RMU Basketball: 3 keys to Horizon League road matchup at Purdue-Fort Wayne

It was a rough start for RMU Basketball to open Horizon League play on Wednesday, falling 72-58 to Youngstown State at home. The next game is on the road, taking on Purdue-Fort Wayne (5-4, 0-1). The Mastodons were the preseason favorites in the conference and had a solid non-con but suffered a surprising road loss to Detroit Mercy in the final seconds, 79-78.

Neither team wants to start league play at 0-2, but that’s the fate of one of them on Sunday afternoon. Focusing on the Colonials, here are three keys for them to win the game.

1. Kam Woods getting back to being the lead guard

It’s official that last year’s starting guard, Justice Williams, won’t be playing for RMU this season. The good news is Kam Woods returned from a five-game absence a week ago and is coming off the bench. In the last game, the senior guard led the team with 14 points and five assists and at times, was the only source of offense. Ryan Prather and DJ Smith were solid in his place, but the Colonials are at their best when Woods is impacting the game and giving them a clear threat.

2. Slowing down the guard duo of Jalen Jackson and Rasheed Bello

While Purdue-Fort Wayne will focus on Woods, RMU has two all-conference caliber players in Jalen Jackson (18.7 ppg) and Rasheed Bello (14.7 ppg and 3.6 apg). The duo had 17 points apiece against Detroit Mercy and can draw fouls at a high rate. Regarding perimeter-oriented threats, watch for forward Maxiums Nelson, who leads the team with 45% shooting from deep.

3. Getting off to a better start offensively 

One issue that has quietly plagued the Colonials is getting off to a slow start in games. They managed just eight points in the first 10 minutes, with the Penguins going on a deep run to put them out of the game. They got away with it during the five-game win streak, with Cornell being the exception. 

Purdue-Fort Wayne is averaging 82 ppg and ranks in the top third nationally in most scoring categories. Robert Morris is only at 70 ppg and isn’t built for shootouts. So while the game does need to slow down for the Colonials, they can’t get off to a slow start.