IUP “(17-4 overall, 3-2 PSAC-West) AT CLARION (13-6, 3-2)

PSAC-West Men’s Basketball

8 p.m. Feb. 5, 2005

91.7 FM in Clarion/www.redzonemedia.com

LAST GAMES

2/2 - Clarion beat Edinboro 72-66

2/2 - IUP beat Slippery Rock 79-64

NEXT GAMES

2/7 - Clarion hosts Shippensburg & IUP hosts Lock Haven

CLARKE & WELLS CONTINUE TO LEAD INSIDE

Clarion’s inside tandem of Michael Clarke and Ryan Wells continue to carry the Golden Eagles … Wells leads Clarion in scoring (17.3 ppg) & rebounding (8.6 rpg) and is coming off a 29-points, 10-rebound game against Edinboro. He has reached double digits in rebounds in three of the last four games falling one short at Slippery Rock. He has 6 double-doubles on the season and has scored 20 or more points five times including a career-high 35 at Mansfield … Clarke is 2nd on the team in scoring (14.1 ppg) and rebounding (7.9 rpg) and ranked 6th in the nation in field goal percentage heading into the Edinboro game (65.2%). He is now shooting 63.9% after going 8 of 16 vs. Edinboro … Clarke has 4 double-doubles and 2 20-point games this season.

EAGLES ON 9-GAME HOME WIN STREAK

Clarion has won 9 in a row at Tippin Gym going back to last season and are 8-0 at the Tip this year … Since the 1997 season, the Eagles are 102-28 at home (.785) … Clarion is currently 2-0 on a 4-game home stand beating California and Edinboro, which was ranked first in the East Region and 10th in the nation coming into the game.

IUP WINNERS OF 13 OF 15

IUP, which is ranked sixth in the East Region, has won 13 of its past 15 games including 2 in a row … The two loses were to Shippensburg (76-69) and Edinboro (89-81) in back-to-back games last season … The Indians are 8-3 away from Indiana including 5-2 on visiting floors and 3-1 on neutral courts this year … Last season IUP was just 9-7 away from Memorial Field House including 7-6 on visiting courts but won at Clarion on a last-second shot by Mike Mangel.

RECENT CLARION-IUP HISTORY

Clarion has won 4 of the last 6 meetings between the schools and 7 of the last 11 … IUP snapped a 3-game losing streak last year when Mike Mangel hit a 3-pointer with 4 seconds left to rally the Indians from a 10-point deficit with 4:16 to play for a 67-65 win … The teams have met twice in the PSAC Playoffs since 2001 with Clarion winning 79-73 at IUP in 2001 on the way to the PSAC Title and IUP winning 62-55 at IUP in 2002 on its way to the PSAC title … Clarion’s 100-83 win at IUP last season saw the Eagles shoot a team record 70% from 3-point range (14 of 20) including a school-record tying 8-for-8 by Justin Collins … Clarion’s Ron Righter is 13-21 at Clarion vs. IUP, while IUP’s Gary Edwards is 9-9 at IUP against Clarion.