EVANSVILLE, IN—The Mercyhurst men's basketball team will play Northwest Missouri State on Wednesday March 27th in the Elite Eight.

Who: Mercyhurst (26-7) vs. Northwest Missouri State (35-0)
When: Wednesday, March 27, 2019 (2:30 PM CT / 3:30 PM ET)
Where: Evansville, IN
Live Stats:  Click Here
Live Video:   Click Here
 
Previous Game Against West Liberty
 
The Mercyhurst men's basketball team defeated fifth-ranked West Liberty, 82-70, in the NCAA Tournament Atlantic Region Final to advance to the Elite Eight. Patrick Smith was named Region Tournament MVP. He finished with 16 points and 17 rebounds against WLU. Four other Lakers finished in double digits with Nelson Maxwell tying Smith with 16.  Derrick Ellis Jr. and Jason Massey both had 13 points a piece, while Nicholas Lang put in 12.
 
Right out of the half, Derrick Ellis Jr. and Nelson Maxwell would lead the charge for MU off an Ellis Jr. and one, and a Maxwell three pointer, making it 44-39 Lakers. This would be the start of a 12-0 run by MU to take the lead 50-39, with 16:00 to go in regulation.  Ellis Jr. led the Laker run with five points.
 
With just over 13 minutes to go in the game, West Liberty would cut the deficit to single digits (7) before a huge Maxwell three pointer, pushing the lead back up to double-digits. A few possessions later, the Swiss-army knife, Patrick Smith, would match Maxwell's three with one of his own, making it 63-50 Lakers. Massey would then give Mercyhurst (26-7) its largest lead of the game (15) off a made layup.
 
Coming down the stretch, WLU cut the Laker lead to eight. Though, Ellis Jr. would have another answer, finishing strong in the paint, pushing it back to 10.  With stellar defense nearing the end of the game, MU was able to hold off the number one scoring offense and for the first time, advance to the NCAA Division Two Elite Eight.

This is the first time in school history that the Lakers will go to the NCAA Elite Eight.

Leading the Lakers

• Massey leads MU in scoring averaging 16 per game and has been nominated first team all-conference in the PSAC West Division
• In rebounds, Smith leads the team with 9.3 per game
• Smith was also nominated Second team all-region and MVP of the Atlantic Region Tournament
• From behind the Arc, Pratapas leads the team in made three point field goals (62) with a percentage of .488 from three
• Ellis Jr. averages 4.1 assists
• Ferreira defends the rim on defense for MU averaging 1.48 blocks per game

 
 
Laker Facts

• MU averages 75.2 points per game
• On the defensive side, the Lakers have the number two defense in the country only allowing 60.9 points per game
• For the third time in five years, the Lakers have finished the regular season with 20 wins
• Mercyhurst is fifth in the nation in scoring margin (16.1) and 16th in turnover margin (4.1)
• After the Lakers last win over West Liberty, MU reached 26 wins tying its most wins in a single season, in school history

 
Scouting Northwest Missouri State
 

• Northwest Missouri State is coming into the game ranked number one in the country (D2SIDA Poll)
• As a team, the Bearcats have the number three defense in the country only allowing 62.4 points per game
• NMSU also has the number four field goal percentage in the country (51.3) and a scoring margin of 21.8 ranking them first in the nation
• Northwest Missouri State has only lost five games in the last 102 games

 
 
Leading the Bearcats
 

• WSU has four players scoring in double digits with Joey Witthus leading with 21.5 points
• Ryan Hawkins leads the team in rebounds with 8.7 per game
• In assists, Trevor Hudgins leads the way with 5.4 per game
• Hawkins also leads the team in steals averaging 2.1  

 
First Meeting
This is the first time both teams will meet and the winner will advance to the final four.

For more information on the NCAA Elite Eight, Click Here

 
Next Up: The winner of this Elite Eight matchup will face the winner of Nova Southeastern and Saint Anselm in the Final Four on March 28th.