ERIE, Pa. - The undefeated and No. 14 ranked Mercyhurst men's basketball team will return to the court for the first time since December 17th when they welcome the Roberts Wesleyan College Redhawks to the Mercyhurst Athletic Center on Tuesday night. 

Game Information
Opponent - Roberts Wesleyan Redhawks
Date - Tuesday, January 19
Time - 7:30 pm 
Location - Erie, Pa. (Mercyhurst Athletic Center)
Series History - Lakers lead, 17-1 / Last Lakers Win: 11/18/19 (Home), 89-56 / Last RWC Win: 12/19/16 (Away), 74-69 
Live Stats
Watch
Lakers Game Notes (PDF)

Last Time Out - LAKERS 73, Ashland 59 (12/17/20)
Mercyhurst came out of the gates strong with Daniel Ogele putting up seven straight points to lead 7-0.  MiyKah McIntosh, Zach McIntire, Michael Bradley, Cameron Gross, Nicholas Lang and Melkisedek Moreaux went on a 20-7 push to stretch the advantage to 24-7.  Ashland hung tough though outscoring the hosts 17-11 the rest of the half to make it 35-24.  The Eagles kept pushing forward early in half two cutting the deficit to 37-33.  However, Ogele, Bradley and Lang answered back with an 11-0 charge bumping the margin to 48-33.  Later in the period Cannady and Lang got the lead over 20 at 61-40 and from there they finished off the 73-59 win.  Cannady led the team with 14 off the bench, while four other Lakers also hit double-figures.  

Scouting the Lakers (3-0)
Hurst is Home
The Lakers are riding a nine-game winning streak inside the Mercyhurst Athletic Center dating back to January 22, 2020 when they suffered a 62-52 setback to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference foe Slippery Rock.  They have won 12 of their last 13 contests at home.  

Balanced Attack
Mercyhurst has four players averaging double-digit points, which includes two players coming off the bench.  They are led by McIntosh with 14 points, while nipping right at his heels is Ogele at 13.  The support continues off the bench with Cannady dropping 11.7, followed by Lang with 10.7.  McIntire and Moreaux are both chipping in over eight per contest as well, with Bradley adding seven.  

Hitting the Glass
The Lakers are averaging 33.0 rebounds per game and are led by Gross with six.  Lang continues to play scrappy on the glass grabbing five, while Joel Ufele and Ogele combining for eight a contest.  Bradley, McIntire, McIntosh and Moreaux are all hauling in over two a game.

Looking for Their Place
Returners Owen Chambers, Jared Fagan, Trey Hoepner, Junior Oscar and Kofi Osei will work hard to find bigger roles within the team this season, while newcomers Tony Henderson, Sean Lang and Aaron Slaughter will attempt to battle for playing time in practice.  

Protect the Ball
In three games so far the Blue and Green are doing an excellent job protecting the ball having only turned it over 30 times for 10.0 average which is good for sixth in the country.  Their season-high in turnovers so far has been 11 in their 87-57 win over then No. 12 Ferris State on December 13th.  

Defense, Defense, Defense
Defense continues to be a hallmark of the Lakers as they have held their opponents to under 70 points in every game so far this season and 33 of their last 40 games.  In 2019-20, Mercyhurst allowed 70+ points six times on November 23, 2019 in an 87-85 win at home versus Millersville, the 83-80 overtime loss at West Chester, the 76-66 setback home against Le Moyne, falling at ESU 83-64, at IUP in a 71-56 loss, and on the road at UPJ in an 82-74 win.  In those games Mercyhurst went 2-4. 

Bench Scoring is Huge
Mercyhurst continues to be strong even outside of their starting five hold a 95-41 (+54) advantage off the bench.

Block Party
Lang leads the team in blocks with two while, Bradley, McIntire, Moreaux, Ogele, and Ufele have all recorded at least one so far this season.

Team Numbers
To start this season the Lakers have averaged 79.3 points per game, while holding their opposition to a nation-best 52.3 ppg for a +27.0 scoring margin which is fourth in the country.  They have shot 51.2% from the floor, while going 83% at the charity line and 43.9% from beyond the arc.  At the defensive end of the floor they have hauled in 33.0 rebounds, forced 9.3 steals and 2.3 blocks per contest.

NCAA Leaders
Bradley is tops in Division II in assist-turnover raito at +17.0 and is 22nd in assists per game (5.7).  

In the Nest (1-0)
Roberts Wesleyan comes to Erie after winning their first game of the season 91-85 at home over Bryant and Stratton College on January 10th.  The Redhawks much like the Lakers relied on a balanced attack to get them over the finish line that day as they put five players in double-figures.  Ja'Kair Sanchez led the way with 19, while Armon Nasseri and Amari Lee were right on his heels with 18 and 17 respectively.  Reggie Clark notched 16, with Isaiah Lewis rounded out the group by adding 11.  On the glass, Nasseri and Lee each grabbed eight, while Clark hauled in six.  On the day they held a slim 35-33 edge in rebounding.  One thing the Lakers can look to take advantage of is the Redhawks can be loose with the ball turning it over 18 times on the afternoon, however they forced 21 out of their opponent which is one thing Merccyhurst prides itself on is protecting the ball.  Head Coach Mark Saladzius is in his third season at the helm of his alma mater.  
  
On Deck
Mercyhurst stays home to entertain Kentucky State University on Saturday afternoon at 3:30pm.

Despite the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference not sponsoring winter sport championships, Mercyhurst remains committed to following NCAA testing protocols and providing safe competitive opportunities for our student-athletes. To provide the safest environment possible for competition, Mercyhurst is building regional schedules against opponents that have also agreed to follow NCAA testing guidelines.

Spectator Policy 2020-21 Season 

Due to the current public health guidelines in the State of Pennsylvania, Mercyhurst University unfortunately will not be able to accommodate any spectators for the start of this season. While we are disappointed to share this news with our loyal supporters, this decision is an important step in continuing to provide a healthy environment for our student athletes, Mercyhurst, and Erie communities. Mercyhurst will continue to remain in communication with local, state, and federal agencies over the course of the season to explore possible fan attendance for this season. 

For all the latest schedule updates and news about the Mercyhurst Lakers you can follow us on all social media outlets Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or visit hurstathletics.com.  The men's basketball team is also found on Twitter.