The RMU Thread

[Woy]

Robert Morris 84, Ohio 76

4-0 against Ohio in my collegiate career. Feels nice to say, especially since the Bobcats are always a big bracket-buster threat. Take notes Michigan and Georgetown.

The Colonials were without sixth man Anthony Myers-Pate tonight, so little-used sophomore Dave Appolon had to play 17 minutes and he made the most of them, hitting big shots and getting into DJ Cooper's head. There were two instances where Cooper was called for fouls after frustratingly pushing Appolon away during a change of possession.

Karvel Anderson tied a Sewall Center record with 8 trifectas en route to a 28 point night. He shot 43% from there in JUCO, so this effort wasn't some kind of fluke. He hit his first three early in the first half and couldn't stop.

RMU improves to 4-4 (lost to Savannah State [MEAC favorite] earlier in the week, nothing of note happened in that game but it's not a bad loss) and will travel to Campbell for a game on Tuesday.

Grade: A+

Next Game: 12/4 @ Campbell (7:00 PM)

[Woy]

Robert Morris 61, Campbell 58

RMU escapes with a three-pointer by Karvel Anderson with four seconds left. The Colonials were without Anthony Myers-Pate once again, along with Russell Johnson.

Lucky Jones led RMU with 15 points, despite having a bad case of the flu. Almost every timeout in the second half it looked like he was throwing up, and he puked on the last stoppage before getting a key steal to set up the GW shot. Gutty performance by the sophomore.

Anderson had 13 (4-7 3PT) and Mike McFadden had 10. The Colonials only shot 35.4% from the field, but made 21-26 (80.8%) from the line. RMU is shooting 79.2 from the line this season, good enough for fourth in the country.

Campbell came in with three wins, but only one of them was against a D1 program (Appalachian State). So the close result isn't pretty despite the injuries, but a road win is a good win for a mid-major/small conference team.

Grade: B-

Next Game: 12/8 @ Hampton (2:00 PM)

[Woy]

Gunna get booty pumped by OU tho

Everyone that likes me should point and laugh at this post.

[Woy]

Robert Morris 66, Hampton 54

Listened to this one on the radio. The outcome was never really in doubt, although there were times where RMU got lazy and allowed Hampton to creep back into it.

It was another very balanced scoring effort for the Colonials. Sharp-shooters Karvel Anderson (4-8 3PT) and Coron Williams (2-3 3PT) led the team with 12 each, while Lucky Jones added 10 (4-9 FG). Russell Johnson and Anthony Myers-Pate both returned from injury with mixed results. Johnson had eight points in 23 minutes, but got most of them at the line. Myers-Pate went scoreless in 19 and had just one assist.

Nothing else to say, really. RMU has won their last three games and four of their last five. The month will end with a home tilt Saturday against rival Duquesne, then road trips to Louisiana-Lafayette and Arkansas.

The team also met the Great Khali at the airport, for you wrestling fans.



Grade: B

Next Game: 12/15 vs. Duquesne (7:00 PM)

[Woy]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/bracketology

Lunardi projects RMU to get #14 seed in Duke's bracket in the first Bracketology with a very favorable road to the Sweet 16.

http://www.sportspickle.com/opinion/14918/the-2012-2013-college-basketball-all-name-team

Lucky Jones makes the All-Name team.

[Woy]

Awesome article on junior shooting guard Karvel Anderson, who has overcome a lot of obstacles to get to where he's at today. One of those guys who deserves all the success that comes his way.

http://www.nbebasketball.com/w3/2012-1214/mernagh-karvel-anderson-robert-morris-best-kept-secret-revealed/

Karvel Anderson had just connected on his fourth consecutive three-pointer when he turned, smiled, and cackled the way that, well, any of us would if we had just happened to hit four consecutive three-pointers in a highly competitive Division One basketball game. As Anderson ran back to play defense, I looked directly across the court at Ohio coach Jimmy Christian who was most definitely not cackling. Christian’s distorted face was twisted up in an expressive equation of angry + frustrated x helpless = powerless.

Yeah, Anderson’s first look of the night might have been wide open, but his remaining seven looks from distance were all contested by Bobcat hands. And it didn’t matter. On this night, nothing any defender could muster was going to deter Karvel Anderson. He was gettin’ buckets and nobody was stopping him. Anderson was a perfect 10-10 from the floor (8-8 from deep) for a career high 28 points. His last make was a dagger three-pointer (of course) that put Robert Morris up 80-73 and assured the Ohio fans that came to Moon Township in force that they could head for the parking lot — their Bobcats would be tasting defeat for the first time this season.

