LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - Mercyhurst men's basketball team head coach
Gary Manchel was named PSAC West Coach of the Year, while sophomore guard
MiyKah McIntosh earned First Team honors with teammate junior forward
Cameron Gross being selected to the Second Team as announced by the League office on Thursday afternoon.
Manchel, has been a fixture in the PSAC postseason since taking over the Lakers program before the start of the 2003-2004 season. He has led Mercyhurst to 11 consecutive PSAC Tournament appearances and two trips to the conference title game in 2016 and 2019 with a victory in the 2016 final over West Chester by a score of 70-67. Manchel took the Lakers on their deepest postseason run just last season as he led them to an Atlantic Regional title and a trip to the Elite Eight where their charge was halted 55-51 by eventual national champion Northwest Missouri State. To end the 2019-2020 regular season he coached the team to nine consecutive victories and the number two seed in the PSAC West. Manchel is 295-188 as the head man at Mercyhurst University and is the winningest coach in Lakers history.
Director of Athletics Brad Davis said of Manchel ""Following last year's historic run to the Elite Eight, the work that Gary and his staff put in over the summer to recruit ten new student-athletes and replace four of last year's starting five underscores his passion and commitment to Mercyhurst University and the men's basketball program." He continued on by saying "with another 20-win season and a return to the NCAA Tournament imminent, Gary has rightfully earned PSAC West Coach of the Year honors."
McIntosh, a native of Pickering, Ontario leads the Lakers in scoring averaging 14.0 points per game and is second on the side in assists with 66. He has reached double-figures in 21 of the 25 games he has played in making 22 starts. McIntosh posted four games with 20-plus points with his season-high coming on the road at Bloomsburg where he dropped 27 in 32 minutes played.
Gross, a native of Chicago, Illinois came to the Lakers after spending two years at Wabash Valley Community College and has been a huge contributor in just one season averaging a team-high 5.8 rebounds per game and is second on the team scoring 10.9 ppg. He has appeared in all 26 games, making 19 starts. Gross is shooting 52.4% from the field, 41.9% beyond the arc, and 72.2% at the foul line. He has reached double-figures in his last three games and hit double-digits in 13 contests. Gross had a double-double in his first game with Mercyhurst posting 21 points and 10 rebounds in the season opener against D'Youville.
On Deck - PSAC Semifinal
The Lakers are back in action on Saturday, March 7th when they head to Shippensburg for the PSAC Semifinal where the home-standing Raiders await.
