ERIE, Pa.—The Mercyhurst men's basketball team will head across town as they face rival Gannon in part-two of the Porreco Pride of Erie Game.

Who: Merychurst (18-5, 13-5) at Gannon (9-16, 7-11)
When: Saturday February 23rd, 2019 (7:30 PM)
Where: Erie, Pa. (Hammermill Center)
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Previous Game Against the Golden Knights

• Jason Massey scored 15 points and earned the Game Changer Award as the Mercyhurst men's basketball team defeated cross-town rival Gannon, 51-35, in a Porreco Pride of Erie matchup at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Edvaldo Ferreira added 10 points and Patrick Smith hauled down 12 rebounds for the Lakers.
• MU grabbed its 23rd all-time win against Gannon and will look to sweep the series for the first time since the 2015-16 season

Keys for Mercyhurst

• MU is ninth in the conference in points per game averaging 77.8
• On the defensive side, the Lakers have the number one defense in the conference and ranked second in the country only allowing 60.3 points per game
• In other categories in the conference,  Mercyhurst is first in scoring margin (17.4), first in three point field goal percentage (.400), third in three point field goals made (9.2) and fourth in field goal percentage (.484)

Leading the Lakers

• Massey leads MU in scoring averaging 15.8 per game
• In rebounds, Smith leads the team with 8.4 per game placing him seventh in the PSAC
• From behind the Arc, Trystan Pratapas leads the conference in three point field goal percentage (.532)
• Derrick Ellis Jr. averages 4.3 assists and is ninth in the conference
• Ferreira defends the rim on defense averaging 1.3 blocks per game and is sixth in the PSAC

Keys for Gannon

• GU has the second best defense in the conference (behind Mercyhurst) only allowing 66.1 points per game
• On the offensive side, the Golden Knights struggle only averaging 62.0 points per game placing them 17th in the conference
• The Golden Knights do know how to hit the defensive boards averaging 32.1 per game placing them first in the conference

Leading the Golden Knights

• Gannon has two scorers in double digits with Daryl Porter leading the way with 11.7 points per game, Victor Olawoye is right behind him with 10.5 per game
• Deante Cisero leads GU in rebounds with 4.9 per game
• In assists, Matt Johnson paves with way with 73 on the year for the Golden Knights

Playoff Implications

• With the win over California (Pa.), the Lakers cannot finish any lower than third place in the PSAC West Division. If MU places third, it would host a PSAC Tournament game on Monday, Mar. 4.

Next Up:  The Lakers will hit the road in its second to last game of the regular season as they take on Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday, Feb. 27.