ALTOONA, Pa. -- The last time Robert Morris played in front of fans at the UPMC Events Center the program had just been crowned Northeast Conference champions. That was 619 days ago and while they were playing an NEC team, the outcome was much different as the Colonials were taken down 74-70 to Mount St. Mary's Friday night.
The loss moved Robert Morris to 0-4 on the season though, this was a game the Colonials could have and should have won. Up 17 points in the second half, Mount St. Mary's erupted to go on a 15-point run to tie the game at 51 apiece with a little over eight minutes remaining in the second half.
"Credit the Mount and their ability to fight back," Robert Morris head coach Andrew Toole said. "We've had great battles with them for a long, long time, and we know they're never gonna quit. They just beat us up in the second half."
The Colonials held a 2-point advantage with 21 seconds to go after fifth-year guard Rasheem Dunn sunk two free throws. With the score 62-60, Mount St. Mary's turned the ball over after Dunn stole the ball from Jalen Benjamin. Dunn was subsequently fouled but missed the second attempt as Robert Morris clung to a 63-60 lead.
Mezie Offurum would wind up with the rebound only to find DeAndre Thomas in the corner where buried the three, tying the game with 1.3 seconds left to get the game into overtime.
"I have to figure out a way to get our guys to understand that every possession matters for 40 minutes every time you step on the floor," Toole said. "I'm not doing a good enough job getting our guys to that point. We have to figure it out some way, somehow."
In overtime it was all Mount St. Mary's as they outscored the Colonials 11-7 to gain the victory.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics
THE SCHEDULE
Robert Morris is off for the next week before heading to Davidson for a 2:00 p.m. non-conference tilt Nov. 27th. After that, the Colonials will hit the road to begin their Horizon League slate against Green Bay and Milwaukee.
THE CONTENT
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