Karvel Anderson chuckled when asked if he’d ever felt anything like that on a basketball court before. Turns out it was a familiar feeling for the 6-2 shooting guard out of Elkhart, Indiana. Anderson remembers having the same anxious nervousness coursing through his body before his Senior Night at Elkhart Memorial High School. “I just remember thinking I wanted it to be special,” said Anderson, “especially because I didn’t have anyone there to walk with me before the game.”

Senior Nights are always marked on calendars months ahead of time, celebrations for parents and players alike. It’s the night when they walk out onto the floor together and are recognized before the game. A time when tears are shed by mothers who are suddenly hit with the realization that their baby boy will soon be leaving their everyday lives. A time when fathers beam with pride at the fact that their child has contributed and persevered, completing a journey that a lot of kids never get to start because they just aren’t talented enough.

Karvel Anderson’s father was never in the picture.

His mother?

Anderson leads RMU in scoring with 12.1 PPG, shooting 43% from 3-pt range through 10 games this season (photo courtesy of RMU Athletics).

She’d been incarcerated shortly before Karvel entered the ninth grade and was still, at that very moment, locked in a cell as her son watched his teammates walk onto the court with their parents. Prior to Memorials game against Clay that night, Karvel Anderson’s mind tried to overcome the feeling that was rising from down in his gut up into his throat. Forget mind over matter, more like mind, or maybe pride, over pain. It’s hard to know what folks in that gym were thinking about before the game tipped, but Karvel Anderson made sure they were thinking about him when the buzzer sounded to end it. Anderson was all over the court, his sneakers squeaking louder with every cut, as he scored a school record 46 points in a decisive win, hitting 8 of his 9 three-pointers.

And believe it or not, there was a third time when Anderson was swept up in basketball nirvana, just last year at Glenn Oaks Community College. “Last year at my JUCO,” said Anderson, “it was the first game coming off of Christmas break and it was getting really close to the point when my mom was going to be released.

My mind was really scattered, thinking about it and worrying.” Yep, you guessed it, Anderson went for 54 points in the half-empty gym.

So naturally, Anderson was a much-wanted man, with schools beating down his door trying to sign him.

Right Karvel?

“No, I had fallen really far behind in high school with my grades and that was the reason I was in Junior College to begin with,” said Anderson. The reasons Anderson had fallen behind are somewhat evident by the preceding paragraphs, and his pride at not wanting people to know what he was going through also contributed to his situation being less than ideal. You see, for a period of time, early in high school, Anderson wasn’t even willing to let anyone know he had no place to lay his head at night.

“I was homeless for a couple of months,” said Anderson, “I would sleep in McNaughton Park right near my high school.”
It was around this time that Jerel Jackson entered Anderson’s life. In fact, Jackson first met Anderson at that same park while he was playing basketball. Jackson, it turns out, had just been hired on as an assistant coach at Memorial and he slowly began to gain Anderson’s trust.

“He mentors a lot of kids,” said Anderson, “and I eventually felt comfortable enough to tell him what was really going on with my situation.” Anderson’s sister Milikea, was staying with a friend but Anderson was content to fend for himself, either in the park under a bridge or in cars from time to time. That all stopped when he confided in Jackson.

“I met him in 2006 probably,” said Jackson, “and I saw a little kid that had a lot of potential so I told him I would help him if he was willing to help himself.” After a while the two became close.

“The connection that we have,” said Jackson — pausing for a beat or two before continuing– “Karvel is like a son that I never had, we just clicked and with him staying in the park or sleeping in a car, I just made it clear that it didn’t have to happen, that if he needed anything I was going to be there for him.” And he was, consistently.

“He’s the closest thing to a father figure I’ve ever had,” said Anderson.

Jackson worked with Anderson daily on his shot, which at the time was too flat, and also made sure the youngster had food and anything else he might need.

Soon after, Anderson’s grandparents moved to Elkhart from Cassopolis, Michigan. The move was due to his Grandmother being very ill– the medical help she could get in Elkhart was much better. His Grandfather also needed work and that was readily available to a man not afraid of working multiple jobs.

Karvel Anderson would stay with his Grandparents for the rest of high school, watching his Grandmother battle health issues and his Grandfather work three jobs to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. Anderson also was consistently employed throughout that time helping his family financially and helping to look after his Grandmother. In fact, Anderson left his first JUCO, Butler CC in Kansas, after his Grandmother fell ill and he thought she was going to die.

