Women's Basketball | 2/2/2017 2:17:00 PM

GAME 22
Robert Morris (12-9, 7-3 NEC) at St. Francis Brooklyn (6-15, 4-6 NEC)
Saturday, February 4, 2017 • 1:00 p.m.
Pope Center (1,200) • Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.

Video: NECFrontRow.com • SFCAthletics.com
Twitter: @RMUWBasketball • Instagram: rmuwbasketball
 
The Capsule
Robert Morris begins its annual road trip to the Big Apple on Saturday, Feb. 4 when it takes on St. Francis Brooklyn. The Colonials are riding high, currently owning the league's longest active winning streak at four games, while the Terriers have dropped two straight and four of their last five contests.
 


The Series vs. St. Francis Brooklyn
Robert Morris owns a 41-20 edge in the all-time series against the Terriers, but St. Francis Brooklyn has won the last two games - both in Moon Township. The Colonials, however, have been victorious in their last two trips to Brooklyn Heights, winning 62-53 last season and 69-64 in 2015.

Scouting the Terriers
St. Francis Brooklyn shares the NEC's sixth place slot with Mount St. Mary's as it owns a 3-7 record in league play. The Terriers rank second in the conference in free throw shooting (.738), third in rebounding margin (-0.1), and third in assists (13.43). Olivia Levey and Maria Palarino are each averaging double-figures in scoring at 11.8 and 10.7 points per game, respectively, while Alex Delaney is not far behind at 9.4 points per contest. Palarino also leads St. Francis Brooklyn in field goal percentage (.510) and rebounding (6.5), while Delaney has dished out a team-high 61 assists.
 
The Previous Meeting
On Jan. 7, St. Francis Brooklyn outscored Robert Morris, 37-22, in the second half en route to a 56-49 victory. Pittsburgh-area product Maria Palarino posted a double-double for the Terriers with 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Anna Niki Stamolamprou led the Colonials with 13 points. Despite the defeat, RMU managed to hold St. Francis Brooklyn to 29.8 percent (14-of-47) shooting, which is one of five instances this season where the Colonial defense forced its opponent to make less than 30 percent of its field goals.

Last Time Out
Robert Morris put together an 18-2 run in the second quarter and an 18-7 stretch in the fourth to pick up a 70-68 victory at Saint Francis U on Monday evening. The Colonials had three players in double-figure scoring, led by Anna Niki Stamolamprou's 27-point performance. Mikalah Mulrain posted the fifth double-double of her career with 10 points and 11 rebounds in the win.
 
Super Bowl Success
Over the last 11 seasons, Robert Morris is a perfect 11-0 in its last game held before the Super Bowl. The last time the Colonials lost their most recent contest prior to Super Bowl Sunday was on Feb. 5, 2005 at Monmouth (L, 64-72).
 
NEC's Finest
Anna Niki Stamolamprou was named NEC Player of the Week for the third time this season and sixth time overall on Wednesday, Feb. 1. Stamolamprou's six top player honors is one shy of tying the program record of seven, held by both Sugeiry Monsac (2004-07) and Artemis Spanou (2010-14).
 
Lift Off
First-year head coach Charlie Buscaglia is on the cusp of posting the winningest debut season in program history as his 12-9 record is three victories shy of surpassing Dan Swalga's 14-win campaign in 1978-79.
 
Can't Knock The Hustle
Robert Morris has done a good job closing out victories this season, posting a point differential of +58 in its 12 wins and +46 in its seven conference triumphs. The Colonials are averaging 6.6 more points than their NEC counterparts in those victories and 4.8 more points against all opponents in wins.
 
Empire State of Mind
Brooklyn has been kind to Robert Morris over the past 10 seasons as the Colonials have achieved a 12-4 record during that timeframe in road contests against LIU Brooklyn and St. Francis Brooklyn. That stretch includes a current four-game winning streak dating back to the 2014-15 season.
 
Feelin' It
Senior guard Anna Niki Stamolamprou is averaging a career-high 16.1 points per game in her final hurrah and recently surpassed Laura Lindak (1989-94) for second place on the program's all-time scoring list on Jan. 30 at Saint Francis U. Stamolamprou now has 1,623 career points and has tallied a per-game average of 14.2 points during her time in Colonial blue and white.
 
Never Change
The Colonials have identified themselves as a strong defensive team in the past and this season is no different. RMU currently leads the NEC in scoring defense (59.1) and field goal defense (.377), and has held five teams to under 30 percent shooting - already surpassing its total of four from both the 2014-15 and 2015-16 campaigns.
 
Who Gon Stop Me
Senior guard Janee Brown owns a 1.47 assist-to-turnover ratio through 21 games of her final season in a Colonial uniform. Brown (78a, 53t) currently leads the Northeast Conference, which hasn't been done since 2009-10 when Angela Pace topped the league with a 2.36 mark.
 
Show Me What You Got
Since Jan. 16 against Saint Francis U, freshman guard Ja'lynn Burton-Jones has averaged 9.6 minutes per game after playing just 26 minutes over the Colonials' first 16 contests. During this stretch, Burton-Jones is shooting 50 percent from international waters, 5-of-7 from the free throw stripe, and has tallied five steals.

Musket Shots
For the first time this season on Jan. 30 at Saint Francis U, Robert Morris won a game when it was trailing entering the fourth quarter ... Nadège Pluviose has started the last two games for the Colonials and marks the 10th player this season to appear in the starting five ... RMU has held six of its opponents to under 50 points this season and is a perfect 6-0 in those contests ... Five different Colonials (Janee Brown, Mikalah Mulrain, Rebeca Navarro, Megan Smith, Anna Niki Stamolamprou) have collected high scoring honors in 2016-17 ... RMU's average home attendance of 570 is the highest among NEC teams
 
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