Robert Morris beats rival St. Francis, returns to NCAA Tournament for first time in six years

Thanks to 18 points from Dante Tracey, 17 for Josh Williams, and four starts in double figures, the No. 1 Robert Morris Colonials are heading back to the NCAA tournament with a 77-67 win over the No. 2 St. Francis (PA) Red Flash in the Northeast Conference final in Moon Township, PA on Tuesday evening.

It caps an excellent season for RMC, who survived an opening round scare against the No. 8 Saint Francis (NY) Terriers 59-58 to advance. After a 20-point drubbing of Long Island University 86-66 in the semifinals, the Colonials were able to celebrate on their home floor.

This will be the ninth NCAA Tournament for Robert Morris, who haven’t won an NCAA Tournament game in the main field since 1983. Despite being at home, they entered tonight’s game as a 1.5 point underdog at tip-off. They will be significantly more than that behind on the betting boards if they avoid Dayton and the First Four and reach the round of 64 in the Big Dance.

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