2018 Porreco Pride of Erie Preview Photo
Matt Mead Photography LLC
Gannon attempts to defend the Porreco Pride of Erie trophy after a 61-52 victory on January 17.

Men's Basketball Dan Teliski, Assistant Director of Athletics for Media Relations

Gannon Men's Basketball Attempts to Defend Porreco Pride of Erie Game Trophy Saturday Afternoon at the MAC (Video/Game Notes)



GAME DAY CENