MOON TWP, PA (93.7 The Fan) – Robert Morris’ defense keyed a 16-2 run midway through the second half and pulled away from Youngstown State 68-53 to advance to the semi-finals of the Horizon League. RMU working for back-to-back conference titles.
After a low-scoring, defensive first half (maybe poor shooting played a part) YSU used a 5-0 run to start the second half tying the game, a couple of minutes after that is when the Colonials asserted themselves.
“The story of the game was our defense throughout,” said Robert Morris head coach Andy Toole. “Second half obviously Ryan (Prather) caught fire, our offense started to improve. We were able to get some high-quality shots and then the defense then forced some turnovers which allowed us to extend the lead and eventually win it.”
Ryan Prather finished with a game high 24 points, 22 in the second half.
“It definitely feels great, teammates hyping me,” Prather said. “It was a blessing to have that crowd out there, they gave us a lot of energy. We created off their momentum and my teammates created off their energy also.”
Horizon League Player of the Year DeSean Goode had 12 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman guard Darius Livingston finished with 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals. Colonials held YSU to 32% field goals and outrebounded the Youngstown State by 12.
“We just got tired of them scoring, for real,” Livingston said of the defensive effort in the second half.
The Penguins and Colonials have become a heated rivalry in a short time in the same conference. RMU swept the season series winning in overtime at home, coming back from down nine points last month on the road and then the victory on Wednesday. RMU leads the all-time series 19-16, but are only 3-5 at the UPMC Events Center against Youngstown State.
“This is conference tournament basketball, you got to continue to try to figure out different ways to give your team an advantage. Guys really stepped up with their energy and urgency.”
Conference semi-final matchups will be announced later with the games taking place Monday night in Indianapolis.