ABOUT THE GAMES

• Millersville is 5-0 for the first time since 2002 and is one of just five teams in the PSAC still undefeated. Millersville is coming off a double-overtime win over Virginia Union, a team ranked No. 10 in the most recent D2SIDA Atlantic Region poll. Millersville did receive two votes in Monday’s NABC Division II Top 25 poll.
• The Marauders begin PSAC crossover play this weekend against a pair of teams off to strong starts. Clarion is 4-1 and Pitt-Johnstown is 4-2 and ranked No. 9 in the latest D2SIDA Atlantic Region poll. The back-to-back games are followed by four consecutive road games that include Division I Morgan State and games at nationally-ranked IUP and Cal U, ranked No. 5 in the D2SIDA Atlantic Region poll. 

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS

• Two PSAC teams--IUP and Mercyhurst--are ranked in the nation’s top 10, and statistically, Millersville is right there with the two PSAC West powers. According to NCAA stat rankings, Millersville’s strength of schedule has been the toughest of the three teams. The Marauders rank third in the PSAC in margin of victory behind IUP and Merychurst, defeating teams by an average of 16.4 points per game. Millersville also ranks third in scoring defense (65.6), second in field goal percentage defense (.366) and third in rebounding margin (10.0). Millersville has reached 5-0 despite struggling at times on the offensive end. While the Marauders have scored 81 or more in four of five games, they’ve shot under 35% from three in four of five games and are shooting just 65.7% from the line. Virtually the same group of players shot 35.5% from three and 75.5% from the line in 2019-20. Millersville currently ranks 14th in the PSAC in 3-point shooting at 31.2%. Turnover margin has also been an uncharacteristic issue for the Marauders. They are 14th in the PSAC at -1.40 per game and have had at least 15 turnovers in all five games. They’ve yet to have more assists than turnovers  in a game. 
• A fast start could help the Marauders. Millersvillend has yet to score more than 40 points in the first half and are averaging 36.6 points per game in the first half and 41.4 points in the second half of games. 
• But still, four Marauders are averaging double-figures in scoring, and Jaden Faulkner (19.2) and Khari Williams (17.8) ranked 10th and 11th respectively. Millersville is one of only two teams in the PSAC with two players  ranked in the top 15 in scoring average. 
• Caden Najdawi and James Sullivan are on the precipice of history. Najdawi, coming off his 20th career double-double, enters the weekend with 983 career points, and Sullivan, who has scored double-digits in four consecutive games, has 977 career points. Najdawi has averaged 12.0 points per game in 82 career games, and Sullivan is at 10.5 in 93 career games. They are looking to become the 38th and 39th players in program history to score 1,000 career points. They will be the first players  since Charlie Parker (2003-07) to reach the mark while playing all four seasons at Millersville. 
   

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES

• Clarion head coach Damian Pitts coaches his first game against his former team. Pitts served as a Millersville assistant for 17 years, including one season under Casey Stitzel. He has Clarion off to its best start since 2010, and the Golden Eagles already have two wins in Pucillo Gymnasium this season, having won both of their games in the Ron Wilson Classic. Clarion has won games by taking care of the ball and out-rebounding teams. It owns a plus-2.8 turnover margin and a plus-4.2 rebounding margin. While the team has averaged 76.4 points per game, it is shooting just 24.5% from three and 57.3% from the free throw line. 
   

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAIN CATS

• Rob Rukavina has been on the sidelines for all 11 of Pitt-Johnstown’s all-time meetings against Millersville. Pitt-Johnstown posted a 22-9 record in its last full season in 2019-20, and this year, of the team’s two losses, one came against nationally-ranked West Liberty. John Paul Kromka, who scored his 1,000th career point in his last game, was an All-PSAC West First Team selection and All-Atlantic Region Second Team selection as a sophomore in 2019-20. He was   the PSAC West Rookie of the Year in 2018-19. Pitt-Johnstown owns the league’s fifth-best scoring offense at 86.3 points per game and rank second in field goal percentage (.517). Kromka ranks 16th in the league in scoring (16.8), eighth in rebounding (9.0) and first in blocks (3.0). 
   

THE LAST TIME OUT

• Millersville: Millersville 97, Virginia Union 88 (2OT) (Nov. 28, 2021) - Every time Millersville looked staggered and on the ropes, Khari Williams delivered a counterpunch to keep the Marauders in the game. The Marauders' senior scored a career-high 39 points to help Millersville survive an overtime-forcing buzzer-beater and outlast Virginia Union 97-88 in double overtime. 
• Clarion: Clarion 84, Allegheny 65 (Nov. 23, 2021) - Gerald Jarmon led all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field. After not recording a field goal in the first 7:48 of action, he scored nine points in the next 1:11 in the first half, including buckets on four straight Clarion possessions. That sparked the Golden Eagles in what was at the time a tight game. 
• Pitt-Johnstown: Malone 102, UPJ 84 (Nov. 30, 2021) - John Paul Kromka joined the 1,000 point club with 22 points, and Fred Mulbah scored 19 points and added nine assists. 
   

SERIES HISTORY

• While Millersville and Clarion are longtime PSAC members, the teams have met only 21 times with Millersville holding a slight 11-10 advantage. Millersville has won both meetings under Coach Casey Stitzel, and both wins have come by at least 30 points. 
• Pitt-Johnstown joined the PSAC in 2014-15 and has won all four match-ups with the Marauders since then. Three of the four have been decided by single digits. UPJ's last trip to Pucillo Gymnasium came in 2017-18 and resulted in a 76-67 win. The only current members of the roster who played in that game were James Sullivan (three points), D'Marco Suggs (six points) and Caden Najdawi (four points). 
• The Last Meeting vs. Clarion - Millersville 89, Clarion 58 (Dec. 18, 2018):  Millersville forced 21 turnovers and turned those into 27 points. Millersville employed the press with the score 30-28 and just under four minutes left in the first half. Millersville immediately forced turnovers on three consecutive possessions, ripped off an 8-0 run to push its lead back to double digits. The Marauders never again led by fewer than eight points. 
• The Last Meeting vs. UPJ - Pitt-Johnstown 77, Millersville 71 (Dec. 19, 2018):  Millersville and Pitt-Johnstown traded the lead 16 times and the score stood tied 11 times, but the Marauders' offense hit a wall mid-way through the second half. That allowed the homestanding Mountain Cats to open a double-digit lead and then hold on for a 77-71 win.