Erie, Pa. - Mercyhurst men's basketball comes off of one of their better offensive performances of the season, scoring 88 against Pitt-Johnstown this past Saturday and hope to carry that into their contest against the Crimson Hawks this Wednesday, February 7th, at 7:30 p.m. The Lakers host IUP in that contest as they look to get back .500 on the season while Head Coach Gary Manchel chases history.

Where They Stand

Mercyhurst is 11-12 on the year to this points with a 7-8 mark in the PSAC. That record puts them in in fifth in the PSAC West, tied with Seton Hill who is 12-9 on the year overall. Gannon currently holds the top spot at 19-2, winning each of their last eight games. Cal (Pa.) comes in behind them in second with an overall record of 18-3 while IUP rounds out the top three at 14-6.

Chasing History 

Head Coach Gary Manchel looks to make history in his game against the Crimson Hawks on Wednesday as he is just one win away from the 500th of his coaching career. To this point, Manchel has amassed a record of 499-341 with 369 of those wins coming on the sidelines for Mercyhurst. He has won 20 or more games 10 times over the course of his career with four of those instances coming in the last five years. He has been at his best of late as he has a .783 winning percentage since the beginning of the 2018-19 season, going 108-30 in that time and making the NCAA Tournament on four occasions. Coach Manchel has already established himself as one of the better coaches in Division II history and looks to add another mileston to his laundry list of accomplishments.

Coming in Hot

Freshman Alexander Parks comes off the best game of his campaign, scoring a season-high 23 points on a 9-17 shooting effort against Pitt-Johnstown this past Saturday. The Laker newcomer has hit his stride here of late and looks to continue that strong run of play as the year continues to come to a close. In his last six games, Parks has averaged 11 points with three double-digit performances in that time while shooting 24-50 (48%) from the field and going 12-30 (40%) from deep. His scoring is not the only that that he has done well as he had 30 assists in his last six games compared to just 18 turnovers while adding eight steals to his line over that stretch, showing growth in a variety of areas.

Scouting IUP

The Crimson Hawks are 14-6 to this point in the season overall while holding a record of 11-3 in the PSAC. They have been playing some of their best basketball here of late as they are 7-2 since the calendar flipped to 2024 with their two losses coming at the hands of ranked Gannon and Cal (Pa.). In the team's last contest, they dispatched of Clarion on January 31st in a game where the Golden Eagles fought hard, falling by only six, 78-72. IUP has two players tied for the team-lead in points per game as both Ethan Porterfield and Gavin Clarke average 17.5 points per game, making for a dynamic duo. Porterfield shoots 44.8% from the field while knocking down 36.7% of his threes and is leading the team in rebounding with 9.1 per game. Clarke is no slouch himself on the boards with just under seven rebounds per game while leading the team in free throws made with 59.

Next Game

The Lakers will get some time off before their next contest as they do not compete again until Wednesday, February 14th. Mercyhurst goes on the road for that game as they make the short trip to see Edinboro in a 7:30 p.m. matchup before a bout with Seton Hill on the 17th inside the Mercyhurst Athletic Center at 3:00 p.m.