Men's Basketball

East Stroudsburg, IUP claim top spots in 2023-24 PSAC Men's Basketball Preseason Polls

IUP narrowly bested California, with five first-place votes to the Vulcans' four, while East Stroudsburg collected five first-place votes to West Chester's three.

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The IUP Crimson Hawks and East Stroudsburg Warriors have been voted as the top teams in the Western and Eastern conferences, respectively, in the 2023-24 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Preseason Polls.

The polls are voted on by the conference’s head coaches.

The Western Division poll was a tight race between IUP and Calfornia, with IUP receiving five first-place votes and the Vulcans collecting four. In the East, East Stroudsburg (five first-place votes) outpaced West Chester (three) and Shepherd (one.)

Find the complete polls as well as team-by-team capsules below.
 
Western Division (Number of first-place votes)
 
1. IUP (5)
2. California (4)
3. Mercyhurst
4. Slippery Rock
5. Pitt-Johnstown
6. Seton Hill
7. Gannon
8. Clarion
9. Edinboro
 
 
Eastern Division (Number of first-place votes)
 
1. East Stroudsburg (5)
2. West Chester (3)
3. Millersville
4. Shepherd (1)
5. Shippensburg
6. Lock Haven
7. Kutztown
8. Bloomsburg
9. Mansfield



 
PSAC WESTERN DIVISION
 
#1 IUP (32-1 overall, 21-1 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • IUP will have a somewhat new-look roster in 2023-24, but return Ethan Porterfield, the MVP of the past last two conference championships. Porterfield is top 20 in program history in virtually every scoring category, blocks and rebounds. 
  • The IUP men’s basketball team has captured four straight PSAC championships, dating back to the 2018-19 season. Under the direction of head coach Joe Lombardi, the men’s program has gone a combined 123-10 (.924) in the last four full playing seasons.
  • The men’s program has captured seven consecutive PSAC regular season titles, earning a number one national ranking for multiple weeks in 2022-23. Lombardi, who enters his 18th season, earned his 400th career victory at IUP in last season’s NCAA Tournament.

#2 California (16-14 overall, 12-10 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Senior Jermaine Hall, Jr. and junior Keith Palek III return after earning All-PSAC West honors last year for the first time in their careers. The veteran duo will be reunited with two-time All-PSAC West selection Zyan Collins, who redshirted last season after scoring nearly 1,300 points from 2019-22.
  • The Vulcans have advanced to the quarterfinals of the PSAC Tournament three-straight times under head coach Danny Sancomb. California finished fourth in the PSAC West standings last season behind a six-game winning streak in the final weeks of the regular season.
  • California led the PSAC with 9.2 three-pointers made per game last year while also ranking third in the league with a .336 three-point percentage. Four different players made at least 40 three-pointers with junior Cam Polak finishing second in the conference with 73 treys behind a .374 clip.
 
#3 Mercyhurst (25-6 overall, 18-4 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Lakers return one starter from a season ago in PSAC West First Team member, Jeff Planutis. Planutis comes off a season in which he averaged 14.7 points per game for second best on the team with a 46.6/42.9/86.6 triple slash line. Planutis caught fire in the beginning of the season with him scoring 20 or more points in four-straight games from 12/2/22 to 12/14/22  with 10 such games to his line overall.
  • Mercyhurst finished the 2022-23 season 25-6, rattling off three winning streaks of five or more games, with the team advancing the finale of the PSAC Tournament while winning their opening round matchup of the NCAA Tournament against East Stroudsburg.
  • The Lakers begin their season in the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Lakeland, Fl. on November 4th. They’ll play their first home game on November 15th against Daemen with PSAC play beginning on the 1st of December on the road against East Stroudsburg.
 
