The Game Stories
-Edinboro is off to its first 5-0 start since the 2008-09 squad opened the year with eight straight wins. The Fighting Scots opened with easy wins over Penn State Greater Allegheny (100-35) and Penn State Beaver (93-73), then passed its first true test with an 88-85 win over Urbana. Those three games were played at McComb Fieldhouse. Last weekend Edinboro opened Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference action with a pair of road “crossover” contests. The Fighting Scots squandered a 13-point second half lead at Mansfield before prevailing on a Bryan theriot jumper with nine seconds left, 66-65. The next day the Scots were up by as much as 30 points in the second half before heading back home with an 85-72 win at Bloomsburg.
-After opening the season with three straight games at McComb Fieldhouse, Edinboro is concluding a three-game road trip. The Fighting Scots then end 2012 with three more games at McComb. Following final exams Edinboro will host Cheyney on December 18 and West Chester on December 19 in a pair of PSAC?crossover tilts. They then host Thiel on December 30, the final non-conference game. The final 22 games are against PSAC?outfits.
-Head coach Greg Walcavich is in his 24th season in charge of the Fighting Scots, showing a 417-241 record. Including stints at Birmingham Southern and West Virginia Wesleyan he is 571-304 overall as he is in his 31st season as a head coach.
-Edinboro was picked to finish fourth in the PSAC West. The Western Division coaches predicted a fifth place finish for California(Pa.).
-California(Pa.) snapped a three-game losing streak with a 64-59 win at Cheyney on Sunday. The day before they opened PSAC action at West Chester, suffering an 83-78 loss. The Vulcans' three losses, to West Virginia Wesleyan, Wilberforce and West Chester, have come by a combined eight points.
-Saturday's contest was originally scheduled for the end of the season but moved up to December 8 when the PSAC changed its playoff format to 12 teams.
The Edinboro-California(Pa.) Series
-California(Pa.) leads 88-77
The two teams split a pair of close contests a year ago, winning on the other's home court. Edinboro came away with a 65-62 win in its first visit to Cal's new Convocation Center, rallying from a late six-point deficit. The Fighting Scots then ended the season with a 68-64 loss at McComb Fieldhouse to the Vulcans. Neither team has been able to put together much of a streak in recent years, although prior to last year's road win Edinboro had lost five of its previous six games at Cal. The last time a team swept the regular season series was the 2004-05 campaign, when Edinboro prevailed in both meetings.
The Last Meeting
-February 25, 2012 -- California(Pa.) 68, Edinboro 64
California(Pa.) rode a huge rebounding advantage to the win at McComb Fieldhouse. The Vulcans owned the glass to the tune of 55-30, including 21 offensive boards that led to a 20-5 advantage in second-chance points.
Alex Moore turned in his top effort of the season with 15 points, including a 5-for-5 chart from the floor.
Jay Fletcher and
Sam Moore had 12 points apiece, while
Cory Somerville finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Travon Vann paced the Vulcans with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Jeremy Posey had 10 points.
The Coaches
-Greg Walcavich, Edinboro -- is in his 24th season at the helm of the Fighting Scots and his 31st overall as a head coach. He has a 417-241 record at Edinboro and is 571-304 overall. Walcavich has also previously served as the head coach at Birmingham Southern and West Virginia Wesleyan. (For an indepth bio see page 6)
-Bill Brown, California(Pa.) -- is in his 17th year in charge of the Vulcans, showing a record of 323-149 during that period. He ranks as Cal's all-time winningest coach thanks to eight 2o-win campaigns. Brown has led Cal to 12 appearances in the PSAC Tournament, highlighted by league titles in 1999 and 2008. In 26 years as a head coach at three schools, he owns a 448-276 record with eight appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
