IUP men win PSAC West

The Crimson Hawks are the 2010-2011 PSAC West champions.

The Hawks won the West division championship Saturday night with a 55-46 victory against Mercyhurst.

The victory means the Hawks will host Cal U at 7:30 p.m. tonight in Memorial Field House.  A win in that game means the Hawks will host the PSAC semifinals Friday.

"I don't feel like we've reached the mountaintop," IUP Head Coach Joe Lombardi said.

This is the second consecutive division title for the Hawks. The last time they accomplished that goal was back in the 1993-94 and 94-95 seasons.

Guard Ashton Smith led all players with 17 points and was 1 of 3 Hawks in double figures. 

The Hawks were up 33-30 after two free throws by Mercyhurst's Shelton Jackson. The Hawks then went on a 20-8 run to go up 53-38 with 5:08 to play in the second half. 

"That was two good defensive teams," Lombardi said. "And Mercyhurst is really well-coached, and I knew they'd try to make us play to our weaknesses and we'd make them try to play their weaknesses."

The Lakers had one player in double-figures, Luis Leo, who had 10 points. The Hawks played well against the PSAC's leading scorer, Heiden Ratner.

Ratner scored only nine points on 3 of 17 shooting. In the two games against the Hawks this year, Ratner was 5 of 27 from the floor.

With the loss, Mercyhurst will host Slippery Rock in the first round of the conference tournament.While in the PSAC East, Cheyney will be at Mansfield and East Stroudsburg will travel to Kutztown.

But the first thing the Hawks will have to worry about is playing host to Cal U.

"I have a lot of respect for Cal," said Lombardi. "We just caught them on their worst night of the year and we played really well. I've seen a lot of things turn 180 degrees in a short period of time, and you can't compare scores. We have a certain amount of confidence playing at home, and I think Cal is hitting its stride and playing their best and peaking right now. I truly believe they'll be a much different team when they come in here. I don't think our guys will let up, but I think Cal will be much more committed and focused than maybe they were the last time they came up here."