MOON TOWNSHIP– The Robert Morris men’s basketball team struggled early this season as inconsistency has been their worst enemy. They showed signs of life and some negatives in Monday night’s game as they dropped their eighth game of the year to Delaware, 73-69.

The first half started relatively evenly as both teams scored buckets to keep it close. The Blue Hens were putting pressure on the Colonials early as they opened up pressing them. RMU got into a bit of foul trouble early on but was able to get back into the groove. The Blue Hens were up by five points at the first media time-out.

The Colonials felt the pressure as the Blue Hens executed aggressive defense. RMU struggled to make shots from behind the arc. They had taken great shots, but they didn’t seem to fall.

The Colonials fell cold ten minutes in as they could not finish their shots. The squad looked to pick it back up and looked like they did, as the defense made a few key stops. Justice Williams put the team on his back in the last ten minutes as the momentum shifted in the Colonials’ favor. They had an 11-point deficit and shrunk it to a one-point deficit.

The first half ended with the Colonials being down by eight points. Rebounding and missing shots were the Colonials’ biggest enemy tonight.

The second half opened up with a UD three-pointer, but the Colonials countered with their bucket. Hastings scored the opening points of the half for Robert Morris. Despite the slow start in the first half, Hastings got it together in the first part of the second half. The Colonials went on a seven-nothing run that got them back into striking distance.

RMU had made great defensive stops but could still not take the lead. At the five-minute mark, the Colonials only trailed by five points. They fell cold again as the defense couldn’t stop the Blue Hens, and the offense fell flat. Markeese Hastings had a beautiful block, which led to a Jackson Last three ball to bring the Colonials closer to the Blue Hens.

Josh Corbin and Justice Williams had two three balls to bring the Colonials within four points. The game was very close to the end. The Colonials kept on fighting, but in the end, it wasn’t enough to put the Blue Hens away.

Hastings led the team with 23 points and 10 rebounds, and Justice Williams had a 20-point performance as well.

“So it was frustratingly close,” Coach Andy Toole said. “I thought we did not get off to the start we wanted to with urgency.”

That was the story of the game. There needed to be more urgency, and there needed to be more consistency in the beginning. The team picked it up and played well in the second half, proving there are bright spots to be proved with the squad.

The Colonials return to action on Sunday, Dec. 17, at 2 p.m. at the UPMC Events Center to play against Saint Vincent.