Robert Morris Erases 13-Point Second Half Deficit, Beats Oakland in OT of Horizon League Semifinals

INDIANAPOLIS — The top-seeded Robert Morris Colonials got all they could handle in the Horizon League semifinals as they went to an overtime period to defeat the sixth-seed Oakland Golden Grizzlies by the score of 79-76. After trailing by as many as 13 points in the second half, the Colonials are on their way to their first ever Horizon League Championship game.

In the overtime period, D.J. Smith started the scoring with a three and Kam Woods followed it up with a floater. The Golden Grizzlies answered with just single free throws on their two possessions. The two misses allowed the Colonials to lead 79-76 with just 24 seconds left.

The Golden Grizzlies had the ball with a chance to tie it on a Woodrich three but the league’s Defensive Player of the Year winner, Amarion Dickerson, swatted his shot out of bounds with 1.8 left on the clock.

The Colonials jumped out to a 4-3 lead after Josh Omojafo hit a corner three but then the Golden Grizzlies went on a 10-2 run to lead 13-6 at the first media stoppage of the half. The Colonials eventually stormed back with a 14-2 run of their own and re-claimed the lead after two three-pointers from D.J. Smith, including one from what felt like the parking lot.

Smith’s threes gave the Colonials a 24-19 lead but then Tuburu Naivalurua finished a layup on the glass to cut the deficit to just three at the under-12 stoppage. The Colonials kept a small lead over the next few minutes but the play of Allen Mukeba helped the Golden Grizzlies keep it close until they eventually jumped back ahead in the final minutes of the half.

At the final media timeout of the half, Mukeba had 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting which was half of the Golden Grizzlies total made field goals at the time. The Golden Grizzlies closed out the first half on a 11-4 run to take a 38-34 lead into the locker rooms.

The thing that hurt the Colonials in the first half was foul issues with the Horizon League Player of the Year winner Alvaro Folgeuiras and the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year winner Amarion Dickerson. Folgueiras played just 13 minutes in the first half while Dickerson played just 10 minutes.

The Golden Grizzlies pushed their lead out to 11 points in first five minutes of the second half due to their inability to slow down Mukeba and Naivalurua while also committing three turnovers on traveling violations.

The Golden Grizzlies extended their lead to 13 after a deep two from Jaylen Jones but then the Colonials started to answer. Ismael Plet slammed home a dunk and then Ryan Prather Jr. finished with a layup and a three to pull back to within six at 53-47.

The Golden Grizzlies saw their lead grow back to nine before the Colonials threw another punch. After a pair of free throws from Woodrich made the score 56-47, Ismael Plet threw down a dunk which gave the crowd and team the energy to go on a 8-2 run to pull to within just three.

Unfortunately for the Colonials, Malcolm Christie nailed two-straight threes to help keep the Colonials at a distance as the under-eight media stoppage hit. The Golden Grizzlies led 64-57 at the break in action but it would not last.

Following the media break, the Colonials threw their best punch of the night as they went on a 11-0 run behind big-time threes from both Folgueiras and Omojafo. The run gave the Colonials a 68-64 lead which was their first lead since the 3:48 mark of the first half.

Following a timeout with 2:15 left, the Golden Grizzlies raced back ahead of the Colonials by four after a buzzer-beating three from DQ Cole and then a corner three from Woodrich. That forced a timeout from Robert Morris with 1:26 left.

Following the Colonials timeout, Kam Woods came down and nailed a clutch three to bring it back to a one-point game. Then on the ensuing Golden Grizzlies possession, the Colonials defense forced a timely turnover to give them the ball back with 46 seconds and down by just one.

Unfortunately for the Colonials, they missed the shot and Folgueiras picked up his fifth foul which ended his night and to make matters worse, Cole sunk both free throws to make it a three-point lead with under 30 seconds to go.

The Colonials still had a chance to tie it and did just that with 17 seconds to go when Woods finished a tough, crafty layup and converted the and-one. That gave the Golden Grizzlies a chance to win it at the buzzer and looked like they did on a layup but Greg Kampe called a timeout with 3.3 seconds left and then they turned the ball over which sent the game to overtime.

Robert Morris now advances to play the winner of Cleveland St. and Youngstown St. in the Horizon League Championship at 7 p.m. tomorrow. With the semifinal win, the Colonial are just one win away from making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament as the Horizon League’s auto-bid.