KUTZTOWN, PA (March 4, 2010) – The Kutztown University men's basketball team will meet Clarion University in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) semifinal showdown at East Stroudsburg's Koehler Fieldhouse beginning at 5:30 p.m. Fans can listen to the game liver over the Golden Bear Radio Network by CLICKING HERE.
This is the second meeting of the season between the Golden Bears (22-6 overall) and Golden Eagles (18-10). Kutztown defeated Clarion, 98-72, in a PSAC crossover contest on Sunday Jan. 3 at Keystone Arena. The Golden Bears made their first 10 shots en route to shooting a ridiculous and season-high 64.3 percent from the floor.
“The first game doesn't mean anything,” Kutztown head coach Bernie Driscoll said. “Playing the second game of a crossover on the road is really hard. I just think we caught lightning a bottle for a game. Clarion is well coached and they have athletic guards so we definitely know we will have our work cut out for us.”
The survivor of this game advances to Saturday's PSAC title game against the winner of the second semifinal between host East Stroudsburg (24-4) and Indiana, Pa (26-2). The PSAC champion will earn the automatic bid to the 2010 NCAA Division II tournament. The pairings will be announced Sunday night at 9:30 p.m. on ncaa.com.
The Final Four will also feature seven of the PSAC's top 15 scorers, six of the top 10 rebounders and the top four players in assists, one from each team.
Ticket prices for the PSAC semifinals are $14 for a two-day pass for adults ($8 for Saturday only) and $5 for children under 12 ($3 for Saturday only). Students from member PSAC institutions will be admitted for free with a valid ID.
After conquering East top seed Mansfield on the road, 65-61, in Tuesday's quarterfinals, the Golden Bears are brimming with confidence. Senior guard and Division II national player of the year candidate Stephen Dennis and Julius Gray scored 24 points each for Kutztown at Decker Gym. Clarion defeated Mercyhurst, 76-69, in its quarterfinal contest.
Kutztown is back in the semifinals for the second consecutive season. The Golden Bears beat Slippery Rock, 103-90, in the semifinals last year at Gannon before falling to the host Golden Knights in the championship game. Kutztown is 3-0 all-time in PSAC semifinal games. This is KU's eighth consecutive trip to the PSAC playoffs, the longest current streak of any conference member.
Clarion and Kutztown are two of the top scoring offensive teams in the PSAC. Kutztown is second in scoring offense (79.6) and Clarion is third (78.7). The Golden Bears limited Mansfield to 61 points and have held five of their last eight opponents under 70 points. Kutztown's defense and execution proved to be the difference in its road win at Mansfield.
“We showed a lot of poise throughout the game,” Kutztown senior guard Stephen Dennis (West Chester, PA/Henderson) said. “Each time Mansfield made a run at us, we were able to stay poised and respond. We played really good defense, contested shots and with a lot of energy. That's going to be really key for us if we want to keep moving forward.”
Dennis, the nation's leading scorer, finished with a season-low 12 points in the first meeting against Clarion, partly because of foul trouble and his scoring services weren't needed. Junior Ryan Washington tied his career-high with 31 points and Gray added 22 points for the Golden Bears. Dennis has scored 2,345 points in his sterling career. He has scored in double figures in 43 straight games and 104 times in his career.
Washington, who has posted 15 double-doubles this season, is second in the PSAC in blocked shots (2.5) and third in the conference in scoring (18.1), rebounding (9.9) and field goal percentage (60.6). Meanwhile, Gray is averaging 13.3 points per outing for the Golden Bears. In addition to averaging 9.3 points per game, junior forward Tamir Johnson leads the PSAC in field goal percentage (64.3) and seventh in rebounding (8.3).
The win against Mansfield could be the start of something big for the Golden Bears, who lost their last three PSAC East regular season road games. The Golden Bears may have become hardened by all of the close defeats on the road and the fight to make the PSAC East playoffs. The last two games were microcosms of Kutztown's season as it raced to big leads only to have Bloomsburg and Mansfield make it close at the end. Yet, when it mattered most, it was Gray and a committed defensive effort that provided the finishing touch.
“I hate losing but I think those experiences on the road down the stretch made us stronger,” Driscoll said. “Each game came down to two or three critical possessions. We had opportunities to win in each game and for us it's just a matter of us cleaning up little things. I am sure in the win at Mansfield, the team learned a lot about themselves. If we continue to do the little things then the big things will take care of themselves. The guys understand that we have to play defense to win on the road.”
Kutztown's defense will have to be at its best to find a way to slow down the Golden Eagles, who are 11-5 since losing to Kutztown.
The balanced Golden Eagles have four players averaging double figures led by Jamar Harrington, who scores at a 15.6 point per game clip. Other double digit scorers for Clarion include Lloyd Harrison (15.0), Shameel Carty (14.1) and Paul McQueen (11.1). McQueen (7.9) and Carty (7.5) combine for over 15 rebounds per game. Clarion leads the PSAC in free-throw percentage (72.0), steals (11.1) and turnover margin (+4.86).
In its victory over Mercyhurst, Carty led the Golden Eagles with 21 points, seven rebounds, five steals and three assists, while Lloyd Harrison added 14 points, nine assists, four rebounds and one steal. McQueen chipped in a double-double for Clarion with 13 points, 15 rebounds and four assists with Jamar Harrison adding 15 points. Clarion finished the game with a 21-7 run in the final 4:37.
Carty had 19 rebounds in a win over Lock Haven last Wednesday, the most rebounds by a Golden Eagle in PSAC-West play since Chris Roosevelt in 1981. Clarion finished second in the PSAC-West for the 1st time since 1978. Lloyd Harrison has hit 132 free throws this season, the third most at Clarion since 1969. His 173 free throws attempted are the 4th most since 1969.
“We are happy to still be playing and looking forward to the challenge that's in front of us,” Dennis said. “We know this game will not be easy for us and that Clarion is a much different team from the one that we played in January. This is the playoffs so we know we have to play with extra intensity and more focus if we're going to reach our ultimate goal.”
--KU--
