Down 42-20 entering the second half, Robert Morris used a 27-7 run in the first nine and-a-half minutes of the second stanza to close within three, 50-47. After Vukusic upped Northwestern’s lead to 44-20 with a pair of free throws with 19:45 to play, the Colonials reeled off seven unanswered points as senior center Mark Anderson (Topeka, Kansas / Coffeyville C.C.) sandwiched a pair of jumpers around a three-pointer from sophomore point guard Derek Coleman (Dorchester, Mass. / Charlestown). T.J. Parker converted a three-point play after a foul by Anderson to give the Wildcats a 47-27 lead, but RMU went to work, outscoring Northwestern 23-3 over a seven-minute span.

Senior forward Chaz McCrommon (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Schenley) got the run started with a long three-pointer, then Anderson added three more points thanks to a layup and free throw after a foul by NU’s Mohamed Hachad. Junior guard Maurice Carter (Richmond, Va. / Eleanor Roosevelt-Md.) cut the deficit to 10, 47-37, with a three-pointer at the 14:09 mark of the second half, then Hachad scored a layup to give the Wildcats a 49-37 lead. McCrommon scored a layup, then Coleman added another three-pointer to close the gap to 49-42, and after a free throw from Vukusic, a layup by Carter and a big three-pointer from freshman Cori Boston (Boston, Mass. / Charlestown) closed the gap to 50-47 with 10:35 left on the second half clock.

Northwestern weathered the Colonial surge by scoring the game’s next six points, four of which came courtesy of the free throw. Hachad and Davor Duvancic each hit a pair of shots from the charity stripe, followed by a layup from Hachad to give the Wildcats some breathing room, 56-47. Boston then came through with another three-pointer to close the deficit to 56-50, and senior guard Christopher Gooden (Houston, Texas / Eastfield J.C.) hit one of his two free throw attempts to pull RMU within five, 56-51, with 6:50 remaining. Gooden hustled for the rebound on his failed free throw attempt and called a timeout, giving the ball back to the Colonials, but an offensive foul by freshman Beau Gibb (Oxford, Miss. / The Hill School-Pa.) turned the ball back over to Northwestern. Vukusic responded with a pair of three-pointers to push Northwestern’s lead back to double digits, 62-51, and the Wildcats finished 7-for-12 from the charity stripe in the last 4:26 to help seal the victory.

Vukusic paced all scorers in the game with 25 points and added 10 rebounds, while Coleman led the Colonials with 16 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the floor. All eight of his field goal attempts came from beyond the three-point arc. Anderson added 10 points for RMU, while McCrommon registered the third double-double of his career by finishing with 10 points and tying a career-high with 11 rebounds.

Robert Morris returns to action Wednesday, Dec. 29, when it hosts crosstown rival Duquesne at the Charles L. Sewall Center for a 7:30 p.m. tilt.

Notes: Northwestern jumped out to a 42-20 halftime advantage thanks to a shooting percentage of 65.4 percent (17-for-26) in the first half, while Robert Morris converted just seven of its 32 field goal attempts (21.9 percent) … On the game the Colonials finished with 12 steals as Coleman led the way with three … It marks the third time in the last four games RMU has compiled at least 10 steals in a game … Robert Morris also finished with 11 assists as Carter paced the Colonials with four … RMU lost the battle of the boards, 38-31, but held a 12-3 advantage on the offensive glass.