Men's Basketball | 2/24/2017 4:58:00 PM

BLOOMSBURG (14-11, 10-11 PSAC East) vs LOCK HAVEN (13-12, 9-12 PSAC East)
Saturday, February 25, 2017 - 1:00 p.m.
Bloomsburg, Pa. | Nelson Field House

GAME NOTES:
Bloomsburg vs Lock Haven Game Notes

GAME COVERAGE:
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/bloomu/mbball/
Live Audio (WHLM): http://www.whlm.com
Live Video: https://bupmediasite.passhe.edu/Mediasite/Play/f0e023f2cfb442198a9208bb219e90241d

RELATED LINKS:
Bloomsburg - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
Lock Haven - Roster | Schedule | Statistics

LAST TIME OUT ...
Bloomsburg battled on Wednesday night but fell short to #6 Kutztown by a score of 85-79 at the Nelson Field House. The Huskies led 42-41 at halftime before Kutztown took the lead for good with a 16-7 run at the outset of the second half. The Golden Bears would have the lead the rest of the way and were able to withstand a late Huskies' push, which saw the lead drop to 74-69 with 4:01 to play. But, Kutztown was 12-of-13 at the foul line in the second half and used that clutch free throw shooting to ice the game. Senior Yahmir Grenlee was a bright spot for the Huskies as he scored a career-high 28 points. Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) chipped in with 21 points. Carnell McGirt (11) and Sam Saxton (York, Pa./Central York) (10) were also was in double figures.

STARTING FIVE ...
1 - Redshirt junior Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) continues his rapid ascent up Bloomsburg's all-time scoring list. The sharpshooter currently sits in seventh place on the school's all-time list with 1,449 career points. He scored 21 points on Wednesday night and now needs 18 points to tie John Willis (1971-74) for sixth place. He has scored at least 20 points in 21 of the 25 games this season and has 41 career 20-point efforts in 77 collegiate games. He has hit double figures in 61 of his last 63 games and has been held to under 10 points in a game only nine times in his career.

2 - Mortellite broke one school record against West Chester on February 1 - most three-pointers in a single-season on the men's side - and then broke the Bloomsburg record for threes in a season after making nine at Mansfield on February 15 (Dana Wieller held the Bloomsburg record, men or women, for threes in a year with 97 during the 2011-12 season). On Wednesday, he broke the school-record for most three-point attempts in a season with 233 (Mike Ellzy held the previous record of 227). He has a chance for several more records by season's end. Mortellite needs 23 points to break Ellzy's single-season school-record for points (600). Aaron Carter holds the program record for most free throws made in a season with 143 - Mortellite is at 119. Finally, in terms of career records, Lorenzo Christmas holds the school record for career triples with 237 - Mortellite enters Saturday's game with 220.

3 - Bloomsburg will honor its three seniors prior to the opening tip on Saturday. Donell Diggs has been hampered by injuries throughout much of the second half of the season but still leads the team in assists this season (4.0) while averaging 6.8 points per game. For his career, Diggs is averaging 8.1 points and 4.2 assists in two seasons with the Huskies. Yahmir Greenlee is averaging 16.3 points and 3.5 assists in 16 games this season. He has hit 20 points in a game five times, including a career-high 28 points against Kutztown on Wednesday. He averages 10.1 points and 2.4 assists in 34 career games with the Huskies. Finally, Malik Sneed is averaging 5.6 points and 5.6 rebounds while ranking second in the PSAC in blocks (2.0) this season. Sneed averages 5.3 points and 5.6 rebounds for his career and ranks 10th on the school's all-time list with 72 career blocked shots.

4 - The Huskies are among the national leaders in several categories as a team while Mortellite's shooting touch has him among the country's leaders in a handful of individual categories. As a team, Bloomsburg ranks 12th in the country in free throw percentage (77.7%) and 11th in blocks per game (5.0) while ranking 34th in the nation in three-point percentage (39.9%). Mortellite, meanwhile, leads the country in three-pointers per game (4.12). He is also fifth in the nation in total threes (103), ninth in points per game (23.1), 15th in free-throw percentage (90.2%), and 26th in three-point percentage (44.2%).

5 - Bloomsburg had three players post a double-double in the win at Wilmington - Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) (28 pts, 11 reb), Kyle-Michael Rose (Middletown, Del./Sanford School) (17 pts, 12 reb), and Carnell McGirt (12 pts, 11 reb). It marked the first time multiple Huskies' players had a double-double since February 10, 2016 against Kutztown - Mortellite (25 pts, 13 reb) and Malik Garner (20 pts, 10 reb). The Huskies had not had three players post a double-double in the same game since prior to the 1990-1991 season.

THE SERIES ...
Bloomsburg leads the all-time series against Lock Haven, 99-35.

