MOON TOWNSHIP — Robert Morris women’s basketball (3-8, 0-0 NEC) is coming into 2019 for their first NEC match-up against Mount St. Mary’s (6-5, 0-0 NEC) at the North Athletic Complex after losing their previous game against James Madison University (8-3, 0-0 CAA) on December 30.

Recapping RMU

RMU is coming off a loss to JMU with a final score of 59-36. Previous to that, the Colonials won their previous two games against D-II Pitt-Johnstown (7-5, 3-2 PSAC) and Delaware State University (2-9, 0-0 Mid-Eastern). Nadege Pluviose played for 31 minutes and contributed six points along with four rebounds. The Colonials went 12-53 on field goals and 11-15 on free throws.

Scouting Mount St. Mary’s

Mount St. Mary’s is coming into the North Athletic Complex with a win against Radford (6-5, 0-0 Big South) 89-77. Daly Sullivan played 39 minutes and scored 23 points, going 7-11 on three-point attempts. Jatarrikah Settle grabbed 16 rebounds in 38 minutes along with 6 points. The Mountaineers are averaging almost 35 rebounds per game and giving up an averaged of 72 points per game.

Players to watch

Isabella Posset (RMU): Since starting against Pitt-Johnstown, and every game since Posset has averaged 30 minutes of playing time in each game and has averaged 10 points over the aforementioned three games. For the season, she has been to the free throw line 20 times and made the basket 14 times.

Ire Ozzy-Momodu (RMU): Coming off the bench in every game this season, Ozzy-Momodu has put up significant numbers in a number of games this season, specifically in the rebound category. She has grabbed 77 total rebounds this season, with a season-high of 16 in the game against Pitt-Johnstown. She has also seen increased game time over the last three games, averaging 23 minutes.

Juliette Lawless (MSMU): This season, Lawless is averaging 18 points per game and 30 minutes per game. She put up 21 points against Radford, going 7-10 on field goals, and 7-9 on free throws. She put up a high of 29 points against Loyola (1-11, 0-1 Patriot) earlier in the season.

Bridget Birkhead (MSMU): Birkhead has started in the previous two games after doing well in a loss against Virginia Tech (13-1, 0-1 ACC). Since becoming a starter, she has played an average of 31 minutes, averaging 16 points over those two games. She is also a good free throw shooter when she gets called to the line, going 8-11 on the season.

Prediction

I can see Mount St. Mary’s taking this first NEC game. MSMU is coming off a big win against Radford where they scored 89 points. The 12-day break for RMU may have been a big factor in the loss against JMU and may still be a problem in this upcoming game.

Final score: 76-58 Mount St. Mary’s