#4 Slippery Rock (17-12 overall, 11-11 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Slippery Rock returns 11 student-athletes from last year’s team that finished the season 17-12 and qualified for the PSAC Tournament for a sixth consecutive season. Overall, SRU has produced winning seasons in 13 of the last 14 years.
  • Leading The Rock returners are Lashon Lindsey (9.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 1.6 spg, 1.2 apg, 1.0 bpg, .459 fg%) and Jomo Goings (9.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.0 spg, .455 fg%). Lindsey is the only returning PSAC athlete to have averaged at least 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks per game a season ago.
  • Slippery Rock head coach Ian Grady brought in a four-man recruiting class for the 2023-24 season consisting of former consensus three-star recruit Maceo Austin (Duquesne), Ja’Mier Fletcher – a 6-7 forward who played 79 games at Division I Wagner – as well as proven Division II veterans Ike Herster (Gannon) and Luke Howes (Walsh).
 
#5 Pitt-Johnstown (20-10 overall, 15-7 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Head Coach Bob Rukavina’s Pitt-Johnstown team is coming off of a 20-11 season (15-7 PSAC West), a seventh straight trip to the PSAC Tournament, fourth straight appearance in the PSAC Quarterfinals, and the programs fifth appearance in the NCAA Regional Tournament
  • The Mountain Cats must replace six seniors lost to graduation, including First-Team NABC All-American and four-time PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Year John Paul Kromka
  • Last season, Pitt-Johnstown led the PSAC in 3-point field goal percentage and field goal percentage and was second in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio and assists per game
  • One of Coach Rukavina’s youngest teams in his 35-year tenure will be led by PSAC West Freshman of the Year and Second-Team All-PSAC West selection Andrew Shull (point guard), two-year starting guard Ryan Smith, and junior guard Andy Zuchelli
 
#6 Seton Hill (16-13 overall, 11-11 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Ben Wilkins returns for his second season as head coach.  The Griffins finished with 13 more wins and 8 more PSAC West wins in his first season than the previous season.
  • The Griffins return a very experienced team with three fifth year seniors and four seniors on the team.
  • Seton Hill returns six of their seven leading scorers from last season.  The only missing is leading scorer Samuel Tabe who moved on to a Division I school for his final season of eligibility.  
 
#7 Gannon (3-23 overall, 3-19 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Jordan Fee begins his first season as Gannon’s head coach. He is the 20th head coach in Gannon history. He takes over at Gannon after serving as the associate head coach at Nova Southeastern a year ago. He helped the Sharks win the NCAA Division II National Championship and finish with a 36-0 record. They posted a 122-11 over the last four years and were 69-1 the last two season. He has also coached at West Liberty, Clarion and Detroit Mercy.
  • Fee assembled group of nine recruits, including six transfers. Two of the transfers were their respective conference players of the year. Lyle Tipton is a 6’3” swingman who played at Geneva a year ago. He departed as the school’s seventh all-time scorer with 1,758 points and ranks 14th all-time in rebounds with 619, averaging 24.5 ppg. last year. He was named the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second straight season in 2022-23. Nathan Schneider was the AMCC Player of the Year last season after averaging 23.1 ppg. and 8.6 rpg. for Pitt-Bradford. In two seasons he departed with 1,141 points and 540 rebounds. In addition, Zachary Hobbs joins the program after playing two seasons at Indiana State. A 6’4” guard forward, Hobbs was part of a Sycamore’s program that reached the semifinals of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament in 2021-22 and played in CBI (College Basketball Invitational). He made 71 3-pointers in his two seasons.
  • Sophomore Josh Omojafo is the top returning player from last year’s squad after starting 18 games and averaging 8.2 ppg., good for fourth on the team. He is a 6’5” guard. Thomas Whitley, a 6’6” redshirt sophomore, averaged 4.4 ppg. and 4.5 rpg., with his 116 boards second on the team. The Golden Knights could also be bolstered by the return to good health of Michael Lucarotti. A 6’5” swingman who began his career at Youngstown State.
 
#8 Clarion (3-24 overall, 1-21 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Clarion welcomes nine incoming athletes for the 2023-24 season, including five freshmen and four transfers.
  • Clarion returns four starters from a year ago, including senior point guard Steve Kelly and three sophomores: Jayson Harris, Cam Kearney and Justice Easter. The latter three players all started 19 or more games as true freshmen in 2022-23.
  • The Golden Eagles finished the 2022-23 season sixth in the PSAC in three-point field goals made per game with 7.9 made.
 
