GAMEDAY CENTRAL
(1/3) IUP Crimson Hawks (15-1, 10-1 PSAC)
at Clarion Golden Eagles (7-11, 1-10 PSAC)
Saturday, January 26, 2019 | 1 p.m.
Clarion, Pa. | Student Recreation Center
*Rankings reflect WBCA/D2SIDA Top 25 Polls

HOW TO FOLLOW
Stats: ClarionGoldenEagles.com | Stretch Internet
Watch: ClarionGoldenEagles.com | Stretch Internet
Video App: PSAC Sports Network
Radio: WQMU 92.5 FM | u92radio.com
Audio App: U92.5 Sports App (Android & iPhone)
Social Media: Twitter | @IUP_WBB

GAME PREVIEWS
IUP Game Notes (PDF)
Clarion W. Basketball Home Page

COMING UP
Wednesday, January 30 at Seton Hill, 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 2 vs. Mercyhurst, 5:30 p.m.

THE GAME AT A GLANCE
No. 1-ranked IUP women's basketball (15-1, 10-1) looks to rebound from their first loss of the season when they travel to Clarion (7-11, 1-10 PSAC) Saturday. Tipoff at the school's Student Recreation Center is 1 p.m. The Crimson Hawks dropped a rivalry matchup to No. 13 California 61-56 Wednesday night, its first loss since last March's national semifinals. The Golden Eagles have lost eight straight, including a 92-45 loss to Edinboro Wednesday. 

TIPOFF NOTES
>> Sr. F Brittany Robinson scored a team-high 16 points on 8-9 FGs in the loss to the Vulcans. The Crimson Hawks outshot Cal 45 pct. to 39 pct., but had 21 turnovers. The Vulcans also had a 17-26 to 4-5 edge at the FT line. 
>> The loss ended IUP's 15-game win streak to start the season, which is tied for the second best start in IUP history. IUP started last year 15-0 and went 16-0 to start the 1999-00 season. 
>> The 56 points scored by the Crimson Hawks was their lowest since finishing with 53 in a loss at Cal last January.
>> IUP trailed Cal 35-30 at halftime Wednesday. It was IUP's first halftime deficit in a regular season game since trailing Bowie State 26-25 Dec. 7, 2017. The Crimson Hawks won that game 61-54. 
>> The Crimson Hawks are now 4-1 playing as the No. 1 team in Division II. 
>> IUP is 6-0 on the road this year with an average scoring margin of +29.5 points. 
>> Five of IUP's road wins have come against PSAC opponents, including three 80-point performances. 
>> IUP is shooting 48 pct. from the field and averaging 80.7 points on the road. 
>> The Crimson Hawks are 56-23 all-time against Clarion, including a 25-3 mark since the 2004-05 season. 
>> IUP HC Tom McConnell is 9-1 against Clarion, with that loss coming at Clarion (64-59) during 2016-17.
>> The Crimson Hawks faced Clarion the Saturday after losing their first game of last year (also to Cal), defeating the Golden Eagles 87-42. IUP shot 61 percent that day and forced 19 turnovers. 

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE GOLDEN EAGLES
>> The Golden Eagles are 7-11 overall and at the bottom of the PSAC West standings with a 1-10 league record. 
>> They have lost eight straight games, all in conference, with their last win coming at Felecian 67-61 on Dec. 15. 
>> Clarion has a -16.0 scoring margin during its losing streak, including a 47-point loss to Edinboro at home. 
>> Clarion is 4-6 at home this year, with wins coming over PSU Greater Allegheny (77-23), Wilmington (72-65), Pitt-Bradford (64-36) and Mansfield (80-58). 

