Undefeated Crimson Hawks set to host Bloomsburg Saturday

The No. 8 Crimson Hawks will try to continue their success this weekend as they continue PSAC against Bloomsburg and Mansfield both at 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Memorial Field House.

The Crimson Hawks are playing at Memorial Field House due to Disney on Ice occupying the Kovalchick Complex.

This will be the first home game for the Hawks since opening the season with two victories against Seton Hill and Thiel. Since the opening wins, the Hawks went on the road and defeated Cheney and Shippensburg.

The Crimson Hawks have also moved up the polls since those home games. The Hawks moved up 11 spots in the polls from the 19th spot.

In the first game the Hawks defeated Cheney 89-80 Nov. 19. During that game, senior guard Julian Sanders scored a career-high 33 points. The explosion by Sanders helped the Hawks come back from a nine-point halftime deficit. Sanders also led the team with six rebounds.

Besides Sanders, the Crimson Hawks posted three other players in double figures.

Fellow senior guard Ashton Smith scored 21 points, Anthony Wells and Danny Ayebo each scored 12 points.  

The next night Sanders and Smith continued their scoring success. Sanders finished with a team-high 21 points and Smith added 20 points. Also in that game freshman Devante Chance scored 10 points and junior center Josh Wiegand contributed 13 points.

The Hawks are going to need Smith and Sanders to carry the team this weekend with Bloomsburg and Mansfield coming to town.

Bloomsburg is the early leader in the PSAC East with a 5-1 record and 2-0 in conference play. The Huskies' two conference wins came against Edinboro and Lock Haven at home. This will be their first road game in the conference this season.

As for Mansfield, the Mountaineers are 2-1 overall and have a 1-1 record in the conference. The Mountaineers lost to Edinboro and defeated Lock Haven at home. This will also be Mansfield's first conference game on the road this season.

These will also be the last home games for the Hawks before the end of semester. They will on the road next weekend against East Stroudsburg (4-3, 1-1) and Kutztown (3-2, 1-1)  in more PSAC crossover action.