Robert Morris Recognizing Unselfish Play’s Fueling Success

Not a single fan occupied a seat in the UPMC Events Center as the Robert Morris Colonials ran off the floor following their dogpile near center court moments after taking down Purdue Fort Wayne in an overtime thriller on Friday evening.

There was a noticeable energy of excitement and appreciation from the Robert Morris faithful as their standing ovation sent the Colonials off into the Moon Township night.

Once in the locker room, the Colonials let it all out. Head coach Andy Toole ran through a tunnel of players with water spraying around the room, which then turned into the players jumping around in elation.

Shortly thereafter, Toole made his way to his post in the media room down the hall. His water-soaked hair and drenched shirt revealed the emotions that literally poured out after the victory.

When asked if that type of celebration happens frequently, his response was clear:

“I would like it to happen more often.”

In one of the most memorable wins since the opening of the four-year-old building that RMU calls home, it was a reminder of what the Colonials can accomplish if all the details are met.

Robert Morris Colonials head coach Andrew Toole January 10, 2024 David Hague/PSN

“As long as you have an opportunity to play the game and put a jersey on, and as long as they allow me to coach, I’m going to be fighting to do the right things and play the right way,” Toole said. “That’s the only thing I know and it’s great to see the guys embrace that.”

With everything falling into place, it set up for a romantic ending to an intense game and possibly the turning point that the Colonials need this season.

One of the sole reasons that Robert Morris can attribute to the outcome of the game is the unselfishness the Colonials played with.

Take the game-tying shot for example:

Josh Corbin found himself on an island with just a few seconds to go in regulation thanks to a great screen established by Steph Walker. Jackson Last inbounds pass found Markeese Hastings, who then placed it on a platter for Corbin to knock down the triple to send it to overtime.

“Amazing screen from Steph. It kind of shocked me for a second how open I was,” Corbin said. “To go out and execute and have unselfish players do their roles whether it’s Jackson throwing an inbounds pass, if its Markeese catching the ball and throwing it to me or whatever the case is, it was executed perfectly. I had the easiest job just to hit the shot.”

Working to perfection, the inbounds play provided Corbin the open look he needed and also registered as the 19^th team assist on the night.

Tying a season-high in assists at 21 for Robert Morris, Hastings’ game-winning heave at the buzzer was set up by a long inbounds pass from Last that tipped into the air and fell towards Hastings as he turned and hit the final shot.

“I was ready to make the next to play. I caught it, turned around and shot it,” Hastings said. “I didn’t know if it was going in until it actually went in. Just to get a dub against a team like that is an unbelievable feeling.”

With arguably two of the most significant moments of the season reaping the benefits of selfless basketball, it was only a matter of time for that to happen, especially with the recent discussions that took place behind closed doors.

“In the last couple of days, we’ve had some heart-to-heart talks as a team of playing together and playing for each other,” Corbin said. “It showed that we meant what we said to come out against a great team and fight our way until the end and come away with the win.”

“We felt as a team, we had a couple conference games this season where we were a little selfish, me included,” Corbin added. “Being a leader on this team, an experienced player on this team, our goal was to come out and try to make that extra pass.”

Well, that certainly paid dividends with 68 percent of Robert Morris’ buckets coming off assists.

Toole did not shy away from the importance of sharing the ball and cited the best teams in the country thrive off the concept.

“Kansas was the No. 3 team in the country, they lead the country in assists. Purdue, 64 percent of their shots are assisted. UConn played Xavier on Wednesday night, 27 of their 31 baskets were assisted,” Toole said.

When the Colonials distribute the ball at a high rate and capitalize, they have been rewarded. Hence, their two Horizon League wins totaled 21 assists apiece.

“It should help us see that when we go to the next person, everybody eats,” Corbin said. “A lot of people got easier shots.”

That’s exactly what happened in Friday night’s victory. More ball movement opened up additional quality looks.

“When you take some good ones and then all of a sudden, you make some good ones, then there’s a chance you make one that maybe isn’t as good, but you’ve seen the ball go in the basket and you have a rhythm and confidence about what you’re doing,” Toole said.

With Robert Morris capturing two of its last three conference contests, the Colonials have perhaps found, and finally understood, what formula works for beating teams this season.