INDIANA, Pa. -- The IUP men's basketball program looks ahead to another home matchup against the Pitt-Johnstown Mountain Cats for the first time this season on Wednesday, January 15. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. inside the KCAC.

GAMEDAY CENTRAL
IUP (7-8, 3-5 PSAC) vs. Pitt-Johnstown (8-8, 4-6 PSAC)
Wednesday, January 8 - 7:30 PM - KCAC - Indiana, Pa.
Media Coverage: Live Video (PSAC Digital Network) - Live Stats (Stat Broadcast) - Radio (U92.5FM)
Social Media Updates: @IUP_MBB on X (formerly Twitter)

COMING UP
IUP vs. Seton Hill
Saturday, January 18 - 3:00 PM - KCAC - Indiana, Pa.

IUP TIPOFF NOTES
>> The Hawks are currently averaging 73.8 PPG, 36.5 RPG, 11.9 APG, 7.8 SPG, and 3.7 BPG.   
>> IUP is shooting .452 from the field, .329 beyond the arc, and .693 from the free throw line. 
>> Top shooters for the Hawks are Damir Brooks (.605 FG), Christian Moore (.421 FG), and Kymani Merraro (.418 FG).
>> Freshman Tyler Grove and Kymani Merraro have started all 15 games this season.   
>> Redshirt junior guard Damir Brooks was awarded PSAC West Defensive Player of the Week on December 2. 
>> IUP has played slightly better at home this season, winning five of seven games in the KCAC, including three conference wins. 
>> IUP has three players with 20+ steals, including Ian Herring (27), Christian Moore (24) and Kymani Merraro (21). Herring has grabbed four steals in four games this season, including the three most recent. Tyler Grove totaled five steals against Edinboro, a season high for him.  
>> Christian Moore has led the Hawks in scoring eight times this season, scoring 20+ points on six occasions.
>> Moore also leads the team in three-pointer percentage (.383) from 41 made attempts. 
>> Brooks leads the team in both rebounds (nine times this season) and blocks (10 times this season).
>> IUP has lost eight of 10 games whenever they were trailing at halftime. 
>> The Hawks are 7-4 when they shoot equal/better than their opponent.
>> IUP is 0-5 when their opponent scores more than 80 points.
>> IUP has split the games 5-5 when they score above 70 points. 
>> 11 games this season have been decided by less than 10 points.

PITT-JOHNSTOWN AT A GLANCE
Pitt-Johnstown is currently 8-8 overall and 4-5 in the conference. They are 1-2 against PSAC West opponents and won their most recent match at Clarion, 68-65. Head coach Bob Rukavina is in his 36th season coaching the Mountain Cats and posts a 562-403 record. Last season Pitt-Johnstown was 6-22 overall and 4-18 in the PSAC. UPJ returned six players and welcomed nine new players, including three transfers. Four of the five starters this season have remained consistent. UPJ is currently averaging 81.0 PPG, 36.8 RPG, 14.2 APG, 7.0 SPG, and 1.6 BPG. They are shooting .475 from the field, .342 beyond the arc, and .761 from the free throw line.

Their lead scorer is Ryan Smith who is averaging 15.4 PPG, is shooting .500 from the field, averaging 4.8 RPG, and has grabbed 17 steals. Smith has started all 16 games this season and is ranked 13th in the PSAC in scoring per game. Sean Dillion leads the team with 24 steals and 30.7 MPG. In the past five games Dillion has totaled 12 steals. Rose Jay has made 31 three-pointers this season to lead the team with a .425 shooting percentage beyond the arc.

SERIES HISTORY
This will be the teams 67th overall meeting, IUP leads the series with 49 wins and has 17 losses. IUP has won 13 of the past 15 meetings and currently holds a five game winning streak against the Mountain Cats. Their last meeting was in February of 2024, the Hawks won 77-55 at the KCAC. Both Brooks and Furtun saw action. Furtun played for 23 minutes, grabbed five rebounds, a steal, and scored two points. Brooks played for eight minutes, grabbed three rebounds, a steal, and scored two points as well. The Hawks shot slightly better than the Mountain cats, .418 from the field and .846 from the free throw line. IUP pulled away with nine steals compared to UPJ's three. UPJ shot .386 from the field and .750 beyond the arc. Returner for Pitt-Johnstown is Vinnie Cugini and in this matchup he led his team with 15 points, seven rebounds, and shot 7-for-11 from the field.

STANDOUT MOORE
Christian Moore, a transfer from New Hampshire, has led the team in scoring on eight occasions, six of which were above 20 points. His highest-scoring game came against Tiffin where he scored 26 points, shot .571% from the field, and made four three-pointers. Moore is averaging 33.8 minutes per game, 3.6 RPG, 17.7 PPG, and has tallied 24 steals with five coming against Lock Haven. Moore ranks in the PSAC top 25 in multiple categories including a fifth-place rank in three-pointers made per game (2.7) and fifth in the PSAC for minutes per game (33.8).

BROOKS NAMED PSAC WEST DEF. ATH. OF THE WEEK
Redshirt junior guard Damir Brooks was awarded PSAC West Defensive Player of the Week on December 2 for his defensive efforts against Lincoln. Brooks posted his third double-double this season with 12 rebounds and 10 points. His 12 rebounds marked a career high for him along with matching his personal best of three blocks. He also added an assist and steal playing 30 minutes. 

Brooks has also been climbing the rankings among the PSAC, currently ranked seventh in rebounds per game (7.7) and first in blocks per game (1.9). He has led the team in rebounds nine times and blocks 10 times this season. Brooks has had five double-digit rebounding games and has had five double-doubles. 

MERRARO ON THE RISE
Freshman Merraro has had a hot start to his collegiate career. He has scored 15 points or more in six games, including his high of 21 points against USC Beaufort and Thiel. He currently averages 13.3 PPG, 4.6 APG, 3.9 RPG, has grabbed 21 steals, and is shooting .418 from the field. With his free throw percentage, he ranks 18th in the PSAC (.763) and is fifth with 69 assists. He grabbed six steals at Millersville. Merraro has scored double figures 12 times this season and has led the team in points scored on three occasions. 

DEFENSIVE STANDOUTS
Blocks: Brooks (27), Grove (7), Furtun (7), Triggs (6)
Steals: Herring (27), Moore (24), Merraro (21), Brooks (16)

LOMBARDI AMONG TOP COACHES IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Now in his 43rd overall season as a college coach, Joe Lombardi has been a central figure in elevating the IUP men's basketball program into one of the nation's best. Coaching his 19th season at the helm of the Crimson Hawks, Lombardi is the program's all-time leader in wins (424-129) with 12 NCAA Tournament appearances, seven PSAC tournament titles (2010, 2011, 2013, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023), three Atlantic Region Championships (2010, 2015, 2022) and two Division II National Championship Game appearances (2010, 2015). He is one of four coaches in PSAC men's basketball history to reach at least 400 career wins, ranking third on the conference's all-time wins list. Lombardi ranks third among NCAA DII active head coaches in winning percentage (.767) with at least 10 years of experience and in the top 20 among all-time among all NCAA divisions in winning percentage with at least 10 years of experience.

Follow 
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP men's basketball on X (Twitter) @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.