Edinboro Fighting Scots (2-2, 2-1 PSAC West) vs. Mercyhurst Lakers (4-2, 2-1 PSAC West)
Tuesday, December 1, 2015 7:30 PM
Mercyhurst Athletic Center
Erie, PA
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/hurst/mbball/
Radio: WFSE 88.9 (streamed on edinboronow.com)
 
The Game Story
The Edinboro men's basketball team returns to PSAC play on Tuesday, December 1 with their first road game of the season at Mercyhurst at 7:30 p.m.
 
This will be the first of a four-game road trip for the Fighting Scots. After Mercyhurst, they will play at PSAC foes East Stroudsburg and West Chester on Saturday and Sunday and then a non-conference game at Daemen on December 12.
 
The Boro is currently 2-2 overall and 2-1 in the PSAC West. They opened their season last week with four home games, three of them against PSAC opponents. They defeated Slippery Rock and Mansfield, while dropping a pair of games against Kutztown and Lake Erie. Edinboro received a number-three ranking in the PSAC West preseason poll.
 
The Scots, as a team, average 79.3 points per game and have allowed 80.3 points per game. Edinboro accounts for 40.3 rebounds per game and have outrebounded their opponents, 161-133. They hold a 42.3% field goal percentage (105-for-248) and are 30.4% percent (24-for-79) on 3-pointers. They are 74.1% from the foul line.
 
On the Radio
The Edinboro-Mercyhurst game will be broadcast on WFSE 88.9. Mike Fenner will be providing play-by-play duties while Tyler Trumbauer will handle color commentary.
 
All-Time Series
Edinboro leads Mercyhurst, 47-33
Mercyhurst has won the last four games against Edinboro, including back-to-back season sweeps in 2013-14 and 2014-15. Before that, the Scots had won four straight against the Lakers. The series dates back to the 1972-73 season.
 
Last Time Out
11/24/15 – Lake Erie 80, Edinboro 67
Edinboro led just once, and that came on the very first possession as Mikael Anderson drove the lane for a layup. The game would be tied three times, with the Storm taking the lead for good on an Andy Bosley 3-pointer four minutes into the game to lead, 9-6. Lake Erie would build the lead to as many as 16 points in the first half at 35-19. Edinboro would cut the lead to nine points twice in the opening twenty minutes, going on a 9-2 run behind seven points from Henri Wade-Chatman. His two free throws in the final minute made it 39-30 at the half. Edinboro would cut the deficit to eight points at 46-38 with 16:11 remaining on a Tommy Scales jumper in the paint, but The Storm answered with a 17-6 run to take their biggest lead of the night at 67-47 with 7:12 remaining. The Scots cut the margin to 12 points with 1:38 to play, but could get no closer. Wade-Chatman scored a team-high 21 points, boosting his career total to 948 points. The senior guard moves into 29th place in career scoring. He had five rebounds and three steals. Jaymon Mason added 20 points and made 5 of 6 shots from the free throw line. Tommy Scales came in averaging 16.0 ppg., but the 6'8" senior was limited to nine points while leading Edinboro with eight rebounds. Art Cook came off the bench to contribute seven points and eight rebounds.
 
11/24/15 – Mercyhurst 75, Daemen 69
Gerrae Williams got off to a hot start, draining his first three baskets, to give Mercyhurst an early five point lead, 10-5, at the 16:56 mark. The Wildcats wouldn't let their deficit get any larger, as the rest of the half was played within a five point margin. First half play saw four tie games and nine different lead changes. Daemen would hold a one point advantage, 31-30, at the break. The back-and-forth play would continue with both teams exchanging baskets early in the second half. After a Sean Beins layup that gave the Lakers a three point lead with 14:03 to play, the wildcats went on a 10-0 run, giving them the largest lead of the game, 51-44. Daemen would hold their seven point advantage with 8:29 remaining before the Lakers began chipping away. Seniors Andy Hoying and Jean Onana would covert baskets on back-to-back possessions to help Mercyhurst tie the game at 61 with 4:23 showing on the clock. Williams, another Lakers senior, gave Mercyhurst the lead after draining his third three pointer of the night. From that point, the Lakers would never trail again, putting the Wildcats away down the stretch. Mercyhurst outscored Daemen 11-8 down the stretch after the Williams three. Four Lakers scored in double figures with Beins leading the way, recording 19 points on 9-of-11 shooting from the field.
 
The Last Meeting
2/7/15 – Mercyhurst 61, Edinboro 53
In the second half, Edinboro held a 27-26 lead with 14:25 to play in the game, before the Lakers constructed a 13-2 run gain a 39-29 advantage with 10:11 showing on the clock. Mercyhurst stretched the run to 17-6 to take its largest lead of the night of 12 points at 46-34 with just over seven minutes to play in the game. The Lakers would again own this 12-point advantage with 5:51 remaining, before Edinboro used a 10-5 surge to cut the deficit to six points at 51-45 at the 2:08 mark of the second half. The Fighting Scots would shrink Mercyhurst's lead to six points on four more occasions, but this is as close as the Fighting Scots would come, as Mercyhurst was a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line in the final minute of play to hold on for the eight-point conference win. Jaymon Mason paced Edinboro with 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting and a 4-of-5 performance from the free throw line. Henri Wade-Chatman added 14 points making 5-of-14 field goals while matching a team-high with four rebounds. Quinn Lee Yaw and Will Marrow each grabbed four boards for the Fighting Scots, as well. Lee Yaw made his first career start for Edinboro Saturday. Sam Sealy-James posted a game-high five blocked shots.
 
