The Robert Morris Colonials come to town tomorrow afternoon, and considering their 3–8 record and Ken Pomeroy ranking of 282, it should be a festive afternoon — and one that we should enjoy if you like watching us beat up on hapless unfamiliar foes, because our last two non-conference games of the season are likely tense road games with 49th-ranked Cal and second-ranked Villanova.
Robert Morris is not threatening. The Colonials have played just one opponent that Pomeroy’s formulas rank in the top-100, and yet still can’t score: they’re 340th of 351 teams in offensive efficiency (92.4), 341st in turnover percentage (23.9%), and manage to be bad at two point shots (40.7%), threes (32.2%), free throws (63.8%), and even merely getting their shots to the rim (11.6% have been blocked).
Swingman Isaiah Still (15.1 ppg) has been their saving grace. Still — a sophomore — has hit almost half of the team’s threes (27 of their 58) and has made 39%, a mark better than his overall shooting percentage (38.7%).
Point guard Kevon Stewart is their other double-figure scorer (11.0), but hasn’t been able to shoot (a dreadful 39.4 EFG%) and has a higher turnover rate (29.1%) than assist rate (28.3%) for the season so far. Matty McConnell, brother of Philadelphia 76er and one-time UVa target TJ, is a potential source of offense but hasn’t delivered yet: he’s scoring 3.7 points per game with an offensive rating of 77.
Defensively, both starting guards pressure the ball, and the Colonials like to trap in the half court. To that end, they’re forcing turnovers on almost 24% of opposing possessions and are getting a combined three steals per game from Still and Stewart.
We should be able to dominate this game around the rim on both ends of the court. Robert Morris is small (senior forwards Aaron Tate and Billy Giles are 6'5'’ and 200 pounds, respectively) and/or inexperienced (true freshman Braden Burke is 6'11'’ but shooting just 32%) on the interior. They’ve struggled mightily to rebound the defensive glass (just 68.7%) and don’t block shots (just 5.8%).
This game was scheduled perfectly, as this is a team that we can afford to shake some rust off against. I want to see all 10 active scholarship players play 10 minutes, score, and get comfortable on the court again.
Virginia
G: London Perrantes — 6'2'’ sr #32
It’s a small sample AND we haven’t played anyone yet, but London is finishing at the rim at a 72.7% rate, a mark much better than last year (49%).
G: Devon Hall — 6'5'’ jr. #0.
Devon is making just over a quarter of his shots that aren’t either right at the rim or threes, which is really bad. There’s talk of him being the first of our current starters to yield to a current reserve, and I think that’s both true and not likely to happen soon. DH is our best one on one perimeter defender.
G: Darius Thompson — 6'4'’ jr #51
Darius has scored in single digits three times. In those three games, he had six assists in one, three assists, three blocks, and two steals in another, and six rebounds and three assists in the last one.
F: Isaiah Wilkins — 6'7'’ jr #21
I wouldn’t complain if Zay was just a teensy bit more assertive in looking for his own offense.
F: Jack Salt — 6'11'’ so #33
Jack’s free throw rate (42.4 per 100 FGA) is more than double what it was last year (18.4) and his fouls committed per 40 is way down (4.4 from 7.2), which both show how much the game has slowed for him.
G: Kyle Guy — 6'3'’ fr #5
Second in the NCAA in offensive rating (150.4) and fifth in three point percentage (61.9%). He’s just got to refine some rough edges.
G: Marial Shayok — 6'6'’ jr #4
Marial was in a four game 10–31 slump before ECU, so hopefully he’s back in a groove. Hunting shots off the bench in lineups without London is a perfect role for him.
F: Jarred Reuter — 6'7'’ so #31
Reuter picked the best time to turn in a dud, basically sitting out the WVU game after I wrote some glowing things about him. He’s still kind of a situational player because he’s a throwback, but he’s going to be effective in the right situation.
RMU
G: Kavon Stewart — 6'0'’ sr #3
Thinking that perhaps Stewart’s cold start was indicative of a slump, I turned to past seasons. It’s not. His ORTG is up two points and his percentages are all up as well. The key appears to just keep him off of his left hand.
G: Matty McConnell — 6'2'’ so #23
Going 4–7 in RMU’s loss to Oakland on the 10th broke him out of a 2–28 slump (0–12 on threes) that spanned their five games prior. 2–28 is a baseball stat.
F: Isaiah Still — 6'6'’ so #1
The good of what he can do: 22 points on 13 shots (4–4 on threes) in RMU’s narrow win over Duquesne and 26 on 17 shots (4–8) in their six-point loss at DePaul. He can keep the Colonials in games.
F: Aaron Tate — 6'5'’ sr #24
Small but fierce: Tate is grabbing 21.1% of defensive boards and 11.1% of offensive chances at 6'5.’’
F: Roberto Mantovani — 6'8'’ jr #32
Ends just 8.1% of his possessions with a shot and has hit only six of them this season. Posts single digit rebound rates on both ends, turns it over 28% of the time, and commits 7.4 fouls per 40 minutes.
C: Braden Burke — 6'11'’ fr #5
Burke scored 10 points in a loss to Richmond and had seven boards and a block in their last outing. There are signs that the kid is beginning to get comfortable.
G: Clive Allen — 6'0'’ fr #4
Third guard is their second-best shooter: he’s 10–26 from deep this season, which is worth keeping track of.
F: Billy Giles — 6'7'’ sr #20
Good offensive rebounder (10.5%) who is shooting 82.8% at the rim in what are obviously limited chances.
Verdict:
A comfortable win and roster-wide tuneup in advance of our meeting with Cal on Wednesday.
