Robert Morris Uses Another Fast Start to Comfortably Beat Stetson

MOON TWP, Pa. — Robert Morris (6-3) closed out the Urban-Bennett Invitational with a 2-0 record after a comfortable 80-62 victory over Stetson (3-6) on Sunday afternoon at the UPMC Events Center.

Despite another fast start, the Colonials fell into familiar bad habits early in the second half but instead of allowing the Hatters fully back into the game, Robert Morris re-established control and cruised to the 18-point victory.

With the frontcourt falling into early foul trouble, it was the guard play that lifted the Colonials to their third-straight victory.

Hybrid guard Ryan Prather Jr. led the Colonials with 17 points as he drained five triples. Ta’Zir Smith scored a season-high 13 points while Albert Vargas scored 12 in the win over Stetson.

That's a #Bobby Mo 𝐖𝐈𝐍! #GRIT pic.twitter.com/6O0BEDdKTy

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After Stetson started the game with a three, Robert Morris jumped ahead on a floater by Vargas and a tip-in by DeSean Goode.

The Colonials started to build an early lead over the Hatters due to the team’s success from three-point range, and led 14-10 by the first media stoppage of the half. The Colonials as a team shot well coming out of the gate as they were a combined 6-of-8 from the field and 2-of-2 from deep to start the game.

The lead reached double-figures just after the under-eight timeout due to a 6-0 run sparked by a three by Vargas which was capped off on a layup by Smith. The run made the score 31-19 in favor of the Colonials.

The Colonials really started to pile it on over the next few minutes as the 6-0 run turned into a 17-2 run. The last bucket of the run was a three by Prather which made the score 42-21.

Robert Morris carried a commanding 45-28 lead into halftime and looked to keep its foot on the pedal in the second half, which has been an emphasis for the team following a couple of poor second-half showing in previous outings.

It appeared that they would be able to keep the momentum and scoring flowing as Prather opened the second half with a three which Nikolaos Chitikoudis followed with a clean hook shot.

Unfortunately, the Colonials regressed to their second-half mean after the short scoring spurt as the Hatters mounted a 17-4 run that pulled them right back into the game as the once 21-point lead vanished. Following the run, the Colonials led by the score of 54-45.

One player that made sure that the Hatters did not gain much life despite cutting the lead to single-digits was Prather as he hit two-straight threes and just missed a third. His outburst gave his teammates life as Goode responded with a contested dunk and Kaleb Brown nailed a three of his own.

While the Colonials’ offense seemed revived, the Hatters continued their hot-shooting half but were trading two’s with the Colonials’ threes. That helped the Colonials re-establish a double-digit lead prior to the under-12 stoppage.

The under-12 timeout came with 9:23 left in the half which only permitted a handful of possessions prior to the next timeout. The Colonials scored the only two buckets during that stretch and followed it with two more scores, capping off an 8-0 run that essentially iced the game for Robert Morris.

The Hatters tried to rally following the short Colonials’ run but it turned out to be too-little, too-late as they simply did not have enough time to comeback from a 20-point deficit by that point in the game.

The next time that Robert Morris will be in action is on Thursday when the Colonials tip off Horizon League play on the road at Green Bay, which is followed by another league game against Milwaukee on Saturday.