GameDay Central
No. 15 IUP Crimson Hawks (15-2, 5-2 PSAC West)
vs. Slippery Rock (15-4, 6-1 PSAC West)
Saturday, January 25, 2014 | 7:30 p.m.
Kovalchick Complex | Indiana, Pa.
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)
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AT A GLANCE
The Crimson Hawks return to the KCAC, hosting the Pride of Slippery Rock in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West battle. IUP comes in with a record of 15-2, 5-2 having won its last game on the road against Edinboro. The Pride enters with a record of 15-4, 6-1 in the midst of a five-game win streak. The Crimson Hawks are ranked 15th in the National Association of Basketball Coaches Top 25 Poll.
THE SERIES
IUP holds the all-time series advantage, 98-74. The Crimson Hawks have won 11 of the last 12 contests, including three postseason victories. Slippery Rock has not won in Indiana since the 1991-92 season. IUP has outscored The Pride by an average of 8.9 points per game in those 12 meetings.
LAST TIME OUT
The Crimson Hawks last battled SRU in the second round of the NCAA tournament at West Liberty University. Led by
Marcel Souberbielle (Montevideo, Uruguay/Uruguayan American School),
Anthony Wells (Cleveland, OH/Shaker Heights) and
Scooter Renkin (Midlothian, VA/Blue Ridge), IUP came away with the 53-50 victory, advancing to the Atlantic Region Championship. Souberbielle finished the game with 15 points and 13 rebounds. The two teams met four times last season, with each team claiming a regular season victory. IUP knocked The Pride out of both the PSAC tournament and the NCAA tournament en route to its third PSAC title in four years.
DEFENSE IS KING
The Crimson Hawks boast the nation's No. 1 scoring defense, holding opponents to just 57.9 points per game. They have never allowed an opponent to score more than 70 points and have held opponents to under 60 points in 11 of their 17 games. The Crimson Hawks have the PSAC's top three-point field goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to convert on just 26.0 percent of shots from behind the arc. They also have the conference's second-ranked field goal defense, holding opponents to a percentage of just 37.7 from the floor.
ON THE UPSWING
IUP is back on track after falling in two straight games to collect its first losses of the season. The nation's 15th-ranked team opened up the 2013-14 season with 14 straight wins before falling to Gannon on the road and California (Pa.) at the KCAC. Their 69-66 victory over Edinboro put a PSAC West leading 15th tally in the win column.
ROCK SOLID DEFENSE
Slippery Rock also enters the game with a decent defense, ranking fourth in the PSAC in scoring defense, allowing 63.4 points per game. They're holding opponents to a field goal percentage of 37.0, first in the PSAC.
YOU CAN DO IT YOU CAN DO IT
With 970 total points for his career, Sr. F
Marcel Souberbielle (Montevideo, Uruguay/Uruguayan American School) is inching closer to the 1,000-point milestone. He needs just 30 more points to join the 1,000-point club, an achievement he's on pace to hit against Pitt-Johnstown on Wednesday.
SCOUTING SLIPPERY ROCK
Slippery Rock comes in sitting atop the PSAC West having won five straight and seven of their last eight. They lead the conference in field goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to shoot just 37.0 percent from the floor. They're also the PSAC's No. 1 rebounding team, entering the game with a rebounding margin of +12.0. Led by 15.9 points from Sr. C Maurice Lewis-Briggs, the team has three players averaging double figures. Defensively, they struggle forcing turnovers (only 11.0 per game) and average just 5.05 steals per game.
CRIMSON HAWKS BY THE NUMBERS
|
57.9 |
IUP's scoring defense this season, a mark that is good for first in the nation. |
|
24 |
The number of consecutive home victories the Crimson Hawks have over Slippery Rock. |
|
3 |
IUP's spot in the PSAC West standings. They sit behind first place Slippery Rock and second place Gannon. |
|
53.2 |
The field goal percentage of Sr. G Mathis Keita (Thionville, France/Insep), 5th in the conference. He's connected on 91-of-172 shots from the floor. |
|
2.2 |
The average number of steals from Jr. G Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter) in each of the team's 16 games, first in the PSAC. |
|
3.9 |
The average number of assists from Jr. G Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter) in each of the team's 16 games this season, second in the PSAC. |
|
970 |
The number of points Sr. F Marcel Souberbielle (Montevideo, Uruguay/Uruguayan American School) has for his career, just 30 points shy of 1,000. |
|
41 |
The number of conference victories IUP has had since the 2010-11 season, tops in the PSAC. |
|
3 |
The number of PSAC championships the Crimson Hawks have won in the last four years. |
