MOON TOWNSHIP— The Robert Morris University men’s basketball team (5-8) will look to keep things rolling against Fairleigh Dickinson (5-7) and Mount St. Marys (3-10) as they kick off conference play late this week. The Colonials are coming off of their first win since November and with these two upcoming games, they will look to get a win streak going.

Recapping RMU

In their last game, the Colonials defeated the Hood College Blazers 108-51. In both the first and second half the Colonials scored almost twice the number of points as the Blazers. Senior forward Malik Petteway registered his second double-double of the season while five other Colonials also scored in double figures. The Colonials also set a new single-game record with 32 assists.

Previewing Fairleigh Dickinson

The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights have lost their last two games to the University of Massachusetts (7-6) and the University of South Florida (10-2). The Knights last five games have all been decided by less than 10 points with their last two losses being by one and six, respectively.

In their last two games, the Knights have been led by Darnell Edge, Xzavier Malone-Key, Kaleb Bishop and Mike Holloway Jr. Each of these four players has put up double-digit points in those two games. As a team, the Knights score an average of 73.5 points per game while their opponents score 72.5. Fairleigh Dickinson keeps games close, but they do give up more points in the second half than they do in the first half.

Previewing Mount St. Mary’s

The Mount lost their last game to Minnesota (11-2) by a score of 71-53. Prior to the loss against Minnesota, the Mountaineers had won three games in a row. In the game against Minnesota, the Mount stuck with the Golden Gophers until the final seven minutes of the game when Minnesota went on a 20-8 run.

The Mountaineers are led by freshman Vado Morse and sophomore Jalen Gibbs. The two average 11.5 points per game and 15 points per game, respectively. As a team, the Mountaineers average 67.4 points per game while their opponents average 76.9 points per game.

Players to watch

Chris Coalman (RMU): The first player to watch is sophomore Chris Coalmon. Although Coalmon may not seem like a player to watch, he had his best game of the season against Hood. Look for Coalmon to use the momentum from the Hood game to help the Colonials in the games against Fairleigh Dickinson and Mount St. Mary’s.

Malik Petteway (RMU): The next player to watch is senior Malik Petteway. Petteway has been racking up the minutes this season, and in the last two games, he has scored 28 points. Keep an eye Petteway in the upcoming games.

Darnell Edge (FDU): The player to watch from Fairleigh Dickinson is senior guard Darnell Edge. Edge has scored double digits in all but one game this year. Edge is also a top rebounder on the defensive side. The Colonials will need to shut down Edge and keep his scoring in single digits if they want to pull off a win.

Jalen Gibbs (MSM): The next player to watch is Mount St. Mary’s Jalen Gibbs. The freshman guard has had quite the season despite only putting up two points in the last game. His top scoring game came in mid-December when he put up 30 points against Wilson. The Colonials will need to keep Gibbs’ scoring at a minimum if they want to pull off a win against the Mountaineers.

Prediction

The Colonials will come into these two home games with momentum after their win against Hood, but they won’t have enough momentum to win against Fairleigh Dickinson. Darnell Edge and the rest of the Knights’ squad will be too much for the Colonials.

Despite this, The Colonials will bounce back against Mount St. Mary’s as they finish up their three-game homestand. After having their first conference game under their belts, the Colonials will be firing on all cylinders against the Mountaineers. Malik Petteway will have another big game as he will put up double digits. Robert Morris will get back on track with the win against Mount St. Mary’s as they continue with conference play.