ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst men's basketball team is coming off their second wire-to-wire victory in their last three games after dominating the Golden Eagles of Clarion University on the road Wednesday night by a score of 86-52 at Tippin Gymnasium.  The Lakers will seek to even their PSAC East-West Crossover record to 2-2 after defeating Bloomsburg, but dropping games to West Chester and East Stroudsburg.  This will be the first time this season that Mercyhurst will get to host one of the crossover contests with the other three coming away from Erie. 

Opponent - Kutztown Golden Bears
Date - Saturday, January 11
Time - 3 pm
Location - Erie, Pa. (Mercyhurst Athletic Center)
Series History - Hurst leads 31-28, (Lakers won last meeting 88-42 on 2/6/19 at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center)
Lakers Notes
Live Stats
Live Video
Tickets

Last Time Out
Mercyhurst came out on fire as they led 14-4 not even four minutes into the game against Clarion on Wednesday night, and used a 16-6 run late in the frame to extend the advantage to 54-27 at halftime.  The Lakers were beyond hot from distance in the opening 20-minutes as they started out 9-10 before finishing the half 11-16.  Mercyhurst continued their dominance in the second-half as charges of 6-0 and 10-2 to close out the convincing 86-52 win.  Cameron Gross and Trystan Pratapas each had 15, while Nicolas Lang added 13 with Michael Bradley finishing at 11.  Zach McIntire, Steve Cannady, and Joel Ufele all chipped in eight.  Lang had six boards to lead the team.  

Scouting the Lakers (7-5, 5-3 PSAC)
Team Numbers
Mercyhurst averages 77.3 points per game, while holding their opposition to 67.4.  Their +9.8 scoring margin ranks 52th nationally.  They are shooting 49.6% from the floor for the season, while they are 71.1% at the charity line.  The Lakers sit at 42.5% shooting outside the arc which is good for 3rd in the country.  At the defensive end of the floor they are pulling in 32.0 rebounds, putting up just over seven steals per game, and are putting up 2.8 blocks.  

Protect the Ball
The Lakers have done an outstanding job of protecting the ball as their 137 turnovers on the season is good for eighth in the nation.  They are also 24th in the nation in turnovers per game with 11.4 which is good for second in the conference.  

Defense, Defense, Defense
Defense has been the name of the game for the Lakers as they have held their competition to under 70 points in 15 of their last 21 games and seven of the tweleve games this campaign.  Mercyhurst has allowed 70+ points four times so far this season on November 23, 2019 in an 87-85 win at home versus Millersville, the 83-80 overtime loss at West Chester last Saturday, the 76-66 setback home against Le Moyne, falling at ESU 83-64, and at IUP 71-56. 

Bench Scoring is Huge
Mercyhurst continues to be strong even outside their starting lineup as they are outscoring their opponents 332-215 for a +117 scoring margin.

Sharing the Wealth 
MiyKah McIntosh and Ufele are the leading scorers putting up 14.4 and 9.8 points per game.  Gross, Pratapas, and McIntire all average over eight per contest.  Bradley and Lang chip in 7.3 and 7.1 respectively.  

Block Party
Mercyhurst has 33 blocks as a team, led by a team-high eleven from Ufele.  Eight other Lakers have recorded blocks on the season as well, including seven by Andrew Seager and six from McIntire.   

NCAA Leaders
Bradley ranks 57th in the country and is fourth in the PSAC in assist-turnover ratio posting a 2.41.  McIntosh is 74th in free throw percentage averaging 85.4%. 

Scouting the Golden Bears (6-8, 4-4 PSAC)
Kutztown arrives at the Athletic Center having dropped three of their previous four, including a 75-54 loss at Millersville University on Wednesday night.  As a team they average 81.4 ppg, while allowing 79.9 to the competition for a +1.5 scoring margin.  The Golden Bears are knocking down 44% of their shots to go along with 37.2% from deep and 75.7% at the line.  KU turns the ball over 14 times and hauls in 37.8 rebounds.  Wesley Butler is the head of the Golden Bears attack putting up 17.7 ppg on 48% shooting coupled with 44.6% beyond the arc.  Tarojae Brake and Ryan "Boz" Bernstein also average double-figures with 14.9 and 10.1 respectively.  Facundo Arens, Josh Townsend, and Kyree Generett each drop over seven per game.  Townsend is the leading rebounder with 8.0, followed by Akello Mosby who grabs 5.6.  Five other players bring in over three per game.  Bernie Driscoll heads up Kutztown for the 20th season.   

On Deck
Mercyhurst heads back on the road for a matchup with Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday, January 15 for a 7:30 start in Johnstown, Pa.