The Robert Morris Colonials erupted in the second half Wednesday night, unleashing a 28-9 run over a seven-minute stretch to surge past visiting Youngstown State, 68-53, to advance to next week’s Horizon League men’s basketball tournament semifinals.
Ryan Prather powered the comeback with 24 points, including 22 in the second half as he buried five of his six 3-point attempts over the final 20 minutes to spark the decisive rally.
“First, obviously, all glory to God,” Prather said afterward. “But second, credit to my coaches and teammates. They just stuck with me. I only had two points when I came out, and they told me to keep my confidence, get my shots up and stay aggressive. They helped me calm down and just see the game. Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to do it.”
The second-seeded Colonials now move on to face No. 3 seed Detroit Mercy at 9:30 p.m. Monday, March 9, at Corteva Coliseum in Indianapolis in a semifinal matchup. RMU is seeking to defend its tournament title.
Wednesday night against Youngstown State, Prather, with a fierce look in his eye and the competitive spirit, made shot after shot over the Penguins defense, leading to the Colonials tallying 40 second-half points before a packed house at RMU’s UPMC Events Center.
“It definitely feels great,” Prather said. “My teammates and the crowd, it’s a blessing to have that crowd up there. They gave us a lot of energy. We carried off their momentum, and my teammates helped carry me also.”
DeSean Goode delivered 12 points and 11 rebounds while Darius Livingston added 12 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The Colonials shot 70% from 3-point range in the second half, connecting on seven of 10 attempts.
That was in stark contrast to the first half. RMU started the game ice cold, converting just three of their first 15 shots and scoring just eight points in the game’s first 11 minutes. RMU wound up shooting just 27% from long-range in the first half.
Despite the slow start, the Colonials led 28-23 at halftime as their defense halted the Youngstown State offense and limited the Penguins to just 22% shooting as a team.
Youngstown State was a two-man show with Cris Carroll and Vlad Salaridze as they scored 28 of their team’s first 30 points. Salaridze finished with 18 points and Carroll added 17, but just four in the final 20 minutes.
After Salaridze notched seven straight Penguin points, YSU trailed 36-35.
In dire need of consistent offense, Prather scored eight points to spark a key 16-2 run that gave RMU a 52-37 lead.
“Once we started getting stops, the offense came,” Goode said. “In the first half the offense wasn’t really going how we wanted, but defense wins games. Once we started getting stops, the offense just came with it.”
Livingston spearheaded the defense, contributing a pair of steals during the game-deciding run.
“I don’t really think about it too much, honestly,” Livingston said. “I just know if I pick it up on defense the whole team gets going. Once that happens, we start turning the game up and going on runs, so I just keep doing that.”
Prather started the run with a reverse layup and a three to put the Colonials up 41-35.
At 41-37, Livingston notched a layup and Ta’Zir Smith followed with a steal and a fast-break layup to go up 45-37.
A relentless Prather came around a screen and buried a deep 3-pointer to give the Colonials a 48-37 lead.
Livingston, on a fast break, added to RMU’s lead with a dish to Nikolaos Chitikoudis, who finished it with a dunk.
Livingston then made a steal and the 6-foot-2 guard rose up for a one-handed slam to put his team up 52-37 and send the Colonials to their win.
“I feel like games like this and the stretch we had in February gave us a lot of momentum to believe we can compete for a championship,” Prather said. “That helped us put a lot of energy on the court.”
Prather added that the team, despite ups and downs earlier in the year, stuck together and the coaches believed in them. Now the Colonials are headed to the tournament semifinals in Indianapolis.
“It’s my first time going to Indy for the conference tournament, so I’m definitely grateful,” Goode said. “Our whole group of guys wants that opportunity, and we know what we have to do.”
Photos by Mike Longo Jr.
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