WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. - Monmouth dropped a 66-53 decision to visiting Robert Morris on Saturday afternoon, in Northeast Conference action. The Hawks, now 7-3 at home, fall to 9-11 overall and 5-3 in the league, as sophomore
Will Campbell notched a team-high 15 points and six rebounds.
RMU, now 7-1 in the NEC, erased a 10-point second-half deficit with a decisive 16-3 run to take control in the win.
Three-pointers from Campbell and
R.J. Rutledge gave the Hawks a 6-5 edge, but a quick 6-0 spurt by the Colonials allowed RMU to claim an 11-6 advantage with 7:22 remaining.
RMU extended its lead to 13-7 on a pair of free throws with 6:13 showing, but a trifecta and a baseline jumper from Campbell, pulled the Hawks within 13-12 with 4:52 left in the half.
After the Colonials snared a 15-12 lead on Rob Robinson's basket,
Whitney Coleman drilled a game-tying three-pointer with 2:15 on the clock. Four free throws from Campbell pushed Monmouth in front 19-15 with 1:01 showing, but RMU was able to pull within 19-17 at the break on a Dallas Green putback.
The Hawks, who ended the first half on a 7-2 run, extended the spurt to 14-2 in the opening minute of the second as
Ed Waite's four-point play, and Coleman's three-pointer gave Monmouth a 26-17 lead with 19:11 remaining.
Monmouth, which connected on its first three trifectas to open the second half, snared a 29-19 advantage on a
James Hett trey with 18:18 on the board.
After Hett's layup claimed 33-24 edge, Mezie Nwigwe's second straight three-point trip pulled the Colonials within 33-27 with 16:19 left.
Robert Morris, which put together an 11-3 run, climbed within 34-32 on Karon Abraham's three-pointer, and the Colonials reclaimed the lead on another Abraham trey, 35-34, with 12:15 left. RMU boosted its run to 16-3, over a 6:40 span, and took a 37-34 edge with 11:36 showing.
After Rutledge drilled a game-tying three-pointer off a rebound and kick-out from
George Barbour with 10:52 left, the Colonials scored eight of the next nine points to grab a 45-38 advantage with 8:34 on the clock.
Following
Nick DelTufo's putback, which made the score 45-40, RMU scored seven straight, including consecutive three-pointers, to inflate its lead to 52-40 with 6:36 left.
The Colonials' sixth trey of the half reclaimed a 12-point lead, 55-43, before a Waite baseline jumper made the tally 55-45 with 4:09 remaining.
After a pair of DelTufo foul shots made it a ten-point game with 3:34 left, the Colonials corralled a 62-47 lead with 2:26 left, and a 65-49 cushion with 1:40 on the clock, before Coleman's three-pointer pulled Monmouth within 65-53 with 40.2 seconds left.
Coleman added 11 points, four rebounds and three assists for the Hawks, who connected on 9-of-31 from beyond the arc, while Hett chipped in eight points, four rebounds and three steals.
Monmouth returns to action on Thursday, January 28, when the Hawks travel to Central Connecticut State University for an NEC contest at 7:30 p.m., in Detrick Gym.