#9 Edinboro (7-20 overall, 5-17 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Edinboro men’s basketball team is under the direction of first-year head coach Justin Jennings.
  • The Scots will have a new look as they will replace their top three scorers from a year ago. Will Taylor is top returning scorer, averaging 11.8 points per game.
  • Edinboro was a strong rebounding team in 2022-23, outrebounding opponents by 3.5 boards per game.
 
 


PSAC EASTERN DIVISION

#1 East Stroudsburg (23-9 overall, 15-7 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Warriors look to build momentum after posting a 23-9 record last season, booking its trip to its eighth NCAA Tournament and its first since 2019.  ESU advanced to the PSAC Semifinals before falling to eventual PSAC Champion IUP by just three points. The Warriors fell to Mercyhurst, 72-66, in the NCAA Tournament Atlantic Region Quarterfinals.
  • ESU continued its tradition of high-point outputs and tenacious full-court press defense, leading the PSAC and ranking in the top 10 in the nation in both scoring offense (9th in NCAA DII, 86.9 ppg), steals per game (8th, 9.8) and forced turnovers per game (6th, 18.6). ESU also led the PSAC in assists per game (17.2) and free-throw attempts.
  • The Warriors begin the season in North Carolina, taking on Lincoln (Pa.) in a neutral-site battle on Nov. 10 and face tournament host Elizabeth City State on Nov. 11.
  • ESU looks to avenge its 2022-23 NCAA Tournament loss in its PSAC and Home opener on Dec. 1 against Mercyhurst.
 
#2 West Chester (21-8 overall, 16-6 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • West Chester finished the 2022-23 season with a record of 21-8 overall and a mark of 16-6 in league play, earning a share of its first PSAC East Regular Season crown since 2006. West Chester qualified for the PSAC Tournament as a two seed, falling to visiting East Stroudsburg in the Quarterfinals at home to bring the season to its conclusion.
  • West Chester ended last season ranked seventh in Division II in rebounds per game (41.38), and ninth in DII in offensive rebounds per game (14.0).
  • The Golden Rams open the season in Ettrick, Virginia against St. Augustine’s University on Friday, November 10 at the CIAA/PSAC Challenge.
 
#3 Millersville (18-11 overall, 15-7 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Despite having to replace four All-PSAC East performers, Millersville finished 2022-23 18-11 and one game out of first place in the PSAC East. The Marauders now return four of its top five scorers from 2022-23 as well as two-time All-PSAC East selection Jaden Faulkner, who missed all of 2022-23 with an injury.
  • Millersville was among the youngest teams in the PSAC last season, three freshmen and two sophomores each averaging 13 minutes per game. All of those players return in 2023-24 including 6-8 forward Drew Stover, who ranked second on the team in scoring at 10.1 points per game while shooting 58% from the field. Millersville’s leader in assists, Jahme Ested, was also a sophomore and first-time start in 2022-23.
  • Matt Dade and Faulkner give the Marauders a pair of returning two-time All-PSAC East selections. Dade transferred to Millersville in 2022-23 and became the team’s leading scorer. He averaged 16.0 points per game over the final eight games. When healthy, Faulkner is one of the best players in the PSAC. He’s a four-time PSAC East Athlete of the Week award winner despite having just two full seasons played since he arrived in 2018-19. In his 66 career games, Faulkner has averaged 14.5 points, 4.8 assists, and 4.9 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 48% from the field. Faulkner is just 20 points shy of 1,000.
 
#4 Shepherd (14-15 overall, 11-11 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Rams are coming off a 14-15 overall mark with an 11-11 mark in conference play last season. 
  • Daniel McClain-Corley returns to lead the Rams after gaining First Team All-PSAC East honors last season. He topped the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and was second in three-pointers (58). Other returners include senior guard Phillip Jordan (12.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.7 apg in 22-23) and junior forward Carson Poffenberger (8.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 35 three-pointers in 22-23).
  • The Rams open the 2023-24 season at Virginia State on Nov. 10 for a 7 p.m. game at the Atlantic Region Crossover. 
 