The Head Coaches
Edinboro: Pat Cleary (26-31, 3^rd Year)
Pat Cleary sat at the right side of Edinboro head men's basketball coach Greg Walcavich for 14 years. On March 26, 2013, Cleary moved over a seat as he was officially introduced as Edinboro's tenth head coach after Walcavich announced his retirement. Cleary's first season ended with a 10-16 record. Edinboro lost three games to nationally-ranked teams and suffered a number of close losses, including two overtime losses and two defeats at the buzzer. Season number two saw the Fighting Scots make the PSAC playoffs as the number five seed after being picked to finish eighth in the PSAC coaches' poll. Edinboro ended the year with a 14-13 record, falling at Slippery Rock, 64-60, in the first round of the PSAC Playoffs. Among the victories was a 79-77 overtime upset of 16th-ranked Indiana (Pa.). The Crimson Hawks would go on to reach the NCAA Division II national championship game.
 
Mercyhurst: Gary Manchel (185-128, 13^th year)
Gary Manchel, the eighth head coach in the history of the men's basketball program, enters his 13th season as the Lakers' head man. Manchel has revitalized the Laker program and continues to build on his impressive resume that includes 336 career wins. He previously served as the head coach of UMass Lowell from 1992-2001. The men's basketball team ended the 2014-15 season with its second 20 win season in the last five years, going 20-7, and advanced to its first National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament in school history. The Lakers' have now recorded ten straight winning seasons, a school record, all under the direction of Manchel.
 
The Fighting Scots
Edinboro's Probable Starters
P / No. Player                         Ht/Wt/Yr         Hometown                 PPG / RPG
F / 23   Michael Beck              6-3/215/So.     Erie, Pa.                      2.8 / 3.3
F / 20   Quinn Lee Yaw           6-6/215/So.     Jamestown, NY          3.0 / 3.3
C / 13  Tommy Scales           6-8/220/Sr.      Maple Heights, Ohio   14.8 / 8.3
G / 2    Henri Wade-Chatman 6-2/180/Sr.      Pittsburgh, Pa. 19.5 / 5.5
G / 5    Jaymon Mason           6-3/185/R-So. Edinboro, Pa.              21.3 / 4.5
Top Reserves
G / 24  Sheldon Brogdon        6-0/170/Jr.       Warren, Ohio              3.3 / 0.8
G / 25  Je'Land Head              6-0/180/Jr.       Cleveland, Ohio          3.3 / 1.0
F / 3     Mikael Anderson         6-5/208/Jr.       Las Vegas, Nev.         5.3 / 2.0
 
Players to Watch
Henri Wade-Chatman (G, Sr.) was named to the first team All-PSAC West after finishing second in the PSAC with 18.9 points per game and third in total points with 511. Wade-Chatman averages 19.5 points per game and is 11-for-26 from 3-point range. He collected a season-high 27 points against Mansfield. Nicknamed "Bookah," he is currently 29^th all-time at Edinboro in career points with 948.
 
Tommy Scales (C, Sr.), a former transfer from Fairmont State, leads Edinboro in rebounds with 33, averaging 8.3 rebounds per game. He is third on the team with 14.8 points per game. Scales' season highs include totaling 18 points against Mansfield and grabbing nine rebounds against Slippery Rock and Kutztown.
 
Jaymon Mason (G, R-So.) was named the 2015 PSAC Freshman of the Year, the first Fighting Scot to receive this honor since Dan Grabill in 2002. Mason posted a career-high 39 points against Kutztown, as well as grabbing nine boards, tying his career high. Mason is the team's leading scorer with 21.3 points per game and averages 4.5 rebounds per game.
           
Scouting Mercyhurst
The Mercyhurst Lakers enter Tuesday's game with a 4-1 overall record and a 2-1 PSAC record. They defeated PSAC opponents Indiana (Pa.) and Kutztown, with their lone loss coming against Shippensburg. Their other two wins came against Houghton and Daemen. Despite averaging 73.2 points per game, the Lakers have held their opponents to just 65.6 points per game. Their defense has accounted for 117 defensive rebounds and 44 steals. H'ian Hale leads the team with 12 steals. Despite not starting, senior forward Sein Beines leads the Lakers with 16.0 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game. Senior guard Damon Jones is second in scoring with 14.8 points per game, while senior forward Kayode Ajenifuja is second in rebounds with 5.0 boards per game.  
 
Mercyhurst's Probable Starters
P / No. Player                         Ht/Wt/Yr         Hometown                 PPG/RPG
F / 15   Kayode Ajenifuja         6-5/205/Sr.      Beltsville, Md.              8.6/5.0
F / 33   Andy Hoying               6-5/200/Sr.      Jackson Center, Ohio 5.4/3.2
G / 1    Damon Jones             6-1/175/Sr.      Warrensville, Ohio      14.8/3.6
G / 2    Gerrae Williams          6-2/175/R-Sr.  Aberdeen, Md.            9.2/3.0
G / 55 H'ian Hale                   5-9/170/Jr.       Kalamazoo, Mich.       4.4/2.2
Top Reserves
G / 23  Jean Onana                6-2/180 Sr.      Yaounde, Cameroon  8.0/1.8
F / 25   Sean Beines                6-9/240/Sr.      Kensington, Md.          16.0/5.6