LAST MEETING AGAINST LOCK HAVEN ...
Bloomsburg struggled out of the gate at Lock Haven on January 25. The Bald Eagles used a strong first half from freshman sensation Amir Hinton to take a 43-35 lead into the break. But, the Huskies used a monster 22-point second half outburst from Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) to eventually secure a 93-76 victory. The Huskies also shot 79.2% from the field in the second half and 71.4% from behind the arc. Mortellite finished with a game-high 33 points while Yahmir Greenlee contributed 21 points.Carnell McGirt also finished in double figures with 17 points.

SCOUTING THE BALD EAGLES  ...
Lock Haven comes into this afternoon's contest red hot, winning its last three games and clinching a spot in the PSAC conference playoffs with their latest win over Mansfield on Wednesday. The Bald Eagles are led in scoring by freshman Amir Hinton, who also leads the PSAC in scoring at 24.1 points per game. Hinton also leads the team in rebounding (6.4). Ra'eese Hunt is the only other Bald Eagle to average double figures as he posts 12.8 points per game. Craig Slade also a key figure underneath for Lock Haven as he grabs 6.2 rebounds per game while scoring 7.5 points per contest. Lock Haven, as a team, is fifth in the conference in scoring offense (82.2 ppg) and field goal percentage (46.7%). The Bald Eagles could get as high as the fifth seed in the PSAC Eastern Division with a win.

BACK IN THE PLAYOFFS ...
Despite Saturday's loss at East Stroudsburg, Bloomsburg clinched a spot in the PSAC Tournament for the second straight year, and the fifth time in the last six seasons. The Huskies can clinch a home game in the opening round with a win and a West Chester loss against #6 Kutztown on Saturday. However, the Huskies could be as low as the sixth-seed with a loss to the Bald Eagles.

NIGHT FOR THE AGES ...
Redshirt junior Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) scored a career-high 39 points and hit a career-high nine three-pointers in the Huskies' 81-77 win at Mansfield on February 15. He finished one three-pointer shy of the single-game record of 10 set by Jay DeShields during the 1999-2000 season. His 39 points marked the most by a Bloomsburg player since Al Williams scored 40 against Mansfield on February 25, 1978. He had 15 points at halftime and then scored 24 of Bloomsburg's 40 second-half points in the win.

SAXTON NAMED PSAC EAST FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK ...
Redshirt freshman Sam Saxton (York, Pa./Central York) earned his first collegiate weekly honor on Monday, February 13, when he was named the PSAC East Freshman of the Week. He made his first collegiate start at Millersville on Wednesday, February 8, and scored a career-high 14 points while hitting a career-best four three-pointers in six attempts.

THREE RECORDS DOWN ...
Redshirt junior Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) hit five threes in the win over West Chester on February 1 to give him the program's single-season school-record, on the men's side, for three-pointers with 83. Jay DeShields held the previous record of 82 during the 2001-02 season. With his nine triples on Wednesday, that gave him 98 for the season, which surpassed Dana Wieller's school-record (men or women) of 97 she had during the 2011-12 season. On Wednesday, he broke the men's single-season record for three-point attempts as he now has taken 233 three-point shots (Mike Ellzy held the previous record with 227).

McGIRT HEATING UP ...
Junior Carnell McGirt has provided the Huskies with an offensive spark since getting off to a bit of a slow start. In his first eight games, McGirt averaged 8.8 points and 6.5 rebounds but, since then, he is averaging 14.6 points and 7.4 rebounds. He has hit double figures in 16 of his last 17 games including a career-high 26 points in the loss at Shippensburg on January 6.

HE'S RISING ...
On Saturday, December 3, Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) became the latest member of Bloomsburg University's 1,000-point club during the Huskies' 74-68 loss at Mercyhurst. Mortellite now has 1,449 points in his Huskies' career - seventh on the school's all-time list. He needs 18 points to tie John Willis (1971-74) for sixth. Mortellite is also climbing the school's all-time list for career three-pointers. Mortellite now has 220 three-pointers for his career - third on the all-time list. He is five behind Mike Ellzy (1993-97) for second.

NOT FOUL AT THE LINE ...
Bloomsburg has been impressive from the charity stripe this season as it ranks third in the PSAC, and 12th in the country, in free-throw percentage (77.7%). Christian Mortellite (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton) (90.2%) and senior Donell Diggs (85.5%) are second and third in the league, respectively, in accuracy. Mortellite is also 15th in the country. Junior Carnell McGirt (80.0%) is 14th in the PSAC. Bloomsburg is +107 from the free-throw line this season.

DOWNTOWN WITH THE HUSKIES ...
The Huskies have made at least one three-pointer in 179 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 has made at least ten three-pointers in a game eight times this season after achieving that feat just one time last season - an 85-59 home victory against Millersville on February 17, 2016 (10-of-17). Mortellite, meanwhile, leads the country in threes-per-game (4.12) and is fifth in the country in total three-pointers (103).

UP NEXT ...
Bloomsburg will open the first round of the PSAC Tournament on Monday night. Site, time, and opponent are yet to be determined.