GAMEDAY CENTRAL
IUP Crimson Hawks (19-7, 15-4  PSAC)
vs. California Vulcans (10-15, 6-13 PSAC)
Saturday, February 17, 2018 | 7:30 p.m.
Indiana, Pa. | Kovalchick Complex

Full Game Notes (PDF)
Stats: IUPstats.com | Stat Broadcast
Radio: WQMU 92.5 FM | u92radio.com | U92.5 Sports App (Android & iPhone)
Video: IUPAthletics.com | IUPAthletics.com/watch
Social Media: Twitter | @IUP_MBB

COMING UP
Wednesday, Feb. 21 vs. Edinboro (7:30 p.m.)
Saturday, Feb. 24 at Seton Hill (3 p.m.)

THE GAME AT A GLANCE
The IUP men's basketball team (19-7, 15-4 PSAC) looks to build on its momentum as they host California (10-15, 6-13 PSAC) Saturday at the Kovalchick Complex. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The Crimson Hawks are coming off of a resounding 102-68 win at Clarion Wednesday night, with three players scoring at least 20 points. The Vulcans defeated Mercyhurst 73-71 in overtime Wednesday, ending a four-game losing streak.

TIPOFF NOTES
>> IUP was the first team in the PSAC West to clinch a conference postseason berth back on Jan. 31; Five of the six playoff spots in the division have been clinched with Cal needing to win out to have a chance
>> A win Saturday would give IUP the program's 10th straight 20-win season under HC Joe Lombardi; The Crimson Hawks are 253-60 (.808) under Lombardi since the start of the 2008-09 season
>> IUP defeated Cal 89-82 in the season's first meeting on Jan. 17; Sr. G Anthony Glover, Jr. (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) scored 32 points
>> The Crimson Hawks sit at No. 5 in the NCAA's first Atlantic Region rankings Wednesday; The Division II field of 64 will be announced Sunday, March 4
>> IUP is 10-3 at home this season, outscoring opponents by nearly 11 points per game, but are coming off of a 65-63 loss to Pitt-Johnstown last weekend
>> Cal is 4-9 in true road games, including losses in three straight (Edinboro, Gannon, Pitt-Johnstown)

SERIES WITH CALIFORNIA
>> The Crimson Hawks lead the all-time series with California 113-72
>> IUP HC Joe Lombardi is 19-6 lifetime against the Vulcans, including 11-3 since the 2011-12 season
>> IUP is 5-2 at home against Cal in the same time frame, with losses in 2013-14 and 2015-16 

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE VULCANS
>> California is 10-15 overall and seventh in the PSAC West with a 6-13 league record
>> The Vulcans are currently one spot out of the final playoff spot in the division, but need to win out to have a chance at their first postseason berth since 2014
>> After a .500 start to the season, the Vulcans had fallen on hard times of late with a 2-7 record in their last nine games; Their 73-71 overtime win over Mercyhurst Wednesday stopped a three-game losing streak
>> Once one of the best offenses in the conference, Cal's scoring has also declined, averaging 67.3 points in the seven games since its last meeting with IUP
>> The Vulcans do feature a balanced scoring attack, with four players averaging in double-figures led by Sr. G Isaiah Lewis at 16.5 PPG

IUP LOOKING TO WIN EIGHTH PSAC WEST REGULAR SEASON TITLE IN LOMBARDI ERA
>> With a 15-4 league record, IUP owns a two-game lead in the PSAC West over second place Gannon (13-6)
>> Heading into Saturday, the Crimson Hawks' "magic number" is two with three games remaining
>> A PSAC West regular season title this year would be IUP's third straight and eighth in 12 seasons under Lombardi (2010-14, 2016-17)
>> IUP is 14-3 in its last 17 games, including a 6-2 home record

DESPITE RECENT LOSS, IUP DEFENSE HAS BEEN ONE OF BEST IN PSAC
>> The Crimson Hawks are currently third in the PSAC in scoring defense, giving up 70.0 points per game
>> In the last six games, only one team has scored more than 70 points against IUP (Gannon, 75)
>> Opponents have also been held to some of the lowest shooting percentages in the conference when facing the Crimson Hawks - IUP is second in defensive field goal percentage (.411) and first in 3-point percentage (.309)

CRIMSON HAWKS ONE OF TOP 3-POINT SHOOTING TEAMS IN REGION
>> IUP leads the PSAC and ranks fourth in the Atlantic Region with a 39.1 3FG% (253-647)
>> The Crimson Hawks' 253 made 3s are second overall in the PSAC; their 9.7 3s made per game are also second
>> They're averaging 11.4 made 3s in the last nine games, including 20 at Clarion and 13 at California
>> Those 20 made 3s at Clarion are the second most in single game IUP history (22 vs. Mansfield, 2000)

GLOVER AMONG THE TOP SCORERS IN THE PSAC
>> Sr. G Anthony Glover, Jr. (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) is having quite a season, leading the Crimson Hawks and ranking 8th in the PSAC with a scoring average of 20.2 PPG
>> During Wednesday's win at Clarion, Glover broke the IUP single season 3-point record with 90 this year; He finished with 27 points at Clarion, making a career-high 7 triples that night
>> He knocked down the game-winning 25-footer in last Wednesday's 67-65 win at Slippery Rock
>> Glover is one of the best pure shooters in the PSAC, ranking 1st with 3.5 made 3FGs per game, 2nd with a 46.2 3FG%, 7th with an 84.9 FT% (73-86), and 15th with a 48.1 FG% (181-376)
>> He's scored 20 points 15 times this year, with three 30-point performances
>> Glover scored a career-high 34 points (8-15 FGs, 6-8 3FGs, 12-12 FTs) in an 89-85 win over Slippery Rock (Jan. 8)
>> Glover's 525 points ranks 20th in single season IUP history - 19. Ashton Smith (Scarborough, ON/West Hill Collegiate) (528, 2011-12), 18. Shawn Dyer (539, 2014-15), 17. Lee McCullough (544, 1970-71), 16. Darryl Webb (Elkridge, Md./Long Reach) (547, 2009-10)

DIAZ IS NOW A 1,000-POINT SCORER, HAS 12 DOUBLE-DOUBLES THIS YEAR
>> Jr. F Jacobo Diaz (Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain/CBA Gran Canaria) joined Glover in the 1,000-point club in the Crimson Hawks' win at Slippery Rock (Jan. 31)
>> Diaz is 2nd on the team with 14.7 PPG and 4th in the PSAC with 9.8 RPG
>> He has 12 double-doubles in 26 games this year, bringing his career total to 28 (14 last year, two as a frosh)
>> Diaz was one of 100 players named to the Bevo Francis Award Watch List, which goes to the top small college player in the nation; It's the second straight year he was named to the watch list
>> Diaz averaged a double-double with 14.4 PPG and 10.0 RPG in 2016-17; He was the first IUP player since Darryl Webb (Elkridge, Md./Long Reach) in 2010-11 (17.4 PPG, 10.1 RPG) to average a double-double for an entire season

LOMBARDI NEARING 1,000 CAREER POINTS, ONE OF TOP ASSIST MEN IN THE PSAC
>> Lombardi enters with 990 career points, just 10 shy of joining Glover and Diaz in the 1,000-point club
>> Lombardi is 3rd in the PSAC with 5.3 assists per game; He's averaging 7.5 assists in his last four games, including a season-high 10 assists against Gannon