Men's Basketball | 11/17/2017 10:15:00 AM

BLOOMSBURG (2-0, 0-0 PSAC East) at PITT-JOHNSTOWN (1-1, 0-0 PSAC West)
Saturday, November 18, 2017 - 3:00 p.m.
Johnstown, Pa. | Pitt-Johnstown Sports Center

at IUP (1-3, 0-0 PSAC West)
Sunday, November 19, 2017 - 3:00 p.m.
Indiana, Pa. | Kovalchik Complex

GAME NOTES
Bloomsburg vs Pitt-Johnstown / IUP Game Notes

 GAME COVERAGE:
Live Stats (Saturday): http://www.sidearmstats.com/upj/mbball/
Live Video (Saturday): https://portal.stretchinternet.com/upj/
Live Stats (Sunday): http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=183434
Live Video (Sunday): https://portal.stretchinternet.com/iup/
Live Audio (WBUQ 91.1 FM - Both Games): http://intranet.bloomu.edu/WBUQ

RELATED LINKS:
Bloomsburg - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
Pitt-Johnstown - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
IUP - Roster | Schedule | Statistics

STARTING FIVE ...
- The Huskies open league play with a pair of crossover games at Pitt-Johnstown and IUP this weekend. Bloomsburg was just 1-5 against teams from the PSAC West last season with the only win coming against Edinboro (97-84) on January 9.

- Bloomsburg lost to both Pitt-Johnstown and IUP last season at the Nelson Field House. The Mountain Cats defeated the Huskies, 71-70, while the Crimson Hawks posted a 63-61 win over Bloomsburg the following day. Both losses came on game-winning shots within the final ten seconds of regulation.

- Redshirt senior Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) needs three three-pointers to break the school's all-time record for most career three-pointers. Mortellite enters the weekend with 235 career makes - Lorenzo Christmas holds the record with 237 from 2010-14.

- Mortellite has moved into third on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,535 career points. He trails only the school's all-time leading scorer, Mike Ellzy (1,911) and Jerry Radocha (1,778). Mortellite set the Bloomsburg single-season school-record last season with 614 points.

- With eight blocks in the first two games of the season, senior Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) has moved into ninth place on the school's all-time list with 77 career blocked shots. Adam Bohman (1999-03) is eighth with 90.

THE COACHES ...
John Sanow is in his 12th season as head coach of the Huskies and sports an overall record of 135-163. Over the last six seasons, Sanow has guided the Huskies to a PSAC Tournament berth five times and a share of the PSAC Eastern Division regular season championship in 2011-12. He was named the PSAC East Coach of the Year that season. During the stretch, Bloomsburg has gone 85-78.

Bob Rukavina is in his 29th season as the head coach at Pitt-Johnstown. He has guided the Mountain Cats to a 454-320 overall record. He earned his 450th win at Pitt-Johnstown with an 88-67 victory at California University (PA) on February 15, 2017 and has led the team to four NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and seven 20-win seasons.

Joe Lombardi is in his 12th year at IUP and sports an overall record of 251-91. Under his tutelage, the Crimson Hawks have made eight NCAA tournament appearances, won three PSAC tournament titles, won two Atlantic Region Championships, and made two Division II National Championship Game appearances. He became the program all-time winningest coach with a 72-64 win over the University of the Sciences on November 27, 2015.
 
THE SERIES ...
Pitt-Johnstown leads the all-time series against Bloomsburg, 21-13. IUP, meanwhile, holds a slim, 30-26, edge over the Huskies in their series history.

LAST TIME OUT ...
Bloomsburg outscored Georgian Court, 29-6, over the final ten minutes to erase a 12-point deficit and escape with a 70-59 victory in Lakewood, New Jersey on Wednesday night. The Huskies went 12-of-12 from the foul line over the last five minutes and finished 16-of-17 from the charity stripe in the second half.Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) posted his second double-double in as many games as he poured in a game-high 25 points while also grabbing a game-high ten rebounds. Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) and Austin Harriott (Philadelphia, Pa./Hun School) each chipped in 14 points. Harriott grabbed seven rebounds while Rose added five boards and four blocks.

