Men’s Basketball Set To Host #5 La Roche In AMCC First Round

ERIE, Pa. – The No. 4 Penn State Behrend men's basketball team will battle No. 5 La Roche in the first round of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 25. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. in the Junker Center.

Coverage:

Video | Live Stats | Game Notes

Behrend News & Notes:

* Behrend ended the regular season on a three-game winning streak to claim the fourth seed in the conference tournament, defeating Alfred State in its last game on Wednesday (79-46)
* Tommy DiRienzo (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) dropped a game-high 28 points on 11-for-12 shooting from the field and 4-for-5 from three to go along with five rebounds
* Junior Matthew McDonough (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) added 19 points, six assists, and five rebounds
* James Wesling (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) and Dolan Waldo (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) chipped in 11 and eight points off the bench
* Michael Sopko (New Castle, PA/Neshannock) tied Zane Hackett (2012-16) for third in single-game rebounds, tallying a career-high 16 boards and nine assists on Wednesday
* The Lions defense gave up a season-low 46 points to the Pioneers, only allowing them to shoot 34.0 percent from the field and 36.4 percent from three
* DiRienzo leads the team and is currently second in the AMCC in scoring with 20.1 points per game
* McDonough notches 15.3 points per game for second on the team, while Mason Blankenberg (Ontario, NY/Wayne) (9.0 ppg) sits third on the Lions
* On the glass, DiRienzo pulls down a team-high 5.6 rebounds per game
* As a team, Behrend finished the regular season second in the conference in field-goal percentage (47.6) and third in three-point percentage (34.1)
* The Lions have taken care of the ball this season, ranking first in the AMCC and 17^th in Division III with only 10.2 turnovers per game

Meet the Opposition:

* La Roche fell to Penn State Altoona by two points (64-62) in its regular-season finale on Saturday
* Dominic Elliott led with a double-double (10 points/10 rebounds), while Bryce Epps scored a team-high 14 points against the Lions
* Epps leads the team with 15.1 points per game and is third in the AMCC in steals per game (2.1)
* Four other Redhawks record double-figures: Joe Starzynski (13.6 ppg), Michael Brooks (11.3 ppg), Dominic Elliott (10.3 ppg), and Isaiah Thomas (10.2 ppg)
* Starzynski and Thomas both grab a team 6.0 rebounds per game
* Brooks is tied for eighth with Epps in the conference rankings with 2.8 assists per game, while Starzynski is third in the AMCC in blocks per game (1.1)
* Head coach Hermie Carmichael is in his 14th season at the helm of the men's basketball program

Series History:

* Behrend leads the all-time series 47-41, dating back to 1977-78
* However, La Roche has won the past nine matchups, including both regular-season contests this season
* Tuesday's contest will mark the sixth time that both programs have met in the AMCC Tournament with the last time being last year in the AMCC Championship game