Last spring, following his season at Glenn Oaks, Anderson figured out that he needed to earn 18 credits during the summer to attain his dream of playing D-1 basketball. It turns out that the tape of his 54 point outing had found its way onto the desk of RMU coach Andy Toole. When Toole called Anderson, the kid with the sweet stroke was honest about how much work he had to do academically to make it. And Toole and Anderson devised a schedule and plan that would allow it to happen — provided Anderson kept up his end of the bargain.

“The whole staff called me all the time,” said Anderson, “making sure I was handling my business and I appreciated the fact that they believed in me when no other D-1 school did.” Anderson ended up qualifying and now says that grades will never be an issue again, claiming he’s conscientious about his studies to a fault. The game against Ohio was Anderson’s first start due to RMU being a player down. Anderson took the opportunity, raised up with it, and connected.

Anderson’s mother is doing well in Elkhart and looking after his 12-year-old sister Janeal. “My mom finally got to see me play for the first time at Xavier last month,” said Anderson (he scored 17 points in a close loss) “and they’re both doing really well.”

Anderson’s sister Mylikea is in college in North Carolina. “She’s the academic in the family, the brains,” said Anderson, “we’re very close to each other.”

Karvel Anderson is studying communications.

He enjoys talking to people and writing about his experiences, which makes complete sense.

After all, he’s got one hell of a story to tell.

RMU/Duquesne tonight at 7:00...the Dukes just knocked off WVU and have won five of their last six like the Colonials.

[Woy]

Robert Morris 91, Duquesne 68

Three straight against our non-conference rivals...feels so good.

Game looked like it'd be another slugfest like the last two seasons after the first half, where the Colonials somehow led by one - despite getting outrebounded by 15. Compared to the last two games, we came out shooting poorly but were doing a lot on the defensive end to keep the game close.

The second half was a completely different story as RMU scored 60 points in the 20 minutes. There will be games this season where the Colonials will win despite not scoring 60. RMU came out of the locker room and put it away early with a 21-5 run, as they hit their first eight shots. Duquesne tried to push (as any Jim Ferry coached team would try to do) but the Colonials slowed it down to their own tempo and used great ball movement to get open shots.

This is by far the best I've seen RMU play all year, from the lockdown defense to the unselfish play on the offensive side of the ball. Velton Jones led all scorers with 22 (4-6 3PT, 6-6 FT), while Coron Williams (16, 4-7 3PT), Mike McFadden (12, 6-7 FG) and Lucky Jones (10, 4-10 FG) all were in double-digits. The Colonials were still outrebounded by 15, but forced 25 turnovers while only giving it away 10, and scored 34 points off those giveaways.

Very nice crowd that came out as well, especially considering a lot of campus went home for Christmas break the day before.

RMU will travel down south to face Louisiana-Lafayette and Arkansas to end the non-conference section of their schedule.

Grade: A+

Next Game: 12/18 @ UL-Lafayette (8:00 PM)

Relevant NEC News:
- The two-time defending champion LIU-Brooklyn Blackbirds were dealt a HUGE blow over the weekend, as last year's conference player of the year, Julian Boyd, will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Boyd, a fifth-year senior, was second on the team in scoring behind Jamal Olasewere and will apply for a medical red-shirt in attempt to gain a sixth-year of eligibility.

[Woy]

Robert Morris 66, Louisiana-Lafayette 61

Karvel Anderson's three-pointer with 46 seconds left was the dagger in RMU's road victory over the Ragin' Cajuns. ULL isn't a tough task on paper, but there are no easy non-conference road wins for a mid-major / small conference team.

Anderson had 17, while fellow guards Coron Williams and Velton Jones had 16 and 11 points, respectively. The Colonials also received some big minutes from Vaughn Morgan, who gathered six rebounds and four steals, and blocked two shots while replacing Mike McFadden - who only played 12 minutes because of foul trouble.

Would have liked a more convincing win, but like I said, these OOC games on the road are never easy.

Grade: B

Next Game: 12/20 @ Arkansas (8:00 PM)

[Rudi]

Might have to catch me some of this RMU/Razorhog action tonight.

[Woy]

Arkansas 79, Robert Morris 74

RMU put up a good effort against a tough Arkansas team, but some iffy calls and missed plays cost the Colonials. Velton Jones only played 17 minutes because of foul trouble, picking up three of those in just four first half minutes.

