“I thought Robert Morris was very sharp. I don’t know what coach (Andrew) Toole would say, but that first half, I thought that was the best I’d seen them execute,” coach Clint Sargent said.
“They were the more physical team that first half, and that steered a lot of our paint decision-making.”
Revved up by a national-TV audience on ESPNU, the Colonials had nine blocked shots in a 72-66 victory.
Yes, the Raiders showed some spunk down the stretch, taking a 61-57 lead with six minutes to go. But they were spent after having clawed back and scored only five points in their last 11 possessions.
“We have to understand they were ready to go. Not that it’s easy to do this on the road and do it consecutively like we need to, but people are going to give us their best shot, and we’ve got to be ready for that,” Sargent said.
“It takes maturity, which we have. We’re still learning. I think our best basketball is ahead of us. Our most consistent basketball is ahead of us.”
The Raiders, who are 15-9 overall and in first at 10-3 with seven games to go, will get a crack at another HL contender in visiting Purdue Fort Wayne on Saturday.
The Mastodons, 14-10 overall and 8-5 in the league, are one of just five teams with winning league records — and few of them could be considered true contenders.
Oakland is second at 10-4, Green Bay fourth at 8-6 and Detroit Mercy fifth at 7-6.
The Raiders, who are playing PFW for the first time this season, have lost three straight games and five of the last six in the series.
“They’re very good offensively — three very, very dynamic guards,” Sargent said, referring to Corey Hadnot II, who is averaging a league-high 20 points, along with Mikale Stevenson (14.9) and Craig DeAndre (14.7).
“Coach (Jon) Coffman does a great job with their offensive attack. And they’re very experienced.”
Recent games between the teams have been entertaining for fans and exasperating for coaches — mostly up-tempo point-fests where defense was practically non-existent.
PFW had a 120-113 double-overtime win at the Nutter Center last year.
Two years ago, the Raiders prevailed on the road, 106-98.
“We know we need to lean on our defense every game down the stretch. We’re looking forward to the challenge because they got us twice last year. I’m expecting us to be ready to play,” Sargent said.
“We need an intensity level and our communication and physicality — like we’ve seen before. We had spurts in the second half against Robert Morris, but we’ve got to bring it the full 40 minutes. We’re still looking for that (complete) performance.”
Next game
Who: Purdue Fort Wayne at Wright State
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Streaming: ESPNU
Radio: 1410-AM, 101.5-FM
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