NEW YORK — Three times in his previous four seasons coach Andy Toole took Robert Morris to the Northeastern Conference tournament finals, and three times the Colonials had to watch their opponents cut down the nets and celebrate an NCAA bid.

In front of a raucous crowd, packed tightly into the one of the smallest gyms in Division I, Toole and his team never wilted. No more waiting until next year for the Colonials.

Rodney Pryor sparked a second-half surge and Robert Morris denied St. Francis, Brooklyn, its first NCAA Tournament bid, beating the Terriers 66-63 for Northeast Conference championship on Tuesday night.

“A lot of my friends have been calling me Marv Levy because we haven’t won the big one,” the 34-year-old Toole said, referring to the former Buffalo Bills’ coach who lost four straight Super Bowls. “It’s nice that I can call them back and tell them we finally won one.”

The top-seeded Terriers (23-11) had a chance to tie with 2.4 seconds left when Tyreek Jewell, who scored 19 points and was their best player on this night, went to the line after being fouled shooting a desperation 3-pointer.

Jewell missed the first, back-ending the shot and then the second. He intentionally missed the last one, but Robert Morris got the ball back and was quickly fouled. Lucky Jones missed a free throw that would have sealed it and Lowell Ulmer’s heave from beyond half-court hit the back of the rim, took a high bounce and then missed again.

It was Robert Morris and their fans celebrating as the SFC crowd lamented the Terriers’ third NEC title game loss, but first since 2003. St. Francis is one of just five original Division I teams, dating back to 1948, that has never made the NCAA Tournament.

As NEC regular season champions the Terriers get an NIT bid, their first postseason appearance since they went to the NIT in 1963.

“They can look back at a regular-season title. A lot of personal accolades. And postseason in the NIT for the first time in 52 years,” St. Francis coach Glenn Braica said. “I think that’s pretty good. I think a lot of guys in this country would like to have that.”

Second-seeded Robert Morris (19-15) is going back to the tournament for the first time since 2010.

“It breaks your heart sometimes as a coach that we’ve had teams that have been so close and not been able to get over the hump,” Toole said. “And that’s why we push, and we push and we push, all the time. To be able to perform and play in this kind of atmosphere and this kind of stage.”

The Colonials and Terriers split two close games during the regular season, with each winning on the road.

“When we got the win in the regular season we knew that we can win coming into this building,” Pryor, who capped a 16-3 second-half with a baseline jumper and a 3 to put Robert Morris up 57-47 with 6:53 left.