Karvel Anderson and Coron Williams (5-6 3PT) each scored 17, while Mike McFadden and Russell Johnson had 10 points a piece. RMU was down just one after 20 minutes, then the deficit fell to nine quickly in the second half. Shaping up to be a blowout because of the lack of momentum, the Colonials battled back to cut it to one various times and was a rushed Lucky Jones shot away from having a chance to take the lead late.

Disappointing loss, but not a bad one at all. Arkansas is a solid team and RMU took them to the brink without much production from their leader. If anything, this was a good learning experience heading into NEC play.

Grade: B+

Next Game: 1/3 vs. Bryant (7:00 PM)

[Woy]

Bryant 84, Robert Morris 77

The once NEC bottom-feeder is for real this season. Bryant, ranked in the mid-major Top 25, shot 52% from behind the arc and win the NEC season-opener against RMU.

The Bulldogs, who have wins over Boston College and Lehigh, were led by Dyami Starks with 29 points. Frankie Dobbs added 26 and Alex Francis chipped in with 18 and nine boards.

The Colonials, who haven't played in two weeks (great scheduling Andy!), were rusty from the opening tip and never really got it going. Velton Jones had 24 to lead RMU, while Karvel Anderson (who was nursing a wrist injury on his shooting hand) and Lucky Jones each had 13.

This loss doesn't hurt, it was just annoying. Between the long layoff between games, Karvel's wrist injury and our ineffectiveness to guard the three, it's easy to feel that way. Bryant's legit this season, but I still can't see them as a top three team in conference. Only Wagner out of the main contenders won their conference opener (LIU fell to Sacred Heart and Quinnipiac lost to St. Francis (NY)), so again, it doesn't hurt as much as it annoys.

Grade: C-

Next Game: 1/5 vs. Central Connecticut State (7:00 PM)

[Woy]

So I'm watching Rutgers/Pitt and the Scarlet Knights have a small guard from Paterson who immediately reminded me of Karon Abraham. For those who don't remember him, he was the NEC Rookie of the Year in the 2009-10 season and scored 23 points in RMU's "win" over Villanova in the NCAA Tournament. he was kicked off the team before this season because of a violation of his probation and transferred to D2 Wingate (N.C.).

http://bustedcold.com/abraham-karon-capri-arrested-10012012-in-union-county-nc/

What a waste of talent.

[Woy]

I'm done with this fucking team until they learn how to play defense and stop playing down to other teams' talent. CCSU fucking sucks and yet they let one player beat them.

Goodbye #14 seed and goodbye home-court advantage. What a fucking disgrace.

[Woy]

Okay, so the shitbums finally turned it back around and won their last two games by double digits. Sacred Heart and Quinnipiac visit this week, so we're going to need the same defensive effort we had against FDU and Monmouth to get past these teams.

Anyways, big reason why I'm bumping this is because of another Karvel Anderson article. Like I said before, you can't help but root for this guy after everything he's been through. He's easily because my favorite CBB player in a long time.

http://triblive.com/sports/college/robertmorris/3112650-74/anderson-jackson-elkhart#axzz2I3Xqhb4r

The well-traveled basketball life of Karvel Anderson has embraced frustration, academic problems, three junior colleges, a broken wrist, a car crash, a blown tire and a mistake that might have ruined everything.

Amid all that, real life posed the bigger challenge.

“You just scratch your head sometimes because you can‘t comprehend some of the decisions he had to make or some of the situations he was in way before he should have been in situations like that,” said Robert Morris coach Andy Toole, who gave Anderson a chance when no one else would.

“He‘s had more excuses lined up and ready to rock than anybody. But he refuses to use them.”

Even fifth-year senior Velton Jones, a tough point guard from Philadelphia who has dealt with his share of adversity, marvels at Anderson‘s fortitude.

“His background is amazing,” Jones said. “It shows me how truly blessed I am and how blessed our team is. I told him before, ‘I‘m glad I met you.‘ It‘s a mind-boggling thing that someone could go through all that and be in the position he‘s in now.”

A transfer from Glen Oaks Community College, his third junior college in three years, Anderson has varied skills but is mainly at Robert Morris to put the ball in the basket. He was second in scoring for the Colonials entering Saturday‘s game against Monmouth. In his first start last month, the 6-foot-2 guard scored 28 points against Ohio, making 8 of 9 3-point attempts.

