Erie, Pa. - Mercyhurst men's basketball has just two games left in their regular season with both of them coming this week. They finish out the month of February on Wednesday the 29th when they go on the road to see Clarion in a 7:30 p.m. showdown before hosting Slippery Rock on Saturday, March 2nd, at 3:00 p.m. with the team set to honor their senior class prior to the game.

A Look Back

Mercyhurst is 13-15 to this point in the season with a 9-11 record in the PSAC and hope to reach .500 with a pair of wins this week. The team began their year in Lakeland, Fl. where they took part in the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic before coming back closer to home, playing two games at Clarion where they defeated both Frostburg and Bluefield State. The Lakers have fought hard all season long and have had some major wins including a 93-85 double overtime win over IUP in early February which gave Head Coach Gary Manchel the 500th win of his career. More recently, the team has fallen on hard times with one win in their last four tries with two of those contests coming against top 15 teams.

Laker Leaders

Jeff Planutis currently leads the team in points per game with 17.8 with that mark being good enough for 10th in the PSAC. Planutis' contributions go beyond his scoring ability as he is also first in steals per game (1.5) and blocks per game (0.4). Aidan Reichert has led the way on the boards with 6.2 per game while Alexander Parks' 2.6 assists is tied for the most alongside the aforementioned Planutis. Luke Triggs has been the most efficient from the field to this point, shooting 53.9% overall with Sean Fullerton's mark of 43.5% from deep being best on the team.

Scouting Clarion

The Golden Eagles are 7-19 to this point in the season with a 5-10 record in the PSAC. The team has had a hard time of late as they have lost each of their last four games and 11 of their last 12. Their home floor has not provided the sort of spark they have hoped for to this point in th year with the team going 3-10 on their own court with their last victory inside Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium coming against UPJ on February 7th. Clarion has relied on the efforts of Cam Kearney this year with the sophomore averaging a team-high 16.6 points per game while shooting 43.6% from the floor, 35.1% from deep, and 80.4% from the free throw line.

Scouting the Rock

Slippery Rock holds a record of 14-12 to this point in the year, going 12-8 in the conference. The Rock has found a rhythm here of late with wins in each of their last three games including a 97-94 overtime win over Clarion on the 21st of the month. While the team has been nearly flawless inside their friendly confines it has been a different story when they go on the road, holding a 3-11 record. Austin Maceo has been the driving force in many of their games as he leads the team in points per game (17.5) while also having 36 steals and 29 blocks to his line, helping him be named the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week multiple times this year.

Next Game

Mercyhurst has cemented their spot in the PSAC Playoffs and now await their opponent. As it currently stands, the team is the sixth seed in the West and would go on the road to see the third seeded Indiana (Pa.) with their matchup in the first round taking place on March 4th.