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KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University men's basketball team looks to build its first winning streak of the season as the Golden Bears travel to face the Millersville University Marauders on Wednesday night. Tipoff at Pucillo Gymnasium on Wednesday, Jan. 15 is set for 8 p.m.
 
The Golden Bears (4-10, 2-2 PSAC East) previously ended a six-game losing streak by defeating Cheyney University on Saturday afternoon, 76-74, to get back to the .500 mark in the PSAC East. That win was KU's first at home, but the Golden Bears own a winning record on the road.
 
Meanwhile, Millersville (5-8, 1-3) owns a 5-1 record at Pucillo Gym. The team's only home loss came against East Stroudsburg. However, the Marauders defeated West Chester on Dec. 4 at home.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Kutztown broke its six-game losing streak, and earned its first win at home in the process, by defeating Cheyney University, 76-74. In the win, Tracy Peal led all Golden Bears scorers with 23 points, including a career-best 11-of-12 from the charity stripe. Meanwhile, Josh Johnson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) scored a career-high 22 points, shooting a stellar 10-of-11 from the floor. His mark from the floor is a team best percentage-wise all season by a Kutztown player.
 
DOUBLE J, DOUBLE DIGITS: While freshman forward Josh Johnson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) put together his best performance of the season on Saturday, it's far from his only high note this season as a Golden Bear. He owned a double-digit scoring streak of nine games to start the season, marking the longest streak by a KU freshman to start his career since Butch Hills, a Kutztown Athletics Hall of Famer that did so in his first 10 games in 1985-86. Johnson, a two-time PSAC East Freshman of the Week, averages 12.1 points and 6.9 rebounds per game this season.
 
THE PEAL DEAL: Sophomore forward Tracy Peal leads the team with 16.0 points per game. Peal now looks like arguably the top focal point offensively since Tyler Brooks (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone) suffered a knee injury, as he leads the team with 179 field-goal attempts. Peal seems to have hit his rhythm, averaging 21.0 points per game in the four games in 2014. This includes a career-high 29 points against California (PA) on Jan. 4. For the season, he also has 5.7 rebounds per game, which ranks second on the team, behind Josh Johnson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown)'s 6.9 average.
 
FRESHMAN ON POINT: A starter from the beginning of the season, freshman point guard Austin Beidelman (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) held his "breakout" party on Dec. 17, when he scored 12 of his team-high (and season-high) 27 points in the final six minutes of an OT road win at Clarion. For the season, Beidelman is one of four players who average double figures, with his 10.9 points per game. He also leads the team with 3.4 assists per game.
 
GOLDEN ROAD FOR IMPROVEMENT: The Golden Bears earned victories in their first three road games. As of now, Kutztown owns a 3-2 road record, with the losses at Pitt-Johnstown and Slippery Rock. This surpasses the road win total from last season, when Kutztown finished 2-12. The 3-0 road start was a first since the 2009-10 season, when the team finished 23-8.
 
Looking in the Other Corner: the Millersville Marauders
 
NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Playing at Pucillo Gym truly makes a difference for the Marauders this season. Millersville owns a 5-1 record at home and a 0-7 record on the road. The road losses include those at Wilmington (7-10), Goldey-Beacom (6-9) and Mansfield (3-12), but the home wins include those against West Chester (11-4) and Slippery Rock (13-4).
 
POTENTIAL NEW WEAPON: Junior guard Kelvin Parker, a transfer from Division I Mount St. Mary's, stood out in his debut with the Marauders. Parker scored 24 points on Wednesday against Mansfield, doing so on 10-of-19 shooting. His younger brother, Tavon, leads all scorers with at least 100 minutes with 13.8 points per game, doing so on 42.3 percent shooting.
 
HEY THERE, COACH: Marauders head coach Fred Thompson is in his 16th season with the program. Thompson led Millersville to the NCAA Tournament four times, including three to the Regional Final. The 2006-07 team set a school record with 28 wins, while the 2002-03 team won 26 games, second in school history. The last NCAA Tourney appearance was in 2008.