Top Story - The Robert Morris University men's basketball team continues its quest for a league-record eighth Northeast Conference Tournament championship Wednesday by squaring off with No. 1 seed LIU Brooklyn in a 7:00 p.m. tip at the WRAC in Brooklyn, N.Y., in the championship game of the 2012 NEC Tournament. The Colonials are making their fourth straight appearance in the NEC Tournament final and 11th overall thanks to a 71-64 victory @ No. 2 seed Wagner (3/4/12) in semifinal action at the Spiro Sports Center on Staten Island, N.Y. Redshirt junior guard Velton Jones paced RMU against the Seahawks with 25 points, converting five of his 10 shots from the field while going 14-for-16 at the free-throw line. Redshirt junior forward Russell Johnson added 12 points and eight rebounds in the win, while redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams finished with 11 points, four rebounds and a pair of assists.

Quick Stat of the Night - Robert Morris makes its fourth straight appearance in the championship game of the Northeast Conference Tournament Wednesday @ LIU Brooklyn, one of just three programs in league history that can make that claim. Fairleigh Dickinson appeared in five straight NEC Tournament title tilts from 1985 to 1989, while former league member Rider played in four consecutive finals from 1993 to 1996. Wednesday's game also marks the fifth time RMU and LIU Brooklyn will meet in the championship game of the NEC Tournament, with the two programs having split the previous four contests. All-time the Colonials and Blackbirds have squared off in the postseason seven times, with LIU Brooklyn owning a 4-3 (.571) advantage against Robert Morris in the NEC Tournament.

Wednesday's Opponent and The All-Time Series - LIU Brooklyn and Robert Morris meet for the 65th time on the hardwood Wednesday, with the Colonials holding a 37-27 (.578) edge in the all-time series. The two programs met just once during the 2011-12 regular season, with RMU posting a 75-66 victory over the Blackbirds at the Charles L. Sewall Center (1/26/12). In that contest redshirt junior guard Velton Jones led Robert Morris with 23 points, seven assists and two steals. In six career contests against LIU Brooklyn, Jones has averaged 18.0 points and 3.8 assists per game, eclipsing the 20-point plateau four times.

NEC Tournament Quick Hits - Robert Morris owns an all-time record of 33-20 (.623) in the NEC Tournament, with the 32 wins the most in conference history ... Broken down, the Colonials own a record of 22-6 (.786) in tournament games played at home, including a record of 17-5 (.773) in games at the Charles L. Sewall Center, 6-7 (.462) in road games and a mark of 5-7 (.417) in neutral site contests ... The Colonials have qualified for the NEC Tournament 28 out of a possible 31 times, the most in league history ... Robert Morris has hosted the NEC Tournament championship game five times (1983, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2009), with the Colonials a perfect 5-0 in those games ... RMU is 2-1 in NEC Tournament championship games on the road, with victories @ Long Island (1982) and @ Quinnipiac (2010) and its lone loss @ Long Island (2011) ... Robert  Morris is the only current team in the Northeast Conference to have won back-to-back league titles, having accomplished the feat three times (1982 and 1983, 1989 and 1990 and 2009 and 2010) ... Former members Marist (1986 and 1987) and Rider (1993 and 1994) also won back-to-back NEC titles ... The Colonials have advanced to the semifinals of the NEC Tournament 16 times in school history, the second most of any team in the league behind only Fairleigh Dickinson (17) 

Experience Counts - Robert Morris continues the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament Wednesday @ No. 1 LIU Brooklyn with a roster that is loaded with experience in postseason play. Of RMU's 14 active players on its 2011-12 roster, six have played at least five NEC Tournament contests in their respective careers. In fact, the Colonials enter the championship game of the 2012 NEC Tournament with a combined 47 career games of experience in the postseason. A look at how four key players have played for RMU in the NEC Tournament on their respective careers ...

* Redshirt junior guard Velton Jones, a member of the 2011 All-NEC Tournament Team, is averaging 18.5 points and 5.5 assists in two games of the 2012 NEC Tournament, including a game-high 25 points in a 71-64 victory @ No. 2 seed Wagner (3/4/12) ... In eight career games of the NEC Tournament, Jones has averaged 15.5 points, 4.3 assists and 1.9 steals per contest ... Jones has scored in double figures in seven of his eight career NEC Tournament games and has shot 81.3 percent (39-for-48) at the stripe.

* Redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams established an NEC Tournament single-game record with eight three-pointers in an 87-68 win over No. 6 Monmouth (3/1/12) in the quarterfinals of the 2012 NEC Tournament and in five career games in the postseason has averaged 15.8 points per contest while shooting 66.7 percent (16-for-24) from beyond the arc.

* Redshirt junior forward Russell Johnson, like Jones a member of the 2011 All-NEC Tournament, has averaged 9.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in eight career NEC Tournament tilts while shooting 43.9 percent (25-for-57) from the field.

* Junior forward Lijah Thompson has shot 50 percent (20-for-40) from the field in eight career NEC Tournament games and has scored in double figures three times.

Long Distance Dialing - Thanks to tying an RMU single-game record for three-pointers with 16 in an 87-68 victory over Monmouth (3/1/12) in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament, the Colonials eclipsed 200 three-pointers on the year and enter Wednesday's game with 212. It marks the eighth time in the last nine seasons that Robert Morris has eclipsed 200 three-pointers in a season. The top two sharpshooters from long range for RMU this year have been redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams and redshirt junior guard  Velton Jones, who have combined for 132 three-pointers. That total is the fourth highest by an RMU tandem in school history.

Golden Era - While Robert Morris is in the midst of its golden era in the 36-year history as a Division I program, an area that gets credit for that success is RMU's ability to convert from beyond the arc. Redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams owns a team-high 75 three-pointers so far this season, which ranks sixth in the RMU single-season record book. Williams is the eighth different Colonial in the last 11 years to post one of the top 10 single-season marks in three-point field goals.

Toole Time - Robert Morris is led by second-year head coach Andrew Toole, who will coach his 66th game Wednesday @ No. 1 seed LIU Brooklyn in the championship game of the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament. In his 65 games on the sidelines, RMU has held its opponents to 70 points or less in 45 contests, an amazing 69.2 percent of the time. The Colonials are 36-9 (.800) in those games, including a mark of 20-1 (.952) when holding their opponents to less than 60 points.

The 500 Club - Thanks to a game-high 29 points @ Quinnipiac (2/25/12) in the 2011-12 regular-season finale, redshirt junior guard  Velton Jones became the seventh different Colonial in school history to eclipse the 500-point plateau in a season. Jones, a 2012 All-NEC First Team selection, enters the championship game of the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament averaging a team-high 16.6 points per game and has scored 549 points so far this year. That total is good enough to rank sixth in the Robert Morris single-season record book. Jones is just five points shy of moving into fifth place, and his 549 points are the most by a Colonial since former guard Jeremy Chappell (2005-09) scored 585 in helping lead Robert Morris to the 2009 NEC Tournament championship. Jones also owns a team-high 144 assists this season, which is tied as the eighth highest total in single-season history. Jones is the only Colonial in school history to own top 10 totals in both points and assists in the same season.

Dishing The Dimes - A key reason the Colonials enter the semifinals of the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament with a record of 12-3 (.786) in their last 15 games has been due to the job RMU's two point guards, redshirt junior Velton Jones and sophomore Anthony Myers, have done in creating offense. In the last 15 contests, the duo has dished out 128 assists against just 62 turnovers, an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.06. Myers has been extremely efficient, posting 53 dimes against just 17 miscues (3.12 assist-to-turnover ratio). Jones enters Wednesday's game ranked fourth in the Northeast Conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.67).

The Comeback Kids - Robert Morris enters the championship game of the 2012 Northeast Conference Tournament proving no lead is safe for its opponent. In five of their last seven road tilts, the Colonials have fallen behind by double digits, coming back to win three of them. In a 78-74 win @ Saint Francis (Pa.) (2/8/12), RMU trailed, 35-24, with 2:19 to play in the first half. However, RMU trimmed its deficit to five at halftime, 35-30, and outscored the Red Flash, 26-10, in the first nine minutes of the second stanza en route to the win. The victory @ Saint Francis (Pa.) marked the third time this season the Colonials have climbed out of a double-digit deficit for a victory and eighth time RMU has turned the trick in two seasons under head coach Andrew Toole. Included in that stretch is a 15-point deficit in the second half of an 81-73 overtime win @ Monmouth (1/21/12).

