Bloomsburg (6-1, 4-0 PSAC East) at Edinboro (4-3, 0-3 PSAC West) / Mercyhurst (4-3, 3-0 PSAC W)
Tuesday / Wednesday, Dec. 17-18, 2013
Edinboro, PA / Erie, PA - 7:30 p.m.
McComb Fieldhouse / Mercyhurst Athletic Center

TWEETABLES (Huskies facts in 140 characters or less)
-Bloomsburg is coming off an 80-61 win at Shippensburg. Edinboro lost, 70-65, at Seton Hill and Mercyhurst won at Gannon, 58-54.
-Bloomsburg is shooting 54 percent from the floor during the second half this year.
-The Huskies have shot over 60 percent in the second half three times.
-The Huskies attempt to stretch their win streak to 8 games this week. The last time BU won 8 straight was at the beginning of  2011-12 when it started 8-1. 
-Lorenzo Christmas (Norristown/Norristown) enters the week tied for 25th all-time in BU scoring with 1,025 career points.
-BU is 5th in the PSAC (@PSACsports) in scoring defense, allowing 65.7 points per game.
-Tuesday's game features the top assist man in the PSAC, Edinboro's Jonny Marsh (4.7 apg) and BU's Jon Riles (Philadelphia/Academy of the New Church) who is fifth (3.9 apg).

SCOUTING EDINBORO
The Fighting Scots are 4-3 under first-year head coach Pat Cleary who replaces longtime coach Greg Walcavich this season. In his 13th season at Edinboro after serving as Walcavich's top assistant, Cleary guided Edinboro to a 3-0 start to the year but has suffered three heartbreakers in conference play. Edinboro dropped its PSAC West opener at Pitt-Johnstown, 91-87, then lost at home to Seton Hill, 95-93, and at Cal, 70-65, in its last time out on Dec. 7. The Fighting Scots' three losses have come by a combined 11 points. Edinboro ranks second in the PSAC in points per game at 85.4 and in field goal percentage, making over 47 percent of its shots from the floor. The Scots also have had success on the boards with a +10.3 rebounding margin, but have struggled with turnovers, ranking 14th in turnover margin at -1.71.

Players to Watch
Jonny Marsh, junior guard – Marsh, a newcomer from Niagara County Community College, has ignited the Scots this year by ranking fourth in the PSAC in scoring at 20.3 points per game while also leading the conference in assists with 4.7 per game. He has scored in double figures in all seven games and has hit 30 points twice, scoring 34 at Urbana and 30 at Pitt-Johnstown.

Bryan Theriot, senior center – A first team All-PSAC West selection last year, Theriot is one of the top big men in the conference when healthy and has put his talent on display early this season by averaging 18.1 points and 8.7 rebounds including a season-best 26 points at Pitt-Johnstown and 22 points at Cal in his last outing.

THE BLOOMSBURG-EDINBORO SERIES
Edinboro leads, 13-11
The Fighting Scots hold a narrow edge in the all-time series and won last year's meeting at Nelson Field House, 85-73 on Dec. 2, 2012. The Fighting Scots ran out to a 53-29 lead at half time but Bloomsburg used a 21-4 run to pull within 66-53 with 10:33 to play and ultimately closed to within eight with 7:49 left to play before Edinboro regained control. Bryan Theriot had 14 points and Johnathan Logan 16 points for Edinboro while Dontahe Jordan (Williamsport/Williamsport) and Charles Haigler (Charles Town, WV/Hargrave Military Academy) each netted 21 points for the Huskies. Bloomsburg has not played at Edinboro's McComb Fieldhouse since a 94-78 loss on Jan. 4, 2009.

SCOUTING MERCYHURST
Mercyhurst entered the break for finals with a three-game winning streak after knocking off Urbana, Cal and Gannon in consecutive games. Though the Lakers rank 14th in the PSAC in scoring offense (67.1 ppg), defense has been as strength as they surrender only 62.9 ppg including an average of 52.3 ppg during its winning streak. Picked to finish sixth in the PSAC West Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Lakers have been strong from the perimeter – Mercyhurst shoots over 40 percent from beyond the arc, good for third in the conference behind only West Chester and East Stroudsburg.

Players to Watch
Jonathan Ouegnin, senior guard – The reigning PSAC West Athlete of the Week, he recorded 19 points with six assists and six rebounds in a win over California on Dec. 4 and also tallied seven points, eight assists, seven rebounds and four steals in a win vs. rival Gannon on Dec. 7. On the year he averages 12 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.9 steals.

Anthony Lytle, graduate student forward – Lytle has scored in double figures in the past three games including a season-high 17 points vs. Seton Hill on Nov. 20.

THE BLOOMSBURG-MERCYHURST SERIES
Mercyhurst leads, 7-1
The Lakers have controlled the short series between schools with Bloomsburg's lone victory coming in 1994 when the Huskies scored a 98-83 win at Nelson Field House. Mercyhurst won last year's meeting, 65-52, at the MAC. Zach Sheetz (Landisville/Hempfield) led the Huskies with 15 points and made 5-of-6 shots from beyond the arc.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION
The Huskies received votes in this week's National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II Top 25, picking up six votes. West Liberty (W. Va.) leads the poll at No. 1 while Bellarmine (Ky.), Drury (Mo.), Florida Southern and Western Washington complete the national top five. Two PSAC schools are nationally-ranked – No. 7 IUP (7-0) and No. 12 East Stroudsburg (8-0).

WIN STREAK STILL ALIVE
The Huskies enter the week riding a six-game winning streak to move to 6-1 on the season. It is the Huskies' longest winning streak since winning eight straight between Nov. 16-Dec. 4, 2011.

PLAYER RANKINGS
-Dontahe Jordan (Williamsport/Williamsport) ranks eighth in the PSAC in scoring (18.0 ppg).

-Jordan is also first in steals (2.8 spg).

-Jon Riles (Philadelphia/Academy of the New Church) stands fifth in the PSAC in assists (3.9 apg) and 11th in steals (1.9 spg).

UP NEXT
Bloomsburg returns home before the holiday break, hosting Gannon in a double header with the Huskies women's team on Saturday, Dec. 21 at 3 p.m.