ABOUT THE GAME

• PSAC play begins this weekend for Millersville with a back-to-back against PSAC West foes Edinboro and Mercyhurst. Last season, Millersville went 17-5 in league play on its way to a PSAC East title. Millersville and Edinboro have not played since 2019 while Millersville and Mercyhurst met in both the PSAC Semifinals and the NCAA Tournament to close out the 2021-22 season. 
• The PSAC started counting East/West crossover games toward the conference standings in 2011-12, and Millersville is 18-23 in home games vs. the PSAC West in that time. Coach Casey Stitzel has fared better, going 8-6, going .500 or better in four of five seasons. 

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS

• Wednesday’s victory over Bowie State improved Millersville to 3-0 at home. Marauders have long been a tough team to beat in Pucillo Gymnasium. Millersville went 15-2 at home in 2021-22. Over the last four seasons, Millersville has gone 39-10 at home. It is a small sample size, but the Marauders are out-scoring opponents 81.7-54.0 while shooting 51.9% from the field and 41.7% from three in the three home games. It stands in stark contrast to Millersville’s numbers away from Pucillo Gymnasium. In two road games and one neutral site game, the Marauders are shooting 36.4% from the field and 22.7% from three for 62 points per game. 
• After scoring 12 total points and shooting 2-of-11 from three in the first two games of the season, Justin Nwosu and averaged 17.0 points per game while shooting 54.5% from the field, 52.4% from three (on 21 attempts) and 9-of-9 from the line. He also recorded a career-high four steals vs. Bowie State. 
• Drew Stover has scored at least eight points in each of the last five games, hitting for double-figures three times. He’s done this while ranking sixth on the team with 19.7 minutes per game. He’s averaging 21.6 points per 40 minutes while connecting on 57.1% of his shots.
• Millersville nearly even with its opponents in rebounding (32.7-32.5) but has been solid on the offensive glass, holding an edge in second-chance points in five of six games. Millersville is also 3-0 when out-rebounding its opponent. 
   

SCOUTING EDINBORO

• Last season, Edinboro started 5-4 before finishing 9-17. This year, the Fighting Scots have won two of the first five games and two of the losses have been by five points or fewer. Edinboro is shooting 46.9% from the floor as a team but have not been as sharp from behind the arc, hitting just 30.7%. Edinboro does have a knack for getting to the free throw line. They've attempted 22 or more free throws in four of five games including 33 against Roberts Wesleyan. Edinboro has also out-rebounded four-straight opponents, three of them by double-digit margins. Kierell Green was limited to just five games in 2021-22 but he's hit 40.9% of his 3-pointers and averaging a team-high 15.2 points per game. Dominique Keyes is a former Pitt-Johnstown transfer and he's already recorded four games in double-digit scoring and has double-digit rebounds in four-straight games. 
   

SCOUTING MERCYHURST

• Coach Gary Manchel has taken the Lakers to four-straight NCAA Tournament appearances and this year's team returns three starters from 2021-22 in Michael Bradley, Nicholas Lang and MiyKah McIntosh. McIntosh is a two-time All-PSAC West First Team pick with nearly 1,400 career points. He is one of seven seniors or grad students on the roster. The Lakers have played just one game before Friday's game at West Chester. The Lakers won a road game at Daemen on Nov. 16, 62-61. They rallied from a halftime deficit behind Bradley's 21 points and eight rebounds. 

SERIES HISTORY

• Millersville holds an 18-7 lead in a series vs. Edinboro that dates back to an NCAA Tournament match-up in 1986 (Millersville won, 107-86). Millersville has won six of the last 10 meetings going back to 2008, but the teams have split the last four meetings. The teams have played just once in the last four years, and Millersville won that 2019 match-up 91-83 in overtime. Millersville holds a distinct advantage at home as Edinboro has never won in 13 trips to Pucillo Gymnasium.
• Millersville bounced Mercyhurst in last season’s PSAC Semifinals (59-53), but Mercyhurst ended Millersville’s season with a 71-65 win in the NCAA Tournament. Mercyhurst has won three of the last four meetings and is 7-5 all-time against the Marauders. Millersville, however, has won three in a row over the Lakers at home (2016, 2014, 2012). Mercyhurst 2-3 all-time in Pucillo Gymnasium. 

THE LAST TIME OUT

• Millersville: Millersville 69, Bowie State 60 (Nov. 30, 2022) -  Justin Nwosu returned from the extended holiday break in fine form, scoring a game-high 19 points to go with five rebounds and four steals, leading Millersville to a needed 69-60 win over Bowie State. After a shaky offensive start, Millersville scored 40 second half points and cut their turnover total from 14 in the first half down to six over the last 20 minutes. Millersville closed the game on an 8-2 run.