ERIE, Pa.—The Mercyhurst men's basketball team will travel to Slippery for the PSAC Quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday at 7:00 PM
 
Who: Mercyhurst (21-6, 15-6) At Slippery Rock (19-9, 16-5)
When: Wednesday, March 6th, 2019 (7:00 PM)
Where: Slippery Rock, Pa.
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PSAC First Round Summary Against Seton Hill
 

• The Mercyhurst men's basketball team scored 52 second-half points en route to a 78-48 victory over Seton Hill in a PSAC Tournament first-round matchup on Monday at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Jason Massey led the Lakers (21-6) with 22 points and seven rebounds while Nelson Maxwell put in 18 points and MiyKah McIntosh scored 10. Also for MU, Patrick Smith hauled down 10 rebounds while Edvaldo Ferreira totaled nine rebounds and three blocks.

 

• Mercyhurst led 26-25 at halftime before the visiting Griffins took a 28-26 lead in the second period. The Lakers then took the lead for good with a 9-0 run, getting four points from Massey during that stretch. Leading 46-40, the Lakers broke the game open with a 17-point run. Massey had seven points during the surge while Maxwell contributed six as MU decisively ran away to victory.

 

• Mercyhurst was 10 of 29 from the field in the first half (34.5 percent) before going 18 of 27 in the second (66.7) while SHU was 11 of 22 in the first (50.0) and then 6 of 21 in the second (28.6). The Lakers were dominated on the boards, outrebounding the visitors, 40-17.

 
Laker Facts
 

• MU is ninth in the conference in points per game averaging 76.8
• 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 (16.5), first in three point field goal percentage (.401), fifth in three point field goals made (8.9) and fourth in field goal percentage (.478)
• The Lakers for the first time since the 2014-15 season reached 20 regular season wins

 
Leading the Lakers
 

• Massey leads MU in scoring averaging 15.6 per game
• In rebounds, Smith leads the team with 8.9 per game placing him fourth in the PSAC
• From behind the Arc, Pratapas leads the conference in three point field goal percentage (.528)
• Ellis Jr. averages 4.3 assists and is ninth in the conference
• Ferreira defends the rim on for MU averaging 1.6 blocks per game and is fourth in the PSAC

 
Slippery Rock Facts
 

• SRU is coming into the game off of a first round bye finishing second in the PSAC West
• To close the season, the Rock is on a two game skid losing to Pitt-Johnstown 98-84 (Feb. 23) and to Gannon 73-55 (Mar. 2)
• SRU comes into the contest averaging 79.9 points per game placing them 6th in the conference
• On defense SRU only allows 73.5 points per game (7th in PSAC)
• In other categories, the Rock is number one in the conference in blocked shots averaging 5.64 per game and 14.4 offensive rebounds per contest (3rd in PSAC)  

 
Leading The Rock
 

• Due to The Rock's leading scorer remaining injured, Jared Armstrong has taken over as the leading scorer for SRU averaging 16 points per game
• Vinny Lasley leads the team in rebounds with 7.7 and leads his team in blocks as well
• John Warren ll is the only other player scoring in double digits with 13 and leads the team in steals with two per game (8th in PSAC)

 
Previous Meetings
 

• Slippery Rock took both regular season matchups with the first at Mercyhurst winning the game in double overtime 92-91 (Jan. 5) and the second at home 83-74 (Feb. 13)
• SRU holds a slight lead over MU with a 28-26 all-time record against the Lakers

 
Playoff Outlook
 

• The winner of this matchup will advance to the PSAC Final Four and will play the winner of East Stroudsburg and Kutztown on Saturday
• Both Final Four games will be played at the highest remaining seed out of the PSAC West after the Wednesday night games