West Chester at Pitt-Johnstown
Game Details: December 17 I 3 P.M.
Location: Sports Center (Johnstown, Pa.)
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Video
Series: 8-7 (UPJ 3-2 in last five; includes two straight wins for Mountain Cats)
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
UPJ Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Last Time Out
West Chester ran its winning streak to eight in a row on Saturday afternoon against a talented Caldwell team, escaping the Garden State with a narrow 80-76 victory over the Cougars. West Chester trailed only briefly and never by more than three before stretching its lead to as many as 11 early in the second half. The 11-point lead was far from safe as Caldwell stormed back and cut the advantage to just two late before West Chester put the game away at the free throw line for the 80-76 victory.
Joshua Walker (Upper Marlboro, Md./Riverdale Baptist) scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds as one of four Golden Rams in double figures in the victory. Dylan Blair (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West) added 16 of his own, while Anthony McCall (Philadephia, Pa./ANC) and Elijah Allen (Dover, Del./Dover) added 13 and 10 each. West Chester shot 44.8 % (26-of-58) from the field, including a 25.0 % (2-for-8) effort from deep, while also going 26-for-32 (81.3 %) at the line in the triumph. One of the top rebounding teams in DII, West Chester, ended the game with a 42-30 lead in rebounding, which helped the Golden Rams overcome an 18-13 deficit in the turnover battle.
Flock Talk
As a team, West Chester ranks sixth in the PSAC in scoring, averaging 80.9 points per game, while the Golden Ram defense is ranked seventh in the league, holding opponents to an average of 76.1 points per game. Against PSAC competition, West Chester’s defense has been even more impressive, holding opponents to just 70.8 points per game, which is second best in the league and best among teams that have played four league games so far this year, while also ranking fifth in scoring, averaging 81.5 points per game.
Through 10 games, West Chester shoots 42.8 % from the field and 32.7 % from three-point range while also hitting 71.3 % of its attempts at the free throw line. West Chester also outrebounds teams by a PSAC-best 10.5 (44.9-34.4) rebounds per game and holds a slim but growing lead in the turnover battle (+0.3; 14.5-14.2). West Chester’s opponents shoot 42.9 % from the field and 30.6 % from beyond the arc while also hitting 70.8 % of their free throws, averaging just under 17 trips to the line per game.
Allen leads the team in scoring, averaging 17.1 points per game, while Blair is second, averaging 11.4 per game, followed by Walker and Davante Dennis (Baltimore, Md./Red Lion), averaging 10.3 and 10.1, respectively. Walker continues to lead the team in rebounding, averaging 5.8 per game, while Dennis and McCall also average 5.4 and 5.2 rebounds. Blair, who led the team in assists on Saturday afternoon with five, continues to lead the way, averaging 4.1 per game, while also leading the team in steals, averaging 1.8 per game.
Going Streaking
West Chester has now won eight games in a row, which is the Golden Rams longest winning streak since the team won 13 in a row to open the 2019-20 season. After dropping the first two games of the year, this is the Golden Rams longest mid-season winning streak since the Golden Rams rattled off 15 in a row in the second half of the 2018-19 season. West Chester started this streak with a 92-61 win over Seton Hill in December 2018 and did not lose again until February 23, 2019, vs ESU.
Crash The Glass
West Chester leads the PSAC and ranks fourth in DII in rebounding, averaging 44.9 rebounds per game, including 17.5 offensive rebounds per game, which is second-best in DII, trailing only the National Rebounding leader, Tampa, for first as the Spartans average 45.8 rebounds per game, including 18.1 offensive boards. West Chester is also eighth in Division II and first in the PSAC in rebounding margin, outrebounding opponents by an average of 10.5 rebounds per game.
Individually, Walker leads the Golden Rams in rebounding, averaging 5.8 per game, while Dennis is a close second, averaging 5.4 per game.
Scheduling Oddity
Tuesday afternoon’s game will be a non-league game for West Chester while serving as a league game for UPJ. Fans will notice oddities in the Golden Rams league/non-league splits for the remainder of the season. The game must be officially designated as a league game in NCAA Statistical software to count for the Mountain Cats correctly. This oddity, which impacts two other Eastern Division teams (Millersville & Shepherd), was born out of necessity following the sudden departure of Mercyhurst, which created an imbalance in the Eastern/Western Divisions for at least the 2024-25 season.
Series History
West Chester will play Pitt-Johnstown for the 16th time in program history, holding a slim and shrinking 8-7 lead in the all-time series. Pitt-Johnstown has won three of the last five, including two straight. The Golden Rams last win over the Mountain Cats came in January 2019 when West Chester triumphed by a 70-58 final in Hollinger. West Chester has not left the Sports Center in Johnstown with a win since November 2015.
Scouting UPJ
Pitt-Johnstown enters play with an overall record of 7-4 and a mark of 3-1 in league action after suffering its first PSAC loss of the year by a 96-72 final at Millersville on December 7 in the second game of its back-to-back trip East. In this game, Millersville jumped out to an early 54-28 lead at the half before holding off a 44-42 second-half surge by the Mountain Cats to emerge victorious by a 96-72 final. UPJ shot 43.9 % (29-of-66) from the field and 28.6 % (4-of-14) from three-point range, led by Vinnie Cugini and Baden Forup, who scored 20 and 16 points, respectively.
UPJ enters Tuesday afternoon third in the league in scoring, averaging 87.4 points per game through 11 games, while the Mountain Cat defense allows an average of 83.7 points per game, which is second worst in the league, suggesting Tuesday could be a day for offense in Western Pennsylvania. UPJ shoots 47.9 % from the field on the year, including a 36.9 % effort from three-point range, while also hitting 74.4 % of its attempts at the line. The Mountain Cats opponents shoot 47.1 % from the field and 33.7 % from deep while also finding themselves on the wrong end of a 39.6-33.9 rebounding margin.
Jay Rose is first on the team in scoring, averaging 17.8 points per game, while Ryan Smith and Cugini are second and third, averaging 14.1 and 11.5 points per game, respectively. Forup is fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 11.1 points per game as the lone other Mountain Cat in double figures. Forup also leads the team in rebounding, averaging 5.4 rebounds per game, including a team-best 2.9 per game on the offensive glass, while Sean Dillon is first on the team in assists, averaging 5.4 per game, which is third-best in the PSAC.
