Complete Game Notes

GAME PROGRAM INFO
Slippery Rock has moved away from printed game programs for all sports in 2023-24. This page will serve as the "Digital Game Program" for this week's game. To navigate to all gameday info for any SRU home events this year, simply visit rockathletics.com/gameday or scan the QR code on the "Gameday Info" posters hanging in each facility.
 

Slippery Rock vs. Shippensburg
The Rock (2-6, 1-2)	Raiders (4-4, 1-2)
Roster	Roster
Schedule	Schedule
Statistics	Statistics
Coach Ian Grady	Coach Chris Fite
Program Records	Program Records
PSAC Standings
PSAC Leaders
PSAC Schedule
Morrow Field House
Tickets
Complete Game Notes

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. - For the first time in 32 days, the Slippery Rock University men's basketball team will play games at Morrow Field House as The Rock returns home to host back-to-back Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference crossover games.
 
SRU will first play Shepherd University 5 p.m. Monday followed by a 7:30 p.m. Tuesday contest against Shippensburg University.
 
TICKET PRICES
Fans are encouraged to purchase advance tickets online HERE.
Adult General Admission: $10
Visiting Student with valid student ID: $5
Ages 6-High School: $5
Ages 6 and Under: FREE
SRU Students: FREE with valid student ID
 
WATCH ON YOUR TV - "ROCK ATHLETICS DIGITAL NETWORK" APPS
• Fans can watch both of this week's games live and on-demand for free on the Rock Athletics Digital Network, created and operated by the SRU athletic communication office.
 
• Search for Rock Athletics Digital Network in the app stores on Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Roku and Android TV devices. The streaming web player linked above will also integrate with Chrome Cast devices to allow viewers to cast the game to those devices.
 
GAME 8 DETAILS
Opponent: Shepherd
Date: Monday – 5 p.m.
Location: Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
Venue: Morrow Field House
Video: Link
Live Stats: Link
In-game Updates: Twitter/X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: Tied 7-7
Last Played: Dec. 2, 2022 (SRU won 79-74)
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Rock and Rams have split the first 14 games in the series. However, SRU has controlled the series as of late with five wins in its last seven contests versus Shepherd including a 79-74 victory on the road over the Rams a year ago behind a 24-point, two-steal effort from Amante Britt.
 
GAME 9 DETAILS
Opponent: Shippensburg
Date: Tuesday – 7:30 p.m.
Location: Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
Venue: Morrow Field House
Video: Link
Live Stats: Link
In-game Updates: Twitter/X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: Shippensburg leads 33-28
Last Played: Dec. 3, 2022 (SU won 75-59)
 
SERIES HISTORY
Shippensburg has won four straight games against The Rock, including a 75-59 victory last season, to improve its record in the all-time series to 33-28. SRU's last victory against the Raiders came at Morrow Field House in 2014 when Antonio Butler went for 18 points and eight rebounds as part of an 80-62 triumph.
 

TALE OF THE TAPE
STAT	ROCK	SHEP	SHIP
Scoring*	76.6	65.1	74.3
Opp. Scoring*	79.3	64.4	80.7
FG%	.433	.411	.425
Opp. FG%	.452	.427	.424
3-Point FG%	.333	.307	.350
Opp. 3-Point FG%	.360	.355	.249
FT%	.715	.720	.690
Rebounds*	38.1	32.3	40.0
Rebounding Margin	+2.9	-0.4	-5.1
Turnovers*	13.1	13.1	17.0
Opp. Turnovers*	9.9	13.4	13.6
Turnover Margin	-3.3	+0.3	-3.4
Steals*	5.1	5.9	6.1
Blocks*	5.1	2.0	2.6
* per game stats

SLIPPERY ROCK PRIMER
• Overall Record: 1-6
• PSAC Record: 0-2
• PSAC West Standings: t-8th
• Home Record: 1-0
• Away Record: 0-6
• Streak: L6
• Last 5 Games: 0-5
• Head Coach: Ian Grady | Sixth season (69-54, .561)

LAST TIME OUT
In what was its sixth straight road game, Slippery Rock played Davis & Elkins, which is ranked seventh in this week's D2CSC Atlantic Region Poll, to a 49-49 tie at halftime, but the host Senators were able to pull away in the final 20 minutes for a 94-85 victory on Dec. 14.
 
ANOTHER CLOSE LOSS
While there are no bonus points for narrow defeats, SRU's setback at Davis & Elkins was The Rock's fifth single-digit loss of the year. three of those five losses have been one-possession decisions.
 
THE ROCK vs. THE PSAC EAST
Dating back to the 2011-12 season when the PSAC began counting crossover games as division contests, Slippery Rock has compiled a record of 43-28 (.606) overall against Eastern Division teams including a quality 24-10 (.706) mark against PSAC East schools at Morrow Field House.
 
So far this season, Slippery Rock is 0-2 against the PSAC East after dropping a pair of road games earlier in the year at West Chester and Millersville.
 
THE MAGIC OF MORROW
Few teams in the Atlantic Region dominate at home like Slippery Rock does at Morrow Field House. SRU has posted 14 consecutive seasons with a winning record at home.
 
Since 2008-09, Slippery Rock is an outstanding 155-48 (.764) at home. Last season, SRU was 12-4 at Morrow Field House and are currently 1-0 this year with a season-opening victory over West Virginia Wesleyan.
 
SLIPPERY ROCK IN BACK-TO-BACKS
Stretches of two games in two days have not been a problem for The Rock historically speaking. Dating back to the 2009-10 season, SRU is a strong 64-38 (.627) when playing contests in back-to-back days. The Rock are even more impressive in the second leg of back-to-backs as evidenced by a 35-16 (.686) in those contests.
 
A season ago, Slippery Rock went 5-1 when playing back-to-back games. So far this year, SRU is 0-4 when playing two games in two days with single-digit losses to Hawaii Pacific and Chaminade as well as crossover defeats at West Chester and Millersville.
 
ROCK 16TH IN BLOCKS
A long-time staple of all Rock teams has been its ability to protect the rim with a volume of blocks. This year's team appears poised to carry on that trend as SRU enters its second round of crossover play ranked 16th in the nation in blocks per game at 5.1.
 
SRU boasts six athletes with at least four blocks this year led by Lashon Lindsey, who has served up eight rejections. Ja'Mier Fletcher (6), Maceo Austin (5), Bobby Clifford (5), Nik Cazacu (4) and Sheick Samoura (4) round out The Rock's block leaders.

In addition to being among the nation's best in rejections, Slippery Rock also leads the PSAC in blocks and fourth among all Atlantic Region teams.
 
PLAYING THE LONG GAME
Slippery Rock has averaged 7.9 made 3-pointers per game through seven games, which ranks fourth in the conference, while also posting the PSAC's sixth highest team shooting percentage from distance.
 
Five Rock athletes average at least one made 3-pointer per game while three are shooting above 35 percent from long range. Ike Herster has made a team-high 15 3-pointers and ranks eighth in the PSAC in made 3's per game with 2.1.
 
Samoura, who shoots 40 percent from distance, has also made double-digit 3-point attempts with 10. Herster and Samoura are joined by Austin (8), Lindsey (7) and Jomo Goings (6) as SRU's leaders in made 3-pointers.
 
7 IN A ROW FOR SHEICK
Samoura heads into the Shepherd game having made at least one 3-pointer in all seven games this season. If Samoura were to make a 3-pointer in both home games this week he would become one of nine athletes over the last 14 years at The Rock to have made a 3-pointer in at least nine straight games.

BREAKOUT GAME FOR HOWES
A highlight for The Rock in their loss to Davis & Elkins came from point guard Luke Howes, who recorded one of his best offensive performances to date on the collegiate level.
 
Over 32 minutes of playing time, Howes went for 21 points, six rebounds and two steals while shooting 8-for-12 from the field overall, 3-of-4 from 3-point range and a perfect 2-for-2 at the free throw line.
 
The 21 points were a career-high for the Walsh the transfer. Additionally, Howes' three made 3-pointers matched his previous personal best.
 
The Davis & Elkins game also continued a positive shooting trend for Howes, who has now made 13 of his last 21 field goal attempts (.619) over the last three games after opening his SRU career hitting just 7-of-24 (.292) shots in the first four games of the year.

FLETCHER STARTING TO ESTABLISH HIMSELF
Fletcher continues to establish himself as a low post threat for SRU. Over his last three games, all of which have been starts, Fletcher has averaged 9.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game while shooting a stellar 50 percent (11-of-22) from the field over that time range.
 
