Colonials hope to turn beginning of season around

Photo+credit%3A+Samuel+Anthony

Photo credit: Samuel Anthony

Delenn Poe, Contributor

IOWA CITY — The Robert Morris Colonials (1-5) go on the road to take on the No. 14 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes (4-2) on Sunday, Dec. 2nd at 3:00 p.m. The Colonials are 1-5 overall and 0-3 away while the Hawkeyes are 4-2 overall and 2-0 at home. The Colonials are on a four-game losing streak coming into this game, with their last loss coming from the Loyola Marymount Lions (4-1) by a score of 61-53 on Nov. 24. The Hawkeyes (4-2) lost their last game on Nov. 29 when they went up against the undefeated No. 1 ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-0).

Recapping RMU

The Colonials last game was against the Loyola Marymount Lions. In the 61-53 loss, the Colonials had the lead in the first quarter but the Lions came back and grabbed the lead and did not give it up. The Colonials struggled in this game while only scoring four points in the third quarter.

On the season, the Colonials outshoot their opponents in three-point shots 52 to 33; they recover more rebounds than their opponents, 230 to 218; the team has more steals than their opponents with 65 to 55; they also out-block their opponents 22 to 17. The team is outscored by one point with the Colonials having 335 and their opponents scoring 336. The Colonials made more field goal shots than their opponents with the Colonials having 117 and their opponents making 113 of their attempts.

Scouting Iowa

The Hawkeyes last game against Notre Dame saw them fall by a score of 105-71. This came as the Hawkeyes fell behind early in the first quarter and could never catchup with the top team in the nation as the Fighting Irish shot nearly 50% from the floor.

The Hawkeyes outscore their opponents 522 to 330 and they average 87.0 points per game while their opponents only average 73.3. Iowa has also recovered 252 rebounds while their opponents only have 196, the team has made 25 blocks while their opponents have made eight and they have generated 98 turnovers compared to their opponents’ 71. The Hawkeyes do not have as many steals as their opponents with 36 compared to 48 by opponents.

Players to watch

Megan Callahan (RMU): The sophomore has started all six games the Colonials have played thus far. She leads the team in scoring with 62 points and with a scoring average of 10.3. She also leads the team in three-point shots made with 14 and is second in three-point shot attempts with 32. She is also second on the team with 56 field goal attempts with 22 of those being made shots.

Nneka Ezeigbo (RMU): Ezeigbo is second in scoring with 57 points scored and she leads the team in free throw shots with 13 of 16 shots being good. She has 42 rebounds which are second on the team and she leads the team in defensive rebounds with 25. She also has 17 offensive rebounds which is second on the team.

Megan Gustafson (Iowa): The senior forward leads the team in field goal attempts with 85 and she leads the team in offensive rebounds with 20 and defensive rebounds with 53. She leads the team in blocks with 10, she is fourth on the team with four steals and is second in free throws made with 14.

Makenzie Meyer (Iowa): The junior guard leads the team in three-point shot attempts with 44 and she is tied for second in field goal attempts with 61. Meyer is also is tied for fourth on the team in free throw attempts with 12. She has made all 12 free throws which, unsuprisingly, gives her the highest free throw percentage on the team.

Prediction

I predict that the Hawkeyes will add to the Colonial’s losing streak. The Colonials are not starting out the season on a high and it will only get worse as they play better teams as the season goes on. The Colonials had trouble scoring during a few games and they are getting beat down the court. The Colonials defensive game will have to be at its best if they want a chance to being in the game. The Hawkeyes have also been very dominant on the court so far this season. they have only lost one game in the early stages of the season.

The Colonials are back home for their next six games and the first team they will take on is the Kent State Golden Flashes (3-3) on Dec. 7 at 7:00 p.m. at the North Athletic Complex.