Rockin The Chalk - Redshirt junior guard Velton Jones leads Robert Morris in scoring this season with an average of 16.6 points per game, and no Colonial in school history has shown a penchant for getting to the free-throw line better. In a 71-64 win @ No. 2 Wagner (3/4/12) in the semifinals of the 2012 NEC Tournament, Jones finished 14-for-16 at the charity stripe, the 11th time this season he has visited the chalk at least 10 times. Jones has established a new RMU single-season record for free throws this season with 192 and enters Wedneday's championship game of the 2012 NEC Tournament on pace to finish with 198 free throws in 2011-12. Jones has also converted 382 shots at the stripe in his career, which ranks second all-time and is just five shy of breaking the record of 386 that is held by all-time leading scorer Myron Walker (1990-94).

Board Games - Part of following the formula in regard to being successful for Robert Morris over the last five seasons has been due in large part to the program's ability to crash the boards. Since the beginning of the 2007-08 campaign, Robert Morris owns a record of 88-14 (.863) when the Colonials are even or better in rebounding in a game, including a 84-12 (.875) mark when outrebounding their opponent. In Andrew Toole's two seasons as head coach, RMU has posted a record of 32-8 (.800) when outrebounding its opponent, including a mark of 18-4 (.818) in 2011-12. RMU enters the the championship game of the 2012 NEC Tournament leading the circuit in rebounding defense, allowing an average of just 30.5 caroms per contest.

Steal City - The defensive pressure Robert Morris has applied this season shouldn't come as a surprise. The Colonials have forced opponents into 525 turnovers this year, recording 279 steals. In a 69-40 victory over Bryant (2/16/12), the Colonials registered a season-high 19 steals, including a career-high four thefts from both sophomore guard Anthony Myers and sophomore forward Mike McFadden. So far this season the Colonials are averaging 8.45 steals per contest, which leads the NEC. Against league foes, Robert Morris averaged 9.17 thefts per contest, which also led the NEC. In two seasons under head coach Andrew Toole, Robert Morris owns a record 13-8 (.619) when finishing with at least 10 steals in a game.

The Rock - Guard Velton Jones has been a rock for Robert Morris over the last three seasons, as the redshirt junior enters Wednesday's game @ LIU Brooklyn owning the longest active streak for games played. Jones has played in 100 straight games for RMU dating back to the 2009-10 campaign and owns 94 career starts, far and away the highest mark for a Colonial. Redshirt junior forward Russell Johnson ranks second for Robert Morris in career starts with 51. Following Jones in consecutive games played is sophomore guard Anthony Myers, who has appeared in 65 straight games.

Defense Wins Championships - At the heart of the resurgence of the RMU basketball program over the last five seasons has been defense. Even with second-year head coach Andrew Toole on the sidelines, RMU's attention to detail on defense hasn't changed. Thanks to a 71-64 win @ No. 2 seed Wagner (3/4/12) in the 2012 NEC Tournament semifinals, Robert Morris improved its record to 87-16 (.845) since the beginning of the 2007-08 campaign when holding its opponent to less than 70 points. In two seasons under Toole, the Colonials are 36-9 (.800) when turning the trick.

30-for-30 - Robert Morris has made a point to attack the basket this season, and the results are encouraging. In an 71-64 victory @ No. 2 Wagner (3/4/12) in the semifinals of the 2012 NEC Tournament, the Colonials visited the charity stripe a season-high 40 times, converting 30 (75 percent). RMU has won 36 consecutive games when visiting the charity stripe at least 30 times in a game. The last loss for the Robert Morris came in the 2002 NEC Tournament, when the Colonials suffered an 85-76 loss to UMBC (3/1/02) despite going 24-for-31 (77.4 percent) at the chalk. Through 33 games of the 2011-12 campaign, RMU is averaging 23.8 free-throw attempts per contest.

Four Score and ... In an 87-68 win over Monmouth (3/1/12) in the quarterfinals of the 2012 NEC Tournament, Robert Morris had four players reach double figures in scoring as redshirt sophomore guard Coron Williams paced the Colonials with 25 points. Joining Williams was freshman forward Lucky Jones (16), redshirt junior guard Velton Jones (12) and sophomore guard Anthony Myers (12). In 11 games so far this season at least four Colonials have scored in double figures, with RMU owning a record of 8-3 (.727) in those contests. In the two seasons under head coach Andrew Toole, the Colonials are 14-6 (.700) when at least four players score in double figures in a game.