34.2 percent of Fletcher's rebounds this season have come on the offensive glass (13 out of 38) including eight in the last three games.

AUSTIN WITH A BIG RETURN
After missing the Millersville game, Austin returned in fine fashion against Davis & Elkins to the tune of 20 points, six rebounds and one assist over 34 minutes. In addition to converting 2-of-3 foul shots and 2-of-5 3-point attempts, Austin went 8-of-18 from the field overall.
 
Austin's solid shooting performance against the Senators snapped a four-game streak in which he shot a combined percentage of just .307 (16-for-52) and was more along the lines of his 9-for-11 showing in The Rock's season-opening win over West Virginia Wesleyan.

THE ROCK ROTATION
• Austin leads a balanced Rock scoring attack at 15.8 ppg on a .407 field goal percentage. Austin also goes for 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals and just under one block per game.
 
• Herster is second on the team in scoring at 12.9. SRU's deep threat is also a near automatic 21-of-25 (.840) at the foul line.
 
• Samoura, who has shot above 40 percent in every game this year, scores 11.4 ppg.
 
• Lindsey is The Rock's leader in rebounds (8.4) and blocks (1.1) all the while dishing out 2.1 apg and scoring 10.7 ppg.
 
• Goings scores 10.5 ppg on a .500 field goal percentage to go with 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game.
 
• Howes, the only Rock athlete to start all seven games, does a little bit of everything for SRU with per game marks of 7.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals.

• Fletcher has been on a roll as of late with three straight solid performances. On the year, he has averaged 6.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game while shooting 50 percent from the field.
 
• Rounding out The Rock's rotation is Clifford (2.9 points / 3.6 rebounds) and Mack Staunch (1.6 points / 1.2 rebounds).

HOW THE ROCK COMPARES (PSAC TEAM RANKINGS)
• Scoring: 6th (76.6)
• Points Allowed Per Game: 13th (79.3)
• Scoring Margin: 13th (-2.7)
• Field Goal Percentage %: 10th (.433)
• Opponent Field Goal %: 12th (.452)
• 3pt-Field Goal Percentage %: 6th (.333)
• Opponent 3pt-Field Goal %: 12th (.360)
• 3pt Per Game: 5th (7.9)
• Free Throw Percentage %: 9th (.715)
• Rebounds Per Game: 10th (38.1)
• Rebounding Margin: 6th (+2.9)
• Steals Per Game: 18th (5.1)
• Blocks Per Game: 1st (5.1)
• Turnovers Per Game: 7th (13.1)
• Opponent Turnovers Per Game: 18th (9.9)
• Turnover Margin: 14th (-3.3)
 
CAREER RECORDS WATCH
Blocks
1. Kevin Jones (1987-91): 184
2. Micah Till (2017-20): 118
3. Erik Raleigh (2013-16): 115
4. Tabari Perry (2010-14): 98
5. Lashon Lindsey: 87
 
Minutes Played (14-18)
14. Shannon Pullium (1984-89): 2,188
15. Mark Metzka (1991-95): 2,184
16. William Johnson (2002-05): 2, 179
17. Micha Till (2017-20): 2,170
18. Lashon Lindsey: 2,147
 
3-Pointers (No. 17-21)
17. Derek Gaus (1990-94): 76
17. Montez Briggs (1999-01): 76
19. Tabari Perry (2010-14): 75
20. Jon Valeriano (2010-12): 74
21. Lashon Lindsey: 73
 
Offensive Rebounds (No. 19-22)
19. Joe Lewandowski (1995-97): 145
20. Christal Malalu (2016-18): 143
20. Cornelius Brown (2013-16): 143
22. Lashon Lindsey: 140
22. Troy Miller (1991-94): 139
 
Steals (20-22)
20. Dennis Greene (1991-95): 86
21. Paul Gilbert (1994-97): 83
t22. Lashon Lindsey: 78
t22. Bob McConnell (1988-92): 78
 
Rebounds (No. 20-24)
20. Denny Kopka (1971-74): 643
21. Curt Williams (1984-88): 623
22. Peyton Tomblin (1971-74): 574
23. Lashon Lindsey: 567
24. Bob Wiegend (1968-71): 556
 