Pitt-Johnstown is coming off of an 80-69 win over Urbana at the IUP Tip-Off Tournament last Saturday. The Mountain Cats lost their opener, 79-75, against Virginia State. Against Urbana, the Mountain Cats led from wire-to-wire and committed just four turnovers. Isaac Vescovi scored 33 points on 14-of-21 shooting to lead the Mountain Cats in scoring. Josh Wise added 23 points while Marcin Wiszomirski chipped in 12 points off the bench.

IUP, meanwhile, suffered a 69-64 loss to Virginia State in the final game of its tip-off tournament last Saturday night. After trailing by five at halftime, the Crimson Hawks took a four-point lead with 7:43 left in regulation but could not hang on. Anthony Glover paced IUP with 21 points while Jacobo Diaz added 15 points and 12 rebounds. Blake Danielak chipped in 14 points as the trio combined for 50 of the team's 64 points.

SCOUTING BLOOMSBURG ...
The Huskies enter the contest with a 2-0 overall record on the season after posting wins over Penn State Hazleton (94-55) on November 10 and Georgian Court (70-59) on November 15. Bloomsburg is averaging 82.0 points per game while allowing just 57.0 points per game defensively. The Huskies have made 22 three-pointers through the first two games and are shooting 38.6% from deep. The Huskies have dominated the glass as they are +14.0 in rebounding margin to date. Opponents, meanwhile, are shooting just 35.9% from the field and 28.2% from long range.

Redshirt senior Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) has posted double-doubles in each of the first two games and he leads the way by averaging 25.5 points and 10.0 rebounds on the young season. He has hit eight triples and needs only three to become the school's all-time leader in career three-pointers. Mortellite enters the weekend with 235 career triples. Sophomore Austin Harriott (Philadelphia, Pa./Hun School) is second on the team in scoring, averaging 14.5 points. The Division I transfer from Loyola (Md.) has appeared off the bench in each of the first two games. He has contributed 10 rebounds, four assists, and three blocks in his first two games in a Huskies' uniform. Senior Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) is averaging 12.0 points per game and leads both the PSAC and the country in blocked shots per game (4.0) early on. Another Division I transfer, sophomore Khary Mauras (Reading, Pa./Reading), has chipped in 10.0 points per game to date. The transfer from Old Dominion also averages 4.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists and leads the Huskies in assists per game. Keep an eye on redshirt freshman Peyton Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) (7.5 ppg) and freshman Matthew Kachelries (Macungie, Pa./Emmaus) (6.5 ppg) who, along with Harriott, provide the Huskies with depth off the bench.

SCOUTING PITT-JOHNSTOWN ...
The Mountain Cats are 1-1 to start the season after splitting a pair of games at the IUP Tip-Off Tournament last weekend. Pitt-Johnstown lost to Virginia State, 79-75, to open the season and then posted an 80-69 win over Urbana. The Mountain Cats average 77.5 points on offense and allow opponents to score 74.0 points per game. Pitt-Johnstown is -9.5 in rebounding margin but have made up for it by committing only 12 total turnovers in the first two games of the season.

Isaac Vescovi paces the Mountain Cats in scoring as he averages 25.5 points per game. He is coming off of a 33-point night against Urbana last Saturday. Vescovi is shooting 67.9% from the field (19-of-28) and has knocked down 6-of-8 from beyond the arc. Josh Wise averages 14.5 points per game while Dale Clancy (11.0 ppg) and Drew Magestro (10.5 ppg) are also in double figures early. Marcin Wiszomirski leads the Mountain Cats in rebounding (5.0) while Clancy paces the team in assists (7.0).

SCOUTING IUP ...
IUP, picked to win the PSAC West, in off to a 1-3 start in 2017-18. The Crimson Hawks opened the season with an 80-61 loss to #20 Findlay and then an 86-82 setback to #10 Ferris State at the SCB Hall of Fame Classic in Evansville, Indiana on November 3 and 4. Last weekend, IUP posted a 93-60 win over Urbana before dropping a 69-64 decision to Virginia State in its own tip-off tournament. IUP averages 75.0 points per game and allows 73.8 points per game on defense. The Crimson Hawks are +3.0 in rebounding margin and are shooting 47.1% from the field through the first four games of the season. IUP is scheduled to play Lock Haven on Saturday before its matchup with the Huskies on Sunday afternoon.