CRIMSON HAWKS RANKED NO. 1 IN WBCA TOP 25
>> The Crimson Hawks remain No. 1 in the WBCA Coaches' Top 25 for the third straight week.
>> This marks the first time in program history that IUP is the top-ranked team in Division II. 
>> The Crimson Hawks are 4-1 as the No. 1 team including three road wins (Mercyhurst, Slippery Rock, ESU).
>> IUP was ranked No. 5 in the WBCA preseason poll, moving up to No. 3 on Nov. 27 and staying there for two weeks before its No. 2 ranking on Dec. 11 and first ever No. 1 ranking on Jan. 8. 
>> The Crimson Hawks are ranked No. 3 in this week's D2SIDA Media Top 25, moving up from No. 4 last week. 
>> They are also the No. 1 ranked team in the media's Atlantic Region poll, garnering all six first place votes. 

IUP IS ONE OF THE TOP SCORING TEAMS IN DIVISION II
>> The Crimson Hawks lead the PSAC and are ranked 11th in Division II with a scoring average of 81.1 PPG.
>> They have scored 80 points eight times and 90 or more points five times, including two 100-point outings.
>> Those 100-point games - 101 vs. Ohio Valley and 100 vs. Cheyney - are the 14th and 15th 100-point performances in program history. 
>> The 95 points against Alderson Broaddus is the 2nd most by IUP in a season opener (96 vs. Ohio Valley, 2002).
>> Three players average double-figures in scoring (Appleby 17.8, Wolosik 13.0, Robinson 10.9) while all 13 who have seen the court average better than 2.0 points.

THE IUP DEFENSE ALSO AMONG THE BEST IN THE NATION
>> IUP leads Division II in 3FG% defense (.233), ranks 4th in FG% defense (.337), 5th in scoring defense (51.8), and 33rd in steals per game (10.6).
>> IUP has held opponents to 50 or fewer points seven times, including a season-low 32 points to Shippensburg. That's tied for the 10th fewest allowed in program history and the least given up since the 2011-12 season.
>> IUP has forced at least 13 turnovers in all 16 games, including eight games of 20-plus. 
>> IUP has faced nine of the top 10 individual scorers in the PSAC, holding them to an average of 6.2 points below their current averages. Ariel Jones (Shippensburg) averages 25.7 points but was held to just 10 on December 8. 

CAROLYN APPLEBY IS IUP'S TOP SCORING THREAT
>> Sr. G Carolyn Appleby ranks 9th in the PSAC with 17.8 PPG. As one of the top pure shooters in the league, she has a 42.9 FG%, 86.4 FT% and has 24 3-pointers. 
>> She has seven 20-point games hitting the mark five times in the last nine outings. 
>> Appleby is averaging 19.0 PPG against PSAC teams, including a season-high 25 at East Stroudsburg.

LAUREN WOLOSIK IS ON A HOT STREAK
>> R-Sr. G Lauren Wolosik was named PSAC West Athlete of the Week Tuesday after averaging 26.0 PPG, 6.5 APG, 3.5 SPG with a 74.1 FG% and 9 3-pointers in IUP wins over East Stroudsburg and Edinboro. 
>> She scored a career-high 33 points on 14-18 FGs and dished out 10 assists in the win over Edinboro. 
>> In seven games since returning from injury, she's averaging 13.9 PPG, 7.1 APG, 3.2 SPG with a 53.6 FG% and 18 made 3-pointers.  

BRITTANY ROBINSON CONTRIBUTES ON BOTH ENDS OF THE FLOOR
>> Sr. F Brittany Robinson is 3rd in IUP history with 145 career blocks, including a team-high 16 this year. 
>> She's 3rd on the team in scoring at 10.9 PPG, with three games of at least 18 points.
>> Robinson's 57.1 career FG% is the best mark in program history. She's shooting 58.3 pct. this season. 
 
LEXI GRIGGS PROVING VALUABLE IN HER FIRST YEAR AS A STARTER
>> Jr. F Lexi Griggs is 4th on the team in scoring (9.8 PPG), 2nd in rebounding (6.5 RPG) and 3rd in assists (34).
>> She also 2nd on the team with a 55.5 FG% (71-128) and 13 blocks. 
>> Griggs has three double-doubles this season, including two in the last six games. She posted a career-high 17 points in the win over Pitt-Johnstown and had a personal-best 12 boards at Slippery Rock.