Men's Basketball Game Notes vs. No. 6 Monmouth (3/1/12) - NEC Tournament Quarterfinals

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Game #32 • 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament Quarterfinals No. 6 Monmouth (12-19) vs. No. 3 Robert Morris (22-9)

2011-12 Schedule / Results 11 15 19 22 25 27 1 3 6 8 17 20 22 29 2 5 7 12 14 19 21 26 28 2 4 8 11 16 18 23 25 1 4 7

NOVEMBER (4-2) RIDER W, 83-57 @ Saint Peter’s W, 69-52 @ Penn # L, 60-66 @ James Madison # W, 82-77 vs. La Salle # W, 51-44 @ No. 16 Pittsburgh # L, 71-81 DECEMBER (6-2) FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON * W, 66-54 MONMOUTH * W, 69-51 @ Duquesne W, 64-60 CLEVELAND STATE L, 58-62 LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE W, 72-64 HAMPTON W, 64-54 @ Youngstown State W, 59-56 @ Memphis L, 47-64 JANUARY (6-3) @ Ohio W, 70-67 @ Bryant * W, 84-53 @ Central Connecticut State * L, 53-68 QUINNIPIAC * L, 76-78 SACRED HEART * W, 70-67 @ Fairleigh Dickinson * W, 67-55 @ Monmouth * (OT) W, 81-73 LONG ISLAND * W, 75-66 ST. FRANCIS (N.Y.) * L, 68-81 FEBRUARY (6-2) @ Wagner * L, 69-80 @ Mount St. Mary’s * W, 67-62 @ Saint Francis (Pa.) * W, 78-74 SAINT FRANCIS (Pa.) * W, 70-56 BRYANT * W, 69-40 CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE * W, 68-60 @ Sacred Heart * W, 55-53 @ Quinnipiac * L, 69-73 MARCH (0-0) No. 6 MONMOUTH 7:00 p.m. NEC Tournament Semifinals TBA NEC Tournament Final TBA

Thursday, March 1, 2012 • 7:00 p.m. • Charles L. Sewall Center (3,056) • Moon Township, Pa. Radio: WPIT-AM (730) with Chris Shovlin (play-by-play) & Jim Elias (color) Audio / Video / Live Stats available at www.rmucolonials.com Top Story - The Robert Morris University men’s basketball team begins its quest for a leaguerecord eighth Northeast Conference Tournament championship Thursday by hosting No. 6 seed Monmouth in a 7:00 p.m. tip as part of quarterfinal action in the 2012 NEC Tournament. The Colonials are coming off a 73-69 setback @ Quinnipiac (2/25/12) in their 2011-12 regular-season finale, which snapped a season-high six-game winning streak. RMU was led by Velton Jones @ Quinnipiac, as the redshirt junior guard finished with 29 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field, including a 4-for-7 performance from long range, and a 7-for-8 showing at the free-throw line. He also added four assists. Robert Morris is making its ninth straight appearance in the NEC Tournament and 28th overall. All-time in tournament action the Colonials own a record of 31-20 (.608), including a mark of 21-6 (.778) in tournament home games. At the Sewall Center, RMU is 16-5 (.762) in NEC Tournament tilts. Quick Stat of the Night - Thanks to a game-high 29 points @ Quinnipiac (2/25/12) in the 2011-12 regular-season finale, redshirt junior guard Velton Jones became the seventh different Colonial in school history to eclipse the 500-point plateau in a season. Jones, a 2012 All-NEC First Team selection, enters the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament averaging a team-high 16.5 points per game and has scored 512 points so far this year. That total is good enough to rank 10th in the Robert Morris single-season record book. Jones is just six points shy of moving into ninth place, and his 512 points are the most by a Colonial since former guard Jeremy Chappell (2005-09) scored 585 points in helping lead Robert Morris to the 2009 NEC Tournament championship. Thursday’s Opponent and The All-Time Series RMU vs. Monmouth RMU and Monmouth will tip for the 56th time Series Record ............... Monmouth leads, 31-24 Saturday night, with the Hawks holding a 31-24 First Meeting .......... 1/23/86; Monmouth, 71-60 (.564) advantage in the all-time series. Robert Last Meeting .................. 1/21/12; RMU, 81-73 (OT) Morris has won six straight over Monmouth as Last RMU Win ................ 1/21/12; RMU, 81-73 (OT) well as 10 of the last 11 meetings. The Colonials Current Streak ......................... Robert Morris, 6 swept the 2011-12 regular-season series, posting Toole vs. Monmouth ........................................ 4-0 a 69-51 win over the Hawks at the Charles L. Sewall Center (12/3/11), followed by an 81-73 overtime victory at The MAC (1/21/12) in West Long Branch, N.J. In the pair of victories, redshirt junior guard Velton Jones averaged 23.0 points, 3.0 assists and 3.5 steals, including a 35-point, six-assist, three-steal effort in RMU’s overtime victory at the MAC.

# The Philly Hoop Group Classic (Philadelphia, Pa.) (La Salle game played at the Palestra) * Northeast Conference game

Robert Morris Probable Starters ... # 34 24 1 2 3

P F F F G G

Name Russell Johnson (6-6, 180, R-Jr.) Lawrence Bridges (6-5, 225, Sr.) Mike McFadden (6-8, 220, So.) Velton Jones (6-0, 170, R-Jr.) Coron Williams (6-2, 170, R-So.)

Pts. 8.6 3.9 8.4 16.5 10.2

Reb. 5.6 3.9 4.2 2.9 2.6

G/GS 25/22 31/28 21/20 31/30 31/31

Hometown Chester, Pa. Detroit, Mich. Newark, N.J. Philadelphia, Pa. Midlothian, Va.

Quick Fact Contributed 15 points, seven boards @ Quinnipiac (2/25/12) RMU is 29-10 (.744) last two years with Bridges in starting lineup Over last eight games is averaging 8.5 points, 4.5 rebounds RMU’s active leader in points (1,180), assists (359), steals (161) Only Colonial to start all 31 games on the 2011-12 campaign

Robert Morris Off The Bench ... # 22 11 5 35 21

P F C G F G

Name Lucky Jones (6-5, 195, Fr.) Lijah Thompson (6-7, 215, Jr.) Anthony Myers (5-11, 170, So.) Keith Armstrong (6-7, 230, Fr.) Brandon Herman (6-1, 190, Fr.)

Pts. 8.1 7.6 6.3 2.2 2.0

Reb. 6.0 3.9 2.9 1.9 0.8

G/GS 29/9 26/14 30/1 28/0 24/0

Hometown Newark, N.J. Philadelphia, Pa. Washington, D.C. Raleigh, N.C. Chattanooga, Tenn.

Quick Fact Total of 175 caroms second highest by frosh in school history Last five home games averaging 10.3 points, 5.0 rebounds Owns an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.00 last 13 games Shooting 52.9 percent (9-for-17) from field his last eight games Finished with six points, three rebounds vs. Bryant


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