Anthony Glover leads the Crimson Hawks in scoring, averaging 18.0 points per game. He is 15-of-19 (78.9%) from the foul line and leads the squad in steals with seven. Blake Danielak is second, averaging 12.5 points per contest, while Dante Lombardi chips in 12.3 points per game. Lombardi leads the team with 19 assists. Jacobo Diaz is also in double figures, averaging 10.3 points and a team-high 10.5 rebounds. Diaz has two double-doubles to his credit this season.

MORE ON MORTELLITE ...
Redshirt junior Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) continues his rapid ascent up Bloomsburg's all-time scoring list. The sharpshooter currently sits in third place on the school's all-time list with 1,535 career points. Mortellite has 44 career 20-point efforts in 81 collegiate games. He has hit double figures in 64 of his last 67 games and has been held to under 10 points in a game only ten times in his career. Mortellite needs 244 points to pass Jerry Radocha (1973-77) for second and needs 377 points to become the school's all-time leader. Mike Ellzy (1993-97) currently holds the record with 1,911 career points.

DOWNTOWN WITH THE HUSKIES ...
The Huskies have made at least one three-pointer in 183 consecutive games. The last time Bloomsburg did not make a three in a game was on December 4, 2010 in a 54-51 loss at Lock Haven when it went 0-7 from beyond the arc. Bloomsburg made at least ten three-pointers in a game eight times last season after achieving that feat just one time last in 2015-16. Bloomsburg started strong in that department this season, knocking down 16-of-37 from beyond the arc (43.2%) against Penn State Hazleton on November 10. The Huskies, however, made only six on Wednesday against Georgian Court. Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) led the country in threes-per-game (4.07) last season. In fact, Mortellite's 4.07 three-pointers made per game were third in the entire country (Division I, II, and III). He trailed only Division III's Julian Marx of Grinnell (4.78) and Division III's Marcus Echevarria of Nichols (4.57) in the category. The leader at the Division I level was Central Michigan's Marcus Keene at 3.91. He needs three triples to become the school's all-time leader in three-pointers made. He enters the weekend with 235 - Lorenzo Christmas (2010-14) holds the record with 237.

DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK ...
At Georgian Court on Wednesday night, the Huskies trailed 53-41 with 10:08 left in regulation before outscoring the Lions, 29-6, over the final ten minutes to earn the 70-59 victory. Bloomsburg went 12-of-12 from the free throw line in the final five minutes and finished the second half, 16-of-17, from the charity stripe. Austin Harriott (Philadelphia, Pa./Hun School)'s layup with 4:40 left gave the Huskies a lead they would not relinquish as they held the Lions to just one point over the final six minutes of regulation. During the run, Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) scored 10 points while sophomore Khary Mauras (Reading, Pa./Reading) and Austin Harriott (Philadelphia, Pa./Hun School) added eight and six, respectively.

COMING UP ROSES ...
Senior Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) leads the PSAC and the country in blocks per game (4.0) on the young season. With his eight blocks, Rose has moved into ninth on the school's all-time list with 77 career blocks. He is 23 blocks away from becoming the seventh player in school history to record 100 career blocks. Larry Webster holds the career record with 175.

HOT START ...
The Huskies had six players finish in double figures during the season-opening, 94-55, victory over Penn State Hazleton. Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) (26), Austin Harriott (Philadelphia, Pa./Hun School) (15), Peyton Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) (12), Khary Mauras (Reading, Pa./Reading) (12), Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) (10), and Matthew Kachelries (Macungie, Pa./Emmaus) (10) all reached double digits in the victory. Harriott and Mauras were playing in their first game as a Husky after transferring in from Division I Loyola (Md.) and Old Dominion, respectively, while Peyton Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) and Kachelries were playing in their first collegiate games.

YOUTH MOVEMENT ...
The Huskies have just three seniors and no juniors on this year's roster and returned only three players from last year's team that finished 15-12. One of the three seniors - Hashim Moore (Sunrise, Fla./Hun School) - transferred in from Division I Princeton and is in his first season with the Huskies. Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) and Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) are the other two seniors on the team while redshirt sophomore Sam Saxton (York, Pa./Central York) joins the duo as the only returning player from last year's team. Redshirt freshman Peyton Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) was on last year's roster but did not play.

UP NEXT ...
The Huskies will return home on Tuesday, November 21, to host Holy Family University at the Nelson Field House. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Bloomsburg and Holy Family have met only once in the all-time series with the Tigers posting an 80-68 victory over the Huskies early in the 2005-06 season.