GameDay Central 
No. 16 IUP Crimson Hawks (20-3, 14-3 PSAC) 
at Mercyhurst Lakers (16-7, 13-5 PSAC) 
Wednesday, February 11, 2015 | 7:30 p.m. 
Mercyhurst Athletic Center | Erie, Pa.  

IUP Game Notes (PDF)
Live Stats: IUPAthletics.com | Fan Stats | Media Stats
Live Audio: WQMU 92.5 FM | u92radio.com

AT A GLANCE
The 16th-ranked Crimson Hawks start a two-game northwest road swing this week when they head to Erie to face Mercyhurst on Wednesday night. IUP looks to remain at the top of the PSAC West standings and carry a five-game win streak into the midweek matchup. The Lakers have lost two of their last three, but are still just a game-and-a-half behind IUP in the division.

LAST TIME OUT
IUP moved into first place in the PSAC West with a 64-54 win over Gannon at home on Saturday night. The Crimson Hawks forced Gannon into 25 turnovers and used a 10-2 run late in the second half to pull away for the win. Sr. G Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter) had a game-high 18 points and 7 assists. 

WHAT'S NEXT
The Crimson Hawks are back on the road on Saturday as they play a rare afternoon game at Edinboro. The Fighting Scots gave IUP fits in the first matchup of the season, a game won by the Crimson Hawks 79-69 on Jan. 14. 

REDEMPTION: ROUND 2
The Crimson Hawks three losses this year have all come to divisional foes - Mercyhurst, Gannon and Slippery Rock. IUP had its first round of revenge on Saturday with the 10-point win over Gannon with Mercyhurst next on the list. The Crimson Hawks host SRU next Wednesday. 

IUP IN THE POLLS
The Crimson Hawks moved up two spots to No. 16 in this week's NABC coaches' top 25 and have now been ranked in all 11 coaches polls released this season. They also moved back into the D2SIDA media top 25, showing up at No. 19 this week. 

REGIONAL RANKINGS
IUP moved up to No. 2 in the latest D2SIDA Atlantic Region rankings, trailing West Liberty and its four 1st place votes. This regional media poll is new for this year and is voted on by a group of sports information directors in each NCAA Division II region. The NCAA will release its regional rankings - which determine the teams that make the field of 64 - on Feb. 18. 

QUEST FOR THE WEST
Five games remain on the schedule for the Crimson Hawks as they battle for the PSAC West title. IUP currently holds a 0.5 game lead over Gannon and a 1.5 game lead over Mercyhurst for 1st in the division. In addition to the Lakers on Wednesday, IUP's remaining schedule also features Slippery Rock, which is 4th in the division. 

CLOSING IN ON 1000
Sr. G Devante Chance (Philadelphia, Pa. /Electrical & Technology Charter) heads into Wednesday's game with 996 career points, just 4 away from becoming the 29th player in program history to reach the 1000 point milestone.  

THE 1000/400 CLUB
With his scoring milestone in sight, Chance will become just the fourth player in IUP history to score 1000 points and dish out 400 assists in his career. The other players are Ashton Smith (1635, 456), Eddie Peterson (1621, 425) and Yancey Taylor (1257, 406). 

DISHING IT OUT
Arguably the best point guard in the Atlantic Region, Chance is currently 2nd in the PSAC and 14th in Division II with 6.0 apg this year. He's moved into 3rd place all-time in IUP history with 433 career assists and is now just 24 shy of besting Smith's (2008-12) program record of 456.   

PSAC WEST ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Gr. G Shawn Dyer (Marion, Ohio/Marion Harding) was named the PSAC West Athlete of the Week on Monday after averaging 18.5 ppg and 6.5 rpg in IUP's wins over Cal and Gannon. Dyer shot 54.5 pct from the field and 46.2 pct from 3-point range & went 7-8 from the foul line. 

HIS NEW LEAGUE
Dyer has found success playing against the PSAC, scoring 20+ points four times in his last 10 league games. He's averaging 13.9 ppg and 5.5 rpg with shooting averages of 47.2 pct (FGs), 43.6 pct (3FGs) and 73.6 pct (FTs) against PSAC teams - All of those marks are improvements on his overall season statistics. 

GETTING OFFENSIVE
Jr. F Tevin Hanner (Baltimore, Md./Milford Mill) has played with defensive energy all season long, but he's also been a scoring threat of late. Hanner is averaging 9.4 ppg and shooting 63.8 pct in his last 9 games, reaching double-figures five times, including 14 against Seton Hill on Jan. 31. 

SHOOTING THE LIGHTS OUT
IUP is the top overall shooting team in the PSAC, leading the league in field goal pct (48.7) and free throw pct (76.8) and is 2nd in 3-point field goal pct (39.6). Nine times the Crimson Hawks have shot at least 50 pct in a game and 12 times they've converted 77 pct or better from the foul line. 

DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Crimson Hawks' defense has been on fire in the last three games, allowing an average of just 54.7 points to Seton Hill, Cal and Gannon. Those teams combined to shoot just 40.4 pct against IUP, which also forced 50 turnovers and had 24 steals and 9 blocks in those games. For the year, the Crimson Hawks are 2nd in the PSAC and 5th in Division II with 61.0 ppg allowed. 

SCOUTING MERCYHURST
Mercyhurst is another strong defensive team that also struggles to score, as the Lakers rank 3rd in the PSAC with 61.8 points given up per game and 16th with just 65.8 points scored per contest. Mercyhurst hasn't led an opponent reach 60 points in each of the last five games and a team hasn't scored more than 63 points against the Lakers since Millersville on Dec. 20 (87 points). Conversely, just two players average double-figures in scoring and the Lakers haven't had anyone score more than 13 points in a game since Jr. G Damon Jones came off the bench to score 17 against UPJ on Jan. 17. Jones leads the team with 10.7 ppg while R-Jr. Gerrae Williams scores 10.4 ppg.