Lions, RedHawks Put Winning Streaks on The Line in AMCC Game of the Week

ERIE, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend men's basketball team takes on La Roche in a battle of the top two teams in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Game of the Week on Wednesday, Jan. 31 in the Junker Center.

Coverage:

Video | Live Stats | Game Notes

Behrend News & Notes:

* Behrend extended its winning streak to six games with an 86-75 victory at Mount Aloysius on Saturday
* Tommy DiRienzo (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) recorded his second 30-point game of the season, finishing with a game-high 30 points and six rebounds
* Matthew McDonough (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) notched 18 points on 7-10 shooting, while Matt Niland (Erie, PA/Fairview) scored a season-high 14 points and Mason Blankenberg (Ontario, NY/Wayne) also added 14 points off the bench
* Niland dished out five assists, while Blankenberg pulled down three rebounds
* On the glass, RJ Marsh (State College, PA/Saint Joseph's Catholic Academy) grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds and Michael Sopko (New Castle, PA/Neshannock) collected five rebounds
* As a team, Behrend delivered 16 points off 13 Mount Aloysius turnovers and outrebounded the Mounties (28-24)
* DiRienzo leads the AMCC with 20.1 points per game, while Marsh pulls down a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game to rank ninth in the conference
* The Lions are first in the conference in field-goal percentage (46.9), three-point percentage (34.5), and free-throw percentage (75.1)

Meet the Opposition:

* La Roche has won eight straight games, defeating Pitt-Bradford at home on Saturday (85-73)
* Juniors Michael Brooks (12.9 ppg) and Joe Starzynski (12.8) lead the Redhawks in scoring, while Bryce Epps chips in 12.2 points per game
* Forward Isaiah Thomas grabs a team-high 6.1 rebounds per game and Brooks dishes out 3.1 assists per game
* The Redhawks rank third in the AMCC in three-point percentage (32.6), free-throw percentage (72.3), and assists per game (13.9)
* The reigning AMCC Champions were selected to finish second in the 2023-24 AMCC Preseason Coaches' Poll after recording a 13-1 conference record last season
* Brooks and Starzynski were named as AMCC Preseason Players To Watch
* Head coach Hermie Carmichael is in his 12th season at the helm of the men's basketball program

Series History:

* Behrend leads the all-time series 47-37, dating back to the 1977-78 season
* The Redhawks have won the last five matchups against the Lions, including the matchup earlier this season on December 6^th (56-45)