Robert Morris vs. North Florida: Score, Twitter Reaction from March Madness 2015

North Florida combated turnover problems with scalding-hot shooting, but it couldn't overcome its mistakes as fellow NCAA tournament No. 16 seed Robert Morris defeated the Ospreys 81-77 in Dayton, Ohio, on Wednesday.

Freshman guard Marcquise Reed sparked the Colonials' second-half rally by getting to the rim at will and netting 19 points. But seasoned senior Lucky Jones added 21 of his own, edging Rodney Pryor for Robert Morris' team-high total.

Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette weighed in on Reed's exceptional performance:

CBS Sports' Seth Davis praised the Colonials' game plan:

Missed free throws down the stretch cost Robert Morris a chance to close out the game with a bit more ease, but Kavon Stewart hit two big ones to make the score 80-76 with under 10 seconds left.

The Colonials advance to the round of 64, where they will face the South Region's top-seeded Duke Blue Devils.

Forcing 10 turnovers in the first 12 minutes allowed the Colonials to build an early advantage, but as ESPN Stats & Info illustrates, North Florida managed to still take the upper hand in the first 20 minutes:

Sparked by sharpshooter Beau Beech, who wound up leading all scorers with 28 points, North Florida built a 35-29 halftime advantage.

The following dunk from Demarcus Daniels also gave the Ospreys early momentum, via NCAA March Madness:

CBS Sports CBB highlighted just how much range Beech was showing in Dayton:

"

HIGHLIGHT: Huge alley-oop for the Ospreys! http://t.co/lzIJ6RqTea

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 18, 2015"

ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr. logged a quote from a most memorable intermission interview granted by North Florida coach Matthew Driscoll:

One could definitely say Beech falls into the "baller" category, but even his best efforts couldn't compensate for the numerous errors his squad made.

After benefiting from seven straight missed Colonials shots toward the end of the opening half, turnovers bit the Ospreys again, as Robert Morris made a push early in the second.

The Florida Times-Union's Eugene Frenette referenced how North Florida's self-destructive nature hindered its ability to set the tone:

Runs by both teams preceded the Colonials taking a 61-60 lead with just over seven minutes remaining.

That was when the competitiveness of this win-or-go-home format really came to light, as Wally Szczerbiak of CBS Sports Network observed:

It happened to be Robert Morris that played cleaner basketball, turning it over five times—a stark contrast to North Florida's 19 giveaways. The Colonials stayed within themselves and emerged victorious as a result.

This was the first time North Florida had ever appeared in the NCAA tournament. While the outcome is disappointing given how well the Ospreys shot, Driscoll is developing a promising program and can use this season's success as a foundation to continue building on.

Considering no 16th seed has ever advanced to the round of 32 in NCAA tournament history, the odds are long for Robert Morris to get by Duke.

As mad and crazy as March can be in college basketball, don't expect the Colonials to pull off the seemingly impossible against the Blue Devils.

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