SHEPHERD PRIMER
• Overall Record: 3-4
• PSAC Record: 0-2
• PSAC East Standings: t-7th
• Home Record: 1-3
• Away Record: 2-0
• Neutral Site Record: 0-1
• Streak: L2
• Last 5 Games: 2-3
• Head Coach: Justin Namolik | 15th season at SU (206-207, .499)
 
RAMS STAT LEADERS (Per Game)
SCORING: Dan McClain-Corley (15.9), Phillip Jordan (14.4)
FG%: Marcus Banks (.500), Carson Poffenberger (.469)
3PT%: Jordan (.385), McClain-Corley (.311)
ASSISTS: Jordan (4.1)
REBOUNDS: Poffenberger (4.9)
STEALS: Jordan (1.6)
BLOCKS: Stefan Marcelle (0.7)
 
SCOUTING THE RAMS
• Few teams in the nation have defended as well as Shepherd has through seven games as the Rams enters Morrow Field House having allowed just 64.4 ppg – the lowest average in the PSAC and the 14th in the nation overall. The most points allowed by Shepherd this year has been 73 against No. 13 California.
 
• However, offense has been just as hard to come by thus far Shepherd, which scores a PSAC-low 65.1 ppg that has ultimately resulted in a 3-4 overall record.
 
• Shepherd's offense is led by the trio of Dan McClarin-Corley (15.9), Phillip Jordan (14.4) and Carson Poffenberger (10.0). Jordan also ranks sixth in the PSAC in assists with 4.1 per game.
 
• The Rams' rebounding efforts are spread out throughout the roster as no athlete averages more than 5.0 rpg, but six average at least 4.0 rpg.
 
• In addition to looking for its first conference win of the season, a victory over The Rock would also help Shepherd avoid its first three-game losing streak this year.
 
SHIPPENSBURG PRIMER
• Overall Record: 4-3
• PSAC Record: 1-1
• PSAC East Standings: t-2nd
• Home Record: 2-1
• Away Record: 1-2
• Neutral Site Record: 1-0
• Streak: L1
• Last 5 Games: 3-2
• Head Coach: Chris Fite | 10th season at SU (179-95, .653)
 
RAIDER STAT LEADERS (Per Game)
SCORING: Markus Frank (21.6), Ty Crespo (11.1)
FG%: Kyle Whippen (.480), Frank (.466)
3PT%: Crespo (.500), Michael Dunn (.395)
ASSISTS: Andrew Recchia (3.6)
REBOUNDS: Whippen (9.1)
STEALS: Frank (1.7)
BLOCKS: Whippen (1.6)
 
SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
• Annually one of the top programs in the Atlantic Region, Shippensburg comes to The Rock at 4-3 overall and having lost two of its last three games to IUP and Bowie State with a victory over Seton Hill sandwiched between the setbacks.
 
• The Raiders travel to nationally ranked California (Pa.) Monday prior to its game against SRU.
 
• Shippensburg currently averages 74.3 points per game while allowing 80.7. However, SU's opponent scoring is largely skewed by two games – West Liberty scored 121 and IUP recorded 96. The Raiders have held opponents to 69.6 ppg in their five other games.
 
• Opponents shoot just 24.9 percent from 3-point range against the Raiders. Offensively, Shippensburg shoots 42.5 percent from the field overall and average 22.9 3-point attempts per game while committing 17 turnovers a night and possessing a -3.4 turnover margin and a -5.1 rebounding margin.
 
• Individually, redshirt freshman swingman Markus Frank is the PSAC's second-leading scorer at 21.6 ppg. Frank, who also averages 7.4 rebounds per game, shoots 46.6 percent from the field and averages 8.0 free throw attempts per game. Frank has scored at least 20 points in four of the last five games highlighted by a 40-point outburst vs. Indiana.
 
• Supplementing Frank's offensive output is the long-range duo of Ty Crespo and Michael Dunn. The pair have combined to make 26 of Shippensburg's 56 successful 3-pointers this season at a 43.3 percent rate.
 
• Defensively, Kyle Whippen leads the PSAC in both total blocks (11) and blocks per game (1.57). Whippen is also the Raiders' top rebounder with 9.1 rpg.
 
UP NEXT
Slippery Rock will break for the week before returning to PSAC competition with a road game 3 p.m. Dec. 30 at Lock Haven University.





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