GAMEDAY CENTRAL
(2/3) IUP Crimson Hawks (25-2, 18-2 PSAC)
vs. Seton Hill Griffins (9-17, 7-13 PSAC)
Saturday, March 2, 2019 | 7:30 p.m.
Indiana, Pa. | Kovalchick Complex (4,000)
*Rankings reflect NABC/D2SIDA Top 25 Polls

HOW TO FOLLOW
Stats: IUPAthletics.com | Statbroadcast
Watch: IUPathletics.com/watch | IUP-TV
Video App: PSAC Sports Network
Radio: WQMU 92.5 FM | u92radio.com
Audio App: U92.5 Sports App (Android & iPhone)
Social Media: Twitter | @IUP_MBB

GAME PREVIEWS
IUP Game Notes (PDF)
Seton Hill M. Basketball Home Page

COMING UP
Wednesday, March 6 PSAC Quarterfinals, 7:30 p.m.

THE GAME AT A GLANCE
No. 2 IUP men's basketball (25-2, 18-2 PSAC) wraps up its regular season schedule with a Senior Night matchup against Seton Hill (9-17, 7-13 PSAC) Saturday at the Kovalchick Complex. Tipoff is 7:30 p.m. The Crimson Hawks wrapped up their ninth PSAC West regular season title in the last 10 seasons with an 87-59 road win over Edinboro Wednesday. Seton Hill enters the weekend coming off an 89-76 home loss to Cal U this week. 

TIPOFF NOTES
>> Jr. G Malik Miller tied career-highs with 26 points and 6 3-pointers in the win at Edinboro. Sr. F Jacobo Diaz nearly recorded a triple double with 16 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists in just 27 minutes. 
>> The win also gave IUP HC Joe Lombardi the 300th of his career. He's the fastest PSAC coach to that milestone.
>> The Crimson Hawks hit a season-high 16 3-pointers on the night and shot 52.3 percent from the field.
>> IUP will honor its six seniors Saturday before tipoff - Greg Bearer, Willem Brandwijk, Jacobo Diaz, Todd Fetsko, Marko Krivacevic and Dante Lombardi
>> This group has helped IUP to a 96-22 overall record with four straight PSAC West regular season titles and are on the verge of a third NCAA tournament appearance. 
>> The Crimson Hawks have won four straight regular season division titles dating back to the 2015-16 season. They also won five straight from 2010-14.
>> IUP is 14-1 at home this year with an average scoring margin of +18.2.
>> Lombardi is 14-1 lifetime against Seton Hill including an 8-0 record at home. Lombardi and the Crimson Hawks have won five straight overall in the series with the last loss on February 24, 2016 in Greensburg (91-83).
>> IUP won this year's first matchup by a score of 85-72 Jan. 30 on the road. Five players scored in double-figures, with Sr. G Dante Lombardi getting a team-high 23 points. 

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE GRIFFINS
>> Seton Hill is 9-17 overall and is currently 6th in the PSAC west standings with a 7-13 league record. 
>> Despite their loss Wednesday to Cal, the Griffins clinched a PSAC tournament berth due to Edinboro's loss to the Crimson Hawks. Seton Hill is still alive for the 5th seed in the division.
>> The Griffins are 5-7 in true road games this year with its biggest win coming at Gannon 68-54 on Feb. 6.
>> SHU is 4-3 in February since losing to the Crimson Hawks Jan. 30. 

CRIMSON HAWKS ONE OF TOP TEAMS IN THE NATION
>> IUP remained No. 2 in the NABC Top 25 for the second straight week.
>> The Crimson Hawks have been ranked in the top 3 in nine of the 14 polls this season. They've also been ranked in the top 8 all year. 
>> IUP moved up one spot to No. 3 in this week's D2SIDA Media Top 25.
>> IUP is among five Division II teams with 2 or fewer losses this season. 
>> They opened the year at No. 8 in the coaches and No. 6 in the media preseason polls. 
>> The Crimson Hawks are 3-0 against teams ranked in the top 25 - (16/15) Virginia State, 69-67; (11/13) Shippensburg, 88-77; and at (RV/18) Fairmont State, 83-64. 

CRIMSON HAWKS REMAIN AT NO. 1 IN NCAA ATLANTIC REGION RANKINGS
>> The NCAA released its second set of Division II regional rankings Wednesday with the Crimson Hawks retaining the No. 1 spot in the Atlantic that they debuted at last week. 
>> These rankings determine selection and seeding to the 2019 NCAA Division II Championships in March. 
>> The rankings will have one more in-season update before the field of 64 is released Sunday, March 10. 

