ERIE, Pa. – After clinching a spot in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament early last week, the Mercyhurst men's basketball awaits their placement. A win Saturday in the regular season finale at Seton Hill will solidify at least the two-seed for the Lakers, but will have to wait as the PSAC season concludes Wednesday, February 25.
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Another good shooting performance Wednesday night helped Mercyhurst (19-7 overall, 15-5 PSAC) defeat Pitt-Johnstown, 81-72, for their fourth consecutive victory.
Kayode Ajenifuja recorded a career-high 16 points, while
Sean Beins also produced 16. With a win Saturday in Greensburg, the Lakers will record 20 wins after missing the mark last season.
Seton Hill (7-17, 6-14 PSAC) are last in the PSAC West, but have quality wins over Bloomsburg, Slippery Rock and California (Pa.). The Griffins are coming off a hard fought win Wednesday at California (Pa.), 63-62. Kameron Taylor made hit a game winning jumper with 11 seconds to play and finished the game scoring a game-high 22 points to lead Seton Hill past the Vulcans for the second time this year.
The Lakers and Griffins have met earlier this season on January 21 at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Mercyhurst won the first game, 70-50, behind 13 points from
Callon Dailey.
Gerrae Williams and
Paris Bennett also finished in double figures, each adding 12 points apiece. Mercyhurst would dominate the Griffins on the glass in game one, grabbing a season-high 22 offensive rebounds and outrebounded Seton Hill, 42-28, for the game.
Damon Jones remains the Lakers leading scorer, averaging 10.4 points per game, while Williams follows averaging 10.4. They are the only two players to average double-figures in scoring. After not reaching 80 points as a team for nearly two months, Mercyhurst has now scored 81 points in back-to-back games. The Lakers remain as one of the league's top defensive teams despite letting their opponents reach 60 points in back-to-back contests, something they have not done the previous six games. The 72 points Pitt-Johnstown posted was the first time a team reached 70 since December 17 when the Lakers defeated Cheyney at home and let up 70 points. Mercyhurst ranks seventh in the country (as of Feb. 12) and third in the PSAC in scoring defense, holding opponents to 62.1 points per game.
Seton Hill is led by Taylor, who averages 13.2 points per game and 4.8 rebounds, while center Spencer Casson leads the team in rebounding, averaging 6.5 a game. The Griffins have one of the lowest producing offenses in the PSAC, scoring only 63.3 points a game. As a team, they shoot 35.9 % from behind the arc, marking them the fifth best in the PSAC. The Griffins also lead the PSAC in blocked shots per game, averaging 5.17 in that category.
