STORYLINE
Edinboro continues an extremely tough portion of its schedule as it faces its second nationally-ranked opponent in three games as Indiana (Pa.) visits McComb Fieldhouse on Wednesday evening. The Fighting Scots are searching for their fourth straight victory while IUP seeks to grab its third consecutive win.
 
COMMUNITY DAY - FREE ADMISSION
The Edinboro University Athletic Department is sponsoring Community Day on Wednesday, January 23.  All fans will be admitted FREE of charge and there will be prizes and other events going on during the game against Indiana(Pa.). 
 
SCOUTING INDIANA (PA)
Indiana (Pa.) has been ranked in the WBCA USA Today Sports Coaches' Top 25 Poll for the entire season and enters Wednesday's game as the No. 19 team in the nation. At 13-4 overall and 8-3 in the PSAC, IUP stands third in the PSAC West standings, one game behind Edinboro and two behind first-place Gannon. The Crimson Hawks began the season 6-0 before falling at Gannon, 69-58, in a meeting between nationally-ranked squads. IUP hit a bit of a snag in losing two out of three – one at Rollins (56-52) on Dec. 30 and then a 68-62 loss at Kutztown on Jan. 5 before beginning its current four-game winning streak, defeating Shippensburg, Millersville, California (Pa.) and Clarion. 
 
A pair of Crimson Hawks average in double figure scoring as senior forward Sarah Pastorek (13.8 ppg) and sophomore guard Marita Mathe (10.0 ppg) both are strong scoring threats. Where IUP has been especially strong has been on the defensive end of the court, though, as the Crimson Hawks rank first in the PSAC in scoring defense, allowing just 54.1 points per game to opponents.
 
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE CRIMSON HAWKS
Edinboro leads, 42-36
The Fighting Scots own the last four wins in the series against their PSAC West rival, including three victories a year ago. Both teams were nationally-ranked in all three meetings a year ago, but it was Edinboro scoring double-digit wins each time. In the regular season contests, Edinboro scored a 71-45 win at IUP before taking a 67-48 victory at McComb Fieldhouse. The Crimson Hawks long had ownership of the series, however, winning 11 straight over Edinboro between 2006-10. Last season marked the first season sweep of the Crimson Hawks for Edinboro since the 2003-04 campaign. The last win for IUP in the series came on Jan. 26, 2011 – a 69-56 decision at McComb Fieldhouse. That had been Edinboro's last regular season home loss before its 46-40 defeat vs. Kutztown on Jan. 11.
 
The last time the two schools met was in the NCAA Atlantic Regional Semifinals when Edinboro moved on with a 70-56 win on its home floor. On that night, Kiara Brown, who had scored a then career-high 27 points vs. IUP in the second regular season showdown, led Edinboro with 21 points and four assists. Samantha Blazetic chipped in a double-double (16 points, 12 rebounds) and also had six blocks. Sarah Pastorek poured in a game-high 26 points for IUP.
 
WELCOME TO THE 1,000-POINT CLUB
Kiara Brown became the latest member of the Fighting Scots' 1,000-point club when she scored 18 points in Edinboro's 67-57 victory at Lock Haven last Saturday. Brown made Edinboro history by reaching the 1,000-point mark early in the second half by driving the lane and fi nishing with a shot off the glass and in to hit the milestone. She enters Wednesday's game with 1,013 points as a Fighting Scot. Brown had eclipsed 1,000 points for her college career earlier in the season when accounting for her totals as a freshman at California (Pa.) before transferring to Edinboro and now was 1,224 total points. Brown had previously scored 26 points on Wednesday and the performances earned her PSAC West Athlete of the Week honors for the second time in three weeks.
 
BROWN BEST WHEN LIGHTS SHINE BRIGHTEST
Kiara Brown powered Edinboro's upset of No. 6 Gannon last Wednesday by pouring in a game-high 26 points in the 65-52 victory. Brown has frequently put on some of her best performances against the toughest competition – in her past six games against nationally-ranked teams, the senior has averaged 18.5 points per game including three games of 24 or more points.
 
LOCAL HAWKS RETURN HOME
The IUP roster features two local products in Erie natives Lindsay Stamp, a sophomore guard who played her high school ball at Mercyhurst Prep, and freshman forward Zhane Brooks, a Villa Maria product. Stamp transferred to IUP for this season after playing 20 games at Mercyhurst University last year, averaging 10.0 points in 13.4 minutes per game. Stamp has seen action in 16 of 17 games this year for the Crimson Hawks while averaging 7.3 points and 4.1 rebounds. Brooks, meanwhile, is fresh off a career-high 10 points in the Clarion win last Saturday. She averages 1.6 points and 1.9 rebounds in 8.4 minutes for IUP.
 
HALFWAY THERE
The Fighting Scots have been able to lock down victories when leading at halftime so far this season, posting an undefeated record when leading at intermission. Edinboro is 11-0 when leading at the half thus far on the year.
 
60 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
Edinboro has proven extremely difficult to beat in recent seasons, compiling one of the best records in all of NCAA Division II with an overall record of 68-9 since the beginning of the 2010-11 campaign. That winning percent goes up even more when the Fighting Scots reach 60 points. Dating back to the 2010-11 season, Edinboro is 67-2 when scoring 60 or more points.