THE GAME AT A GLANCE
IUP men's basketball opens PSAC West play against a familiar opponent, Pitt-Johnstown. The Mountain Cats will make their third trip to Indiana, Pennsylvania, in the first two months of the season, including one game at the Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex.
The teams tip off with the Crimson Hawks in the middle of a competitive Western Division at 5-1. Pitt-Johnstown is 3-3 in conference play. In crossover games, the West has dominated the East. Millersville and Shepherd are the only East teams with winning conference records, while all but one team in the West is at .500 or better.
IUP TIPOFF NOTES
>>IUP men's basketball head coach Joe Lombardi is in his 20th season leading the Crimson Hawks. Lombardi is the winningest coach in program history, totaling 440 wins, all at IUP. He ranks among the top Division II coaches in winning percentage with a 76 percent record.
>>Redshirt senior Dallis Dillard opened the season having never recorded more than five assists in a game. In 11 games this season, Dillard has logged seven games with at least five assists, including a career-high nine in a win over Millersville.
>>The Crimson Hawks have protected the ball effectively, committing fewer turnovers than they have forced in each game this season. Through 11 games, IUP is averaging 4.7 fewer turnovers per contest than its opponents.
>>IUP's top three scorers include Dillard (19.0 points per game), followed by Christian Moore (14.7) and Kymani Merraro (14.6).
>>All five starters are averaging at least 5 minutes per game, including 30.9 minutes from Dillard. Tyler Grove and Ian Hering are the primary reserves, each averaging at least 15 minutes per game. All 10 active players are averaging double-digit minutes.
>>Emphasizing efficiency, five Crimson Hawks are shooting better than .500 from the field, led by Brooks with a .677 field-goal percentage.
PITT-JOHNSTOWN AT A GLANCE
Pitt-Johnstown sits seventh out of eight teams in the PSAC West with a 3-3 record in crossover play. The Mountain Cats are 9-5 overall, including three neutral-court games played on IUP's campus.
Bob Rukavina, the most tenured coach in the PSAC, is in his 36th season as UPJ's head coach. Since 1989, Rukavina has guided the Mountain Cats to 574 wins, posting a .580 winning percentage.
Four UPJ players average double-digit scoring, including Vinnie Cugini, one of the WPIAL's all-time leading scorers. Baden Forup leads the team with 17.4 points per game.
UPJ has six players averaging at least 20 minutes per game and eight players averaging at least 10 minutes per game.
SERIES HISTORY
IUP and Pitt-Johnstown have met 61 times since 1981, with the Crimson Hawks winning 45 games. Nine of those victories have come in Indiana.
The teams split two games last season, with IUP winning at home and falling in Johnstown. The Crimson Hawks have won six of the last seven matchups and eight of the previous 10 dating back to 2020. Under head coach Joe Lombardi, IUP is 22-5 all-time against UPJ.
