colonial Saturday, especially in the second half. The freshman guard broke out for a double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds including five on the offensive glass.

 

Marshall countered RMU’s attempt at a comeback with relative ease. The Thundering Herd dictated the entire game, pushing the advantage to 55-38 and seven minutes left. Missed shots and turnovers allowed RMU to cut the deficit to eight, 63-55, with 1:09 still remaining but Marshall sealed the win on a Kamdyn Curfman corner three. 

RMU shot 24-of-65 (36.9%) overall and 2-of-17 (11.8%) from three. Walker and Cheeks tied for the team lead in points with 17. Corbin, Spear, Cheeks, and Green combined to miss 13 of 15 three-point attempts. Spear snapped a seven-game double-double streak, scoring eight points and adding four rebounds. Corbin did not score in 26 minutes, missing six shots. Spear and Cheeks combined for nine turnovers. 

Kinsey exploded on the offensive end in the second half for Marshall with 26 total points and five assists. Andrew Taylor totaled 15 points while Curfman scored 10 plus seven rebounds and three assists. 

Robert Morris returns to the floor on Sunday, Dec. 18 against Mount St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg, Md. at 2 p.m.

Sandy Schall, Coldwell Banker
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