“You think his shot is going in every time,” Toole said.

It‘s a sweet, quick-release shot, his ticket to college and Division I basketball and eventually a life beyond the game. But he said he was not a natural. He had to learn how to shoot.

For a long period, that was the least of his concerns.

“It was overwhelming for me at a point,” he said of his problems back home in Elkhart, Ind. “There was a point where I was failing. There were a lot of times where I‘d take one step forward and two steps back.”

But the likable Anderson seems to attract allies, especially those willing to dispense compassion and guidance. “It felt like every time I was ready to say, ‘Forget it,‘ somebody always stepped in,” he said.

‘IT JUST HAPPENED‘

Perhaps it was destiny that Anderson was born in a small Michigan town named Three Rivers. His mother, Kecoria Anderson, was 14 at the time. He grew up in Elkhart, a city of about 51,000 near South Bend, Ind., whose economy collapsed when much of the recreational vehicle industry dried up during the great recession.

In January 2008, Kecoria Anderson, who several years earlier received probation for a drug bust in Michigan, was arrested for cocaine trafficking. She not only sold but used, illustrating her habit by recalling an instance of braiding her son‘s air while she was “wasted on drugs.”

Anderson has two younger sisters, Mylekia, 19, who attends Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., and Ja‘Neal, 12. Each has a different father.

Anderson‘s mother spent two months in the county jail and began her sentence (31⁄2 to six years) in late 2009. She was released in February 2011 on good behavior. She works in a factory that makes RV frames, takes online college courses and cares for Ja‘Neal. Today she says she is drug- and alcohol-free.

Even before the arrest, Anderson and his mother had drifted apart. After she split up with her boyfriend and moved into an apartment with the girls, Anderson wanted no part of it.

He said he refused to move in with his mom and chose instead to sleep under a bridge next to Elkhart‘s McNaughton Park, where he played basketball. He was 15, entering his sophomore year at Elkhart Memorial High School.

“Not having a place to stay is terrible,” he said, but living in the park “wasn‘t too bad. ... It rained once, but I never had a weather experience that made me uncomfortable.”

Kecoria Anderson said her son was “gone a lot” but said she had no idea he was living in a park. Anderson said his only clothes were one pair each of jeans, basketball shorts, sweat pants, socks and a coat from his grandfather. He washed his face and brushed his teeth at nearby Elkhart General Hospital. When school opened he arrived at 6 a.m. and showered. He ate at a recreation center in the park that gave out free lunches and sometimes stole food from the supermarket.

He also admits he stole a blanket from K-Mart.

“I‘m not a thief or anything like that,” Anderson said. “It was a situation where. ... I don‘t know. It just happened.”

OUT OF THE PARK

As a freshman, Anderson said he struggled on the court and in the classroom. But a new coaching staff, including assistant Jerel Jackson, arrived the following season. A longtime Elkhart resident, Jackson was a respected mentor off and on the court to area youngsters. He knew about Anderson from the playground.

“He was a little, fiery kid,” Jackson said. “Real quiet but fiery on the court. I thought, ‘I kind of like his style.‘ ”

Starting in the fall of his sophomore year, Anderson spent hours with Jackson working on his shot.

“I never could shoot until I started working with coach Jackson,” Anderson recalled. “I had no jump shot — at all.”

Driving Anderson “home” from school, Jackson said Anderson always told him to let him off a friend‘s house. Jackson said he wondered about that. Eventually, he said, he overheard kids talking about another who lived in the park. Anderson denied it was him, but Jackson said he heard the same thing from some teachers.

At a restaurant, Jackson got Anderson to confess. Both tell the same story, of Anderson recounting his life, almost coming to tears, and Jackson reaching across the table to put his hand on top of Anderson‘s. “I got you,” he said.

Anderson moved out of the park and in with Jackson and his wife for a few days before starting a circuit of staying with friends and family, eventually settling in with his grandparents. He said he never stayed long because he did not want to impose. At the house of one friend, the father, Doug Keck, helped with his classwork.

“It was just a certain bond that developed,” Keck said. “Karvel has a great personality. A very quiet and humble kid. Kind to people, not afraid to work hard and stick his nose in there.”

Anderson said Keck pushed him to study harder. Said Keck, “Karvel had the mind to do the work, but he didn‘t have the effort or the push. I told him he was doing himself a great disservice if he didn‘t get his grades in line.”

