Erie, Pa. - After three consecutive wins of 25 points or more, Mercyhurst Men's Basketball looks to remain hot as they are set to play two more home games in 2022. The Lakers get back to their conference schedule with Shippensburg coming to town on Sunday, December 18th, with Lock Haven to follow on Monday with tip-off set for 3:00 p.m. in both games.
1. Looking Back
Mercyhurst has played the Raiders almost dead even to this point in the two team's history as the Lakers are 6-5 against them all time. Mercyhurst snapped a three-game skid against Shippensburg last time out with an 80-67 win in a game that saw five Lakers score double-digits. Mercyhurst has not had a home court advantage against the Raiders as they hold a 1-3 record inside their friendly confines with their one win coming way back in 2010. The Lakers have fared better against Lock Haven as they have a 10-3 record against the Bald Eagles and are 4-1 in home contests.
2. Major Milestone
MiyKah McIntosh reached a monumental point in his career during the team's last game as he scored 16 points to give him 1,411 for his career as a Laker. That mark is good enough to move him to fifth on the all-time scoring list at Mercyhurst, surpassing Justin Shouse who scored 1,405. McIntosh is in his fifth season as a member of Mercyhurst's team and has led the club in scoring in each of the last three seasons, averaging 12.6 points per contest for his career.
3. Finishing Strong
The Lakers have made all the right adjustments during their halftime breaks so far this season as they have grown accustomed to building large leads in the second half. Mercyhurst outscored West Chester in their PSAC opener by 20 in the final 20 minutes for their largest second half advantage of the season. So far in the 2022-23 campaign, the Lakers have outscored teams 264-201 in the second half for an average margin of 12.6 points per game, proving to be a very tough team to beat down the stretch.
4. Giving Up Nothing
Coach Manchel's defense has held strong so far this season with them proving to be one of the tougher ones in the conference and nation. The Lakers have given up the second-fewest points of any team in the PSAC at 61.8 per game while their opponent field goal percentage is second (39.0) and their opponent three-point percentage (27.4) is third. Their points allowed and opponent three-point percentage both rank in the top 15 nationally while their opponent field goal percentage is just outside the top 20 at 21.
5. Scouting the Opponents
Shippensburg comes into Sunday's contest 4-4 on the season and 2-0 in conference play, tied for first in the PSAC East. They lost to Fairmont State in their last game in an 86-85 overtime defeat to finish off a four-game home stand. They have two of the better scorers in the PSAC in Rashon Johnson and Carlos Carter who are both averaging over 17 points a game while ranking 10th and 11th in the conference in scoring.
Lock Haven is currently 6-1 overall and 2-0 in conference play, riding a four-game win streak with the last three wins coming by double-digits. The Bald Eagles have grabbed conference wins in each of their last two contests with a 74-55 win over Seton Hill and an 89-71 victory over Cal (Pa.) and look to improve to 3-0 on Sunday when they play Edinboro on the road.