IUP BOASTS ONE OF TOUGHEST SCHEDULES IN DIVISION II
>> IUP has the 24th toughest schedule in Division II with an opponents win percent of .569 (388-294).
>> The Crimson Hawks went 7-0 in their non-conference schedule that included two top 25 teams.
>> IUP's non-conference schedule included six Division II schools that are a combined 107-58 (.648) this season.
>> IUP had an average scoring margin of +17.0 in their seven non-conference games.
>> The Crimson Hawks are a combined 6-2 against teams currently in the top 10 of the NCAA Atlantic Region rankings including No. 3 Virginia State, No. 4 Mercyhurst, No. 5 Fairmont State, No. 6 East Stroudsburg, No. 7 West Chester, No. 9 Slippery Rock and No. 10 Shippensburg. 

CRIMSON HAWKS PUTTING TOGETHER ONE OF BEST REGULAR SEASONS IN LOMBARDI ERA
>> IUP has won 25 regular season games three times during the Lombardi era, including a 25-2 record this year.
>> The Crimson Hawks went 25-2 during their national finalist 2009-10 season and 26-2 in 2016-17. 
>> Those three years produced the longest win streaks for Coach Lombardi, including 18 straight in 2016-17, 15 straight at the end of the 2009-10 season, and 14 consecutive wins to start this year.

LOMBARDI IS FASTEST PSAC COACH TO 300 WINS
>> Coach Lombardi won his 300th career game Wednesday at Edinboro, becoming the 10th coach in PSAC history to reach the 300-win milestone.
>> At 13 seasons and 399 career games, he's the fastest PSAC coach to get to 300 wins. 
>> Already IUP's all-time victories leader, he's currently 3rd among active PSAC coaches in victories, trailing Kutztown's Bernie Driscoll (321) and East Stroudsburg's Jeff Wilson (317).
>> Lombardi is a combined 17-8 against Driscoll and Wilson in his 13 years at IUP. 

THE IUP OFFENSE PUTTING UP ITS BEST NUMBERS UNDER LOMBARDI
>> The Crimson Hawks are 5th in the PSAC with an 81.3 scoring average.
>> Their current scoring clip is the best in 13 seasons under Lombardi. The 2015-16 and 2016-17 teams both averaged 77.7 points. 
>> IUP has 15 80-point games this season, scoring 106 against Westminster and 102 against Edinboro. 
>> IUP's 48.3 FG% is its best since shooting 48.2 in 2015-16. The Crimson Hawks have shot at least 50 percent in 13 of their 27 games, including a season-best 56.5 percent (35-62) at Fairmont State.

JACOBO DIAZ ONE OF THE TOP PLAYERS IN DIVISION II
>> Sr. F Jacobo Diaz ranks in the top 10 in the PSAC in 13 statistical categories, including 6th in scoring (18.9 PPG) and 3rd in rebounding (9.3 RPG). His 14 double-doubles lead the PSAC and are tied for 11th in Division II.
>> Diaz was named PSAC West co-Athlete of the Week Monday after averaging 18.0 points and 11.0 rebounds while shooting 62.5 percent floor in games against Clarion and Cal. It's his four PSAC weekly honor of the year.
>> Diaz was named to the top 50 Watch List for the Bevo Francis Award, which is given annually to the best player from Division II, Division III, NIAA or the NJCAA.
>> Diaz has led IUP in scoring nine times this year and has 11 different 20-point performances. He scored a season-high 29 points at Slippery Rock and against Westminster, and had 28 at East Stroudsburg.

DANTE LOMBARDI ONE OF TOP POINT GUARDS IN PSAC
>> Sr. G Dante Lombardi is IUP's all-time assist leader with 550 career dishes. That number is 7th most among active Division II players and ranks 10th in PSAC history.
>> He has at least 6 assists in 13 games this year, including 12 against UPJ and 10 in back-to-back games against Edinboro and Cal. 
>> Lombardi is the only player in the PSAC averaging better than 15 points and 5 assists per game. 
>> His 16.4 PPG average is 16th in the PSAC. His 5.7 APG is 2nd in the league and 29th in Division II. 

MALIK MILLER IS A VALUABLE SCORING OPTION
>> Jr. G Malik Miller has turned himself into a big time scorer as a first year starter, ranking 2nd on the team and 13th in the PSAC with a 17.0 PPG average.
>> Miller has led IUP in scoring a team-best 11 times this year, including a recent run of three straight games against Mercyhurst, Slippery Rock and Gannon.
>> He has 10 20-point games this year, including a career-high 26 points twice - January 2 vs. Gannon and February 27 at Edinboro
>> Miller is 2nd on the team and 14th in the PSAC with 62 made 3-pointers. He hit a season-high 6 in his games against Gannon and Edinboro, and has at least 3 3's in a game nine times.