WORKING HIS TAIL OFF

During his junior and senior years Anderson improved in the classroom and became a force on the court, finishing among the top career scorers at Elkhart Memorial. But there still were low moments, especially Senior Night, when Anderson — his mother in prison, his grandfather busy with two jobs and his grandmother ill — walked unaccompanied to midcourt before the game.

Anderson said he was nervous and miserable beforehand, “but thank God I turned that moment into something different.” He scored 46 points, hitting 8 of 9 3-pointers.

“I think those nerves just turned into something else,” he said.

If Anderson had Division I skills, they were negated by his grades. Glen Oaks coach Steve Proefrock, who was present on Senior Night, offered Anderson a scholarship, but he turned it down. He wound up enduring unhappy experiences at two other junior colleges before reuniting with Proefrock.

About six weeks before the start of Glen Oaks‘ 2011-12 season, Anderson broke his right (shooting) wrist during a drill. Two screws were inserted and remained there, yet he averaged 24.9 points a game. The wrist always hurt, he said. In one game Anderson scored 25 first-half points before the hand froze up.

“He was everything for us,” said Proefrock, who often let Anderson leave practice early to help care for his grandmother back in Elkhart.

“His upbringing was pretty crazy, but he worked his tail off to get his degree, and I‘m very proud of him for that,” Proefrock said. “He used his experiences to make him stronger. With his experiences, you don‘t stay the same. You go north or south. He was a joy to coach, a great leader for us. He loved the big-game atmosphere, and he was our hardest worker.”

UNBREAKABLE

Anderson‘s grades remained a red flag, and Glen Oaks‘ competition was considered suspect. Interest among Division I schools lagged until a tape of a 54-point game fell into the hands of Robert Morris assistant Michael Byrnes.

“Coach (Toole) said we needed someone who could make a jump shot,” Byrnes said.

That was Anderson. As usual, however, there were potholes. On his way to the airport for his visit, his girlfriend‘s car was hit by a drunk driver. He missed his plane, staying awake all night in the airport to make sure he made the rescheduled flight. After Toole decided he wanted him, Anderson still had 18 credits to make up during the summer. He took out a loan to foot the bill and successfully completed the work.

Finally, all seemed well. Then an undiscovered “D” from his first year in junior college surfaced, a clerical error, but one that could keep him out of school. He labored all night to fix it, writing two papers. After he was cleared the next morning, Anderson had barely pulled away for the drive to campus when a tire on his 1995 Pontiac blew out. The trip took six hours instead of three, but he made it. It‘s been the story of his life: nothing easy.

Toole said Anderson fits in well with the team and campus life, and his grades are good. The issue now is a badly bruised shooting hand, which has been slow to heal. But he will play through it. He has dealt with worse.

“No one can question how much he cares,” Toole said. “He is by far the most engaged new guy we‘ve brought in during my time, in terms of ‘Coach, what do I need to do?‘ He understands that it could be way different.”

“Growing up, I believed everything that happened was bad,” Anderson said. “But now I look at things as another test for me, another obstacle, more adversity to prove to myself I can‘t be broken unless I want to be.”

[Woy]

Robert Morris 66, Sacred Heart 62

Tough, tough win at home against a dangerous Pioneer squad. Shane Gibson has been one of the best mid-major scorers over the past two years and he did everything he could to give his team the edge, but RMU rode an early 13-0 second half run for the W.

Without starters Velton Jones (concussion) and Karvel Anderson (foot injury), the Colonials had a much shorter bench and only played seven guys. Freshman forward Stephen Hawkins in particular has only played about 7-9 minutes a game, but logged a career-high 23 tonight. Both him and sophomore guard David Appolon provided energy on defense and will need to continue performing at this level if Velton and Karvel are out for any longer.

Mike McFadden had the most quiet 15 point night ever to lead RMU, along with Lucky Jones's 15. What makes this win even more impressive - besides getting it without our two of our best players - is that sharp-shooting junior Coron Williams was just 3-11 from the field and didn't make a three-point attempt for the first time since the Lehigh loss. Guys like the aforementioned Hawkins and Appolon, and inconsistent contributors Russell Johnson and Anthony Myers-Pate each stepped up to make this a good team win.

The night could have been better though, as both Bryant and LIU were on the brink of dropping games to awful teams, but somehow pulled it out in overtime. Bryant moves to 5-0 in conference and sits at the top alone, but RMU is now tied for second at 3-2.

Grade: B+

Next Game: 1/19 vs. Quinnipiac (7:00 PM)