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KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The defending Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division champion No. 19 Kutztown University men's basketball team hits the road for its first PSAC East away game of the season on Friday night when it takes on Lock Haven at 7:30 p.m. inside of Thomas Fieldhouse.   
 
After starting its campaign 5-1, Lock Haven (2-5, 6-5) has lost four of five – all in conference play – to drop into a tie for seventh in the PSAC East. The Bald Eagles snapped a three-game losing streak with a 71-56 victory over Mercyhurst on Friday, Dec. 30 but were defeated by PSAC East co-leader East Stroudsburg, 78-115, their last time out on Tuesday, Jan. 3.  
 
The matchup promises to be an offensive-minded one, as KU and Lock Haven are both ranked in the top-five of the PSAC in points per game and field goal percentage. The two teams are also top-three in the league in turnovers forced.
 
Recent matchups at Thomas Field House have not disappointed, as the previous three meetings between the two teams in the venue have been decided by a total of just seven points, including Kutztown holding on for a 77-76 triumph a season ago. That result helped the Maroon and Gold sweep the season series from Lock Haven, who had swept the season series in both 2013-14 and 2014-15. Notably, five of the last six meetings in the series have been decided by six points or less.
 
Matching last year's team for its best start since beginning the 2009-10 season 14-0, Kutztown (5-2 PSAC, 9-2) is coming off one of the best offensive performances of its campaign on Tuesday night against Clarion. As a team the Maroon and Gold had 25 assists, one shy of a season-high, en route to a 54.1 percent (33-61) shooting performance – its second highest percentage of the season. KU also made 52.2 percent (12-23) from 3-point range for its third highest percentage of the season, while the 94 points were also its third most in 2016-17.
 
Highlighting the performance was junior Ethan Ridgeway (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) tying a 15-year-old school record with 13 assists, matching the mark set by Rodney Shorter in 1987 and Jeff Brickus in 2001. He is now just six assists shy of joining senior Austin Beidelman (Schnecksville, Pa./Parkland) – who did it last Friday against Shippensburg – as one of eight Golden Bears in program history with 300 career assists. He would become just the third junior to accomplish the feat.
 
Ridgway currently leads the PSAC, and ranks fifth in the NCAA, with an average of 8.1 assists per game. His 3.2 assist/turnover ratio is also second in the league, while he has moved into the top-20 in points per game at 14.7 thanks in large part to averaging 20.3 over his previous three games.
 
Also poised to make a move up the KU record books on Friday is Josh Johnson (Norristown, Pa./Norristown), who is currently tied for seventh in the program annals with 1,411 career points. With just four points, he would move into sixth place. On Tuesday, the senior moved into third place in program history with 735 career rebounds.
 
Johnson's .636 field goal percentage is second in the PSAC, while his 2.1 steals per game and 1.2 blocks per game rank third and seventh, respectively. The reigning PSAC East Athlete of the Year is coming off a season-high 23 points and currently leads Kutztown at 15.1 points per game, good for 17th in the conference.
 
Averaging 20.5 points over his last two games, redshirt-sophomore Anthony Lee (Willow Grove, Pa./Abington) joins Ridgeway and Johnson in the top-20 of the PSAC at 14.4 points per game. His .568 3-point percentage is atop the league, while his 2.3 3-pointers per game ranks 11th. He is also eighth in steals per game (1.8) and 10th in blocks per game (0.9).
 
Rounding out the starting five are sophomore Dan Cuevas (Stroudsburg, Pa./Stroudsburg) and redshirt-senior Ryan Connolly (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton Area), who are each averaging 12.0 points. Cuevas is fourth in the PSAC with a .600 field goal percentage, while Connolly is sixth with an average of 2.5 3-pointers per contest.
 
Beidelman and Howard Sellars (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville Area (Saint Peter's)) are KU's top scorers off the bench at 7.3 and 5.3 points per game, respectively, while Max Wagner (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge) is one of just six Golden Bears to appear in all 11 games this season.
 
Following Friday night's contest, KU takes the weekend off before returning home on Monday night to host Cheyney at 7:30 p.m. inside of Keystone Arena.