ERIE, Pa. - The fourth-ranked Mercyhurst men's basketball team will look to match the best start to a season in program history at 11-0 which was set back during the 2008-09 season when they head down State Street for Round Two of the Porreco Pride of Erie Cup against the Golden Knights of Gannon University on Saturday afternoon.

Game Information
Opponent - Gannon University Golden Knights
Date - Saturday, February 27
Time - 1 pm
Location - Erie, Pa. (Hammermill Center)
Series History - Gannon leads, 54-27 / Last Lakers Win: 2/20/21 (Home), 83-61 / Last Gannon Win: 2/17/18 (Away), 58-50   
Fan Note - Fans will not be allowed inside the Hammermill Center.
Live Stats
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Lakers Notes (PDF)

Last Time Out - LAKERS 83, Gannon 61 (2/20/21)
Mercyhurst claimed their fifth straight Pride of Erie trophy with an 83-61 victory last Saturday in their final home game of the season.  The Lakers used first-half runs of 13-0 and 11-3 to build up a 15-point halftime cushion, and never looked back as the largest lead was 29 (79-50) before finishing off the game.  MiyKah McIntosh earned his second straight Game Changer Award in the series notching a game-high 20 points and team-high five boards.  Steve Cannady (16), Melkisedek Moreaux (12) and Zach McIntire (10) also joined him in double-figures. 

Scouting the Lakers (10-0)
Hurst is Home
The Lakers are now riding a 14-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 17 of their last 18 contests at home.    

Pursuit of History
This year's team is now just one win away from matching the best start to a season in program history at 11-0 which was set back in 2008-09. That team began the year 11-0, but ultimately went 5-11 down the stretch for a 16-11 finish.    

Balanced Attack
Another strong double-figure effort by Cannady off the bench has kept him in the top-three of Lakers scoring with he and Daniel Ogele dropping 11 a game.  McIntosh still paces the team at 14.9 points.  Zach McIntire lands just off the mark netting 9.9, while Michael Bradley and Nicholas Lang both chip in eight.  Cameron Gross and Moreaux add a combined 14 points to the attack.  

Hitting the Glass
Mercyhurst sits 21st-nationally in rebound margin at +6.2, out rebounding the opposition 36.1 to 29.9.  Gross and Ogele lead the team averaging five each.  Lang as well as McIntire haul in 3.7 per game.  

Protect the Ball
On the season the Green and Blue have given the ball away just 107 times which ranks 27th in the country.  However, their +10.2 turnover margin and 20.9 turnovers forced per game has them as the top team in Division II.   

Defense, Defense, Defense
For the first time since January 15, 2020 against Pitt-Johnstown (82-74 win) the Lakers allowed more than 70 points to an opponent on January 29th giving up 75 to AIC in their 87-75 victory.  Defense continues to be a hallmark of the Lakers as they have held their opponents to under 70 points in eight of nine contests this season and 39 of their last 47 games.  In 2019-20, Mercyhurst allowed 70+ points six times and posted a 2-4 mark in those games.   

Bench Scoring is Huge
The Lakers outscored the Golden Knights in their previous meeting 39-24 off the bench, which increases their bench scoring margin to a +142 (332-190). 

Block Party
The trio of Bradley, Lang and Ogele have four blocks each to lead the team.  Moreaux has added three, while Cannady, McIntire and Ufele have combined for six.  Jeff Planutis and Gross have recorded one apiece.  

Team Numbers
Mercyhurst is averaging 85.4 points per game, while holding their opposition to a nation-best 55.2 ppg for a +30.2 scoring margin which is tops in that category.  They have shot 51.2% from the floor, while going 75.6% at the charity line and 36.5% from beyond the arc.  At the defensive end of the floor they have hauled in 36.1 rebounds, 11.3 steals which is thrid nationally, while adding 2.3 blocks per contest.

NCAA Leaders
Bradley is tops in Division II in assist-turnover ratio at +7.14 and is 35th in assists per game (5.0).  Lang ranks 33rd in steals per game at 2.10, followed by Bradley with 1.80 for 74th.

Milestone for Manchel
With the win over Roberts Wesleyan College on January 19th head coach Gary Manchel became the 39th coach in Division II Men's Basketball history to win 300 games at their current institution.

Pole Position
The Lakers now sit at their highest mark in program history within the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division II poll with their No. 4 ranking, while in the D2SIDA Media poll they held firm at 16th.  

Postseason Outlook
The Lakers need to reach the magic number of 11 games played in order to be eligible for a potential NCAA Tournament birth.  After Saturday the Green and Blue have just one game left at Clarion University next Wednesday night.  A change to this year's tournament setup is that only six teams will qualify for the Atlantic Regional which is a change from eight.  The conferences to be considered will be the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, Mountain East Conference and the three PSAC independents Mercyhurst, Clarion and Gannon.  The NCAA put out their current list of teams being considered in alphabetical order earlier this week, which you can find here.     

At the Castle (9-2)
Gannon is in the midst of a three-game week after splitting a pair of home contests with Salem University winning 72-63 on Tuesday, before falling by the slimmest of margins 54-53 a day later.  Ike Herster recorded double-digits in both games, while Chris Clancy and Ian McNeill reached double-figures on Tuesday.  On the season, Clancy and Herster have led the Golden Knights charge averaging 14.0 and 13.6 points respectively.  Kevin Dodds is third with 8.5 points.  He leads the team on the glass grabbing 6.7 boards, followed by four each from Cyril Ogbuagu and Amani Walker.  As a group they are shooting 46.8% in the field, 39.9% from downtown, but only 63.3% on the line.  The Golden Knights hold a +13.4 scoring margin netting 78 ppg and allowing just 64.6 to the opponents.  They rank inside the Top-10 nationally in field-goal percentage defense (3rd), rebound margin (4th) and total rebounds per game (5th).  Head Coach Kelvin Jefferson leads the charge for the second season in a row.                   
  
On Deck
Mercyhurst will conclude a very unique 2020-21 regular season on Wednesday, March 3rd at 7pm when they visit Clarion University.  

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.