GameDay Central
IUP Crimson Hawks (15-8, 6-7 PSAC West)
vs. Mercyhurst Lakers (6-17, 4-9 PSAC West)
Wednesday, February 19, 2014 | 5:30 p.m.
Kovalchick Complex | Indiana, PA
Complete Game Notes (.pdf)
Watch: IUP-TV | IUP.NMTVSports.com
Listen: WQMU 92.5 FM | U92radio.com
Live Stats: IUPAthletics.com | Fan Stats | Media Stats
Tickets: Comcast TIX | comcasttix.com
PSAC/National Coverage
PSAC Statistics | PSAC Week 12 Notes | WBCA Top 25
Other Links
IUP Schedule | IUP Roster | Mercyhurst Schedule | Mercyhurst Roster
AT A GLANCE
Entering the final stretch of the regular season, the Crimson Hawks are in a battle for playoff positioning when they host Mercyhurst on Wednesday at the KCAC. IUP currently holds the tiebreaker for 4th in the PSAC West over Pitt-Johnstown, as both are 6-7 in the division. The Lakers are also fighting for a postseason berth and at 4-9 are one of three teams with four divisional wins. The Crimson Hawks have dropped two in a row while Mercyhurst has lost six consecutive games.
THE SERIES
IUP has dominated the series with Mercyhurst with an all-time record of 16-4. However, the Lakers got the best of the Crimson Hawks with a 73-64 win in Erie back on Jan. 11. That loss for the Crimson Hawks broke a streak of 12 straight wins dating back to 1997-98, which also included three victories a season ago.
WELCOME BACK
Jr. G
Lindsay Stamp (Erie, Pa. /Mercyhurst Prep) returned to the court last weekend to score a game-high 18 points against No. 3 Gannon. Missing six games due to injury, Stamp finished 7-15 from the floor, connecting on 4-9 from 3-point range, while adding 5 rebounds, 3 steals and a block in 30 minutes off the bench.
FAMILIAR FACES
Transferring from Mercyhurst prior to last season, Stamp has played in five games against her former teammates. She's averaging 11.8 ppg and 6.3 rpg in those contests, including 20 points and 14 rebounds in the first round of the PSAC tournament last year. She also has 11 steals, 7 assists and 5 blocks.
RAINING THREES
IUP's 39.0 3FG% is 5th in all of Division II (1st, Saginaw Valley, 40.1 pct). Five regular players are shooting at least 39.8 pct from long-range while three of those are qualified and individually rank in the top seven of the PSAC. The Crimson Hawks are currently on pace to break program records in 3FG% (35.8 - 2009-10) and 3FGM (184 - 2004-05).
SUCCESS AT THE LINE
As a team, the Crimson Hawks have been hot from the foul line over the last four games, shooting a combined 50-63 for a 79.4 FT%. The most successful of those games came against Gannon, with IUP hitting 11-12 from the line. Sr. G
Talen Watson (Odenton, MD/Arundel) and Jr. G
Leslie Stapleton (Indiana, Pa. /Indiana) have been the biggest contributors during that span. Watson has gone 19-20 (95.0 pct) while Stapleton as made 15-15 in those four games.
SCOUTING MERCYHURST
The Lakers have gone just 2-7 since the victory in the first meeting back on Jan. 11. Those two victories came against Clarion and Slippery Rock, which are a combined 6-20 in divisional play. Mercyhurst is led by two possible All-PSAC West selections in So. G Adrienne Kloecker and Sr. F Alayna White. Kloecker has eight 20-point games and White has nine double-doubles. The Lakers are 1st in the PSAC with a +5.8 rebounding margin, outrebounding the Crimson Hawks by 16 back in January.