#5 Shippensburg (19-11 overall, 16-6 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • Reigning PSAC East Coach of the Year Chris Fite returns 10 players and welcomes a group of five newcomers (3 freshmen, 2 transfers) to a team that finished with a 19-11 record last season on its way toward winning the program’s fourth division title in school history.
  • The Raiders graduated four starters (Carlos Carter, Dom Sleva, Rashon Johnson, Luke Nedrow) who combined for 55.5 of the team’s 71.5 points per game last season. Carter, the conference’s second-leading scorer (18.4 ppg) was tabbed PSAC East Player of the Year, while Sleva, the conference’s top rebounder (12.0 rpg), was selected as Defensive Player of the Year.
  • SU’s lone returning starter is graduate point guard and captain Andrew Recchia. Recchia started in all 30 games last season, averaging 6.6 points and 1.6 assists per contest. He shot an efficient 46 percent from the field, 44 percent from beyond the arc and 87 percent from the free throw stripe.
  • Redshirt-junior Ty Crespo returns after a late-season scoring breakout in 2022-23. The shifty guard shot 42 percent from three for the season and averaged double figures in scoring in the final five games off of the Raider bench.
 
#6 Lock Haven (17-12 overall, 12-10 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Bald Eagles are coming off a 17-12 overall record and 12-10 mark in 2022, which saw them clinch the fifth seed in the PSAC Eastern Division Tournament, where they upset No. 4 seed Millersville, earning their first postseason win in 33 years.
  • The Bald Eagles finished last season in ranked in the top-10 of the PSAC in scoring (9th, 72.6), field goal percentage (9th, 0.447), opponent field goal percentage (7th, 0.428), rebounding (8th, 36.3) and turnover margin (6th, 1.52).
  • They open the 2023-24 season Friday, Nov. 10 at the Bowie State Tip-Off Classic in Bowie Md. The Bald Eagles open with Bowie State on Friday at 7 p.m. before playing Fayetteville State on Saturday at 2 p.m.
  • The Bald Eagles begin PSAC schedule begins Friday, Dec. 1 at 5 p.m. when they welcome Pitt-Johnstown to town in a PSAC East-West crossover game at Thomas Fieldhouse.  
 
#7 Kutztown (11-17 overall, 10-12 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Golden Bears earned 10 wins in the PSAC last season, which was the most conference wins for KU since 2017-18. KU also missed out on its first birth in the PSAC Tournament since 2018-19 by one game after ending the season on a six-game winning streak. 
  • KU finished last season with the fourth-best scoring offense in the PSAC (77.8 ppg), which included the conference’s fifth-best 3-point field goal percentage (.348). The Golden Bears were also great on the glass, finishing fifth in rebounds per game (37.6).
  • KU opens the season on Friday, Nov. 10 at 5 p.m. against Elizabeth City State as a part of the PSAC/CIAA Challenge.

#8 Bloomsburg (1-25 overall, 1-21 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Huskies shot above .450 from the floor seven times last season, including in three of their last six.
  • Louie Wild (Philadelphia, Pa. / Roman Catholic) returns for his senior season after leading the Huskies with 343 points and finishing second on the team in shooting percentage (.443). Jake Nelson (West Chester, Pa. / West Chester Rustin) also returns to the maroon and gold after finishing seventh in the PSAC in rebounds per game (8.8).
  • Bloomsburg opens up the season on Friday, November 10 at the Atlantic Region Challenge hosted by Fairmont State. The Huskies begin conference play on Friday, December 1 as they host Gannon inside Nelson Field House.

#9 Mansfield (6-20 overall, 5-17 PSAC in 2022-23)
  • The Mounties return all 5 starters from last season along with seven others who played crucial roles to last year's squad.
  • The Mountaineers begin their season November 11th against Virginia Union University. They start PSAC play for their home-opener against Clarion on December 1st. 
  • Mansfield is looking to improve on their 6-20 season including a conference record of 5-17 from last year where they averaged 68.9 PPG which was ranked 14th in the PSAC.
  • The Mounties went 3-1 last season against fellow Commonwealth schools, including a sweep of Bloomsburg.