West Chester vs Bloomsburg
Game Details: January 25 I 3 P.M.
Location: Hollinger Field House (West Chester, Pa.)
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Video
Series: 76-69 (W7)
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Bloomsburg Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Last Time Out
West Chester (15-3, 10-1) took to the road on Wednesday night in search of its 15th win of the season against Mansfield. West Chester trailed throughout the early stages of the first half and, despite building its lead up to 10 early in the second half, needed a late-game run (9-3) to escape Mansfield with an 80-78 victory. Davante Dennis led West Chester in scoring with 26 points on 12-of-20 shooting, but a pair of late free throws with just .8 seconds to play by Joshua Walker lifted WCU to the two-point win. West Chester shot 38.8 % from the field and 37.5 % from three-point range while also connecting on 85.7 % (12-for-14) at the free-throw line to escape with the victory.
Flock Talk
West Chester has been led by Elijah Allen, who averages 15.4 points and 2.1 assists per game. Joshua Walker has caught fire in recent weeks after missing time due to injury early in the season, averaging 11.1 points per game, which is fourth best on the team, while also leading the squad in rebounding, averaging 7.8 rebounds per game. Army-West Point transfer Dylan Blair has also seemed to find his footing in recent weeks as the sophomore guard now averages 11.2points per game, which is third best on the team, along with 4.6 assists per game, which is first on the team and among the best in the PSAC. This 4.6 assist per game average includes Blair’s 11 helpers in the win over Shippensburg last Saturday, which is the most in a single game since Kyle McGee dished out 11 against ESU in February 2023. West Chester leads the PSAC and ranks fifth in DII in rebounding, averaging 43.8 rebounds per game, including a 16.9 offensive-rebound per game average, which is fourth best in Division II men’s basketball approaching the final month of the 2024-25 regular season.
Chasing the Legend
Head coach Damien Blair looks to continue his march to 300 career wins this afternoon as he enters play just five wins away from becoming the second West Chester men’s basketball coach to accomplish this feat with the lone other being legendary head coach Dick DeLaney, who the Hollinger Field House floor now bears the name of alongside legendary women’s basketball head coach Deirdre Kane.
Crash the Glass
West Chester is second in Division II in rebounding, averaging 43.8 rebounds per game, thanks in part to a 16.9 offensive rebounds per game, which is fourth best. West Chester is also 6th in DII in rebounding margin and is first in the PSAC in rebounding margin (+9.8) and rebounding.
Made in the Paint
West Chester has outscored its opponents in the paint in 15 of 18 games this season, and the Golden Rams hold a 696 (38.6/g)-527 (29.3/g) advantage in this category. West Chester is unbeaten when outscoring or finishing the game tied with its foes in the paint (34-34 vs. IUP) but is 0-2 when outscored (West Liberty 50-44; East Stroudsburg 34-26).
Give It a Second Chance
West Chester has outscored its opponents in second-chance points in every game but two this season, entering play with a 323 (17.9)-174 (9.6) lead through 18 games.
Series History
West Chester will look to run its winning streak against Bloomsburg to eight in a row on Saturday afternoon and move to 77-69 in the all-time series against the Huskies. Following a late January 2020 loss at Bloomsburg, West Chester has looked dominant against the Huskies, winning each of the last seven meetings, with four of those seven wins coming by double digits. This includes an 81-68 win in late January 2024 at Bloomsburg and an 84-63 over the Huskies in the regular-season finale in Hollinger last year. West Chester has not fallen to Bloomsburg at home since January 2018, when the Huskies won their fourth game in five meetings against the Golden Rams.
West Chester will also be looking to remain unbeaten at home this season, entering play a perfect 9-0 in Hollinger in the midst of a 13-game home winning streak, which is the second-best in the PSAC and sixth-best in Division II men’s basketball.
Scouting Bloomsburg
Bloomsburg (3-15, 2-9) enters play on Saturday looking to halt a three-game losing streak as the Huskies find themselves in the midst of another challenging season. Most recently, Bloomsburg hosted Shepherd Wednesday night and fell to the Rams by a 64-52 final. Bloomsburg trailed by four (32-28) at the half and was outscored 32-24 in the second half, shooting 34.5 % from the field and 28.0 % from beyond the arc in the loss. The Huskies did shoot a perfect 100 % at the line in the loss, but they only made seven trips to the line, limiting the offensive boost this provided. Matt Bengel led Bloomsburg in scoring with 17 points and five rebounds, while Louie Wild led the way in assists with five helpers in the 12-point loss.
Bengel, a Senior guard from Erie, is continuing to do his part for the Huskies in 2024-25, leading the team in scoring (17.6/g) and rebounding (5.9/g) while also averaging 1.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game to rank third and first on the team in these categories. Wild leads the squad in assists, averaging 2.8 per game, and is second on the team in scoring (12.9/g) and rebounding (3.7/g). Averaging 68.9 points per game, Bloomsburg shoots 43.7 % from the field and 34.7 % from three-point range on the year but trails in both rebounding (39.3-33.0) and turnovers (18.0-15.7) entering play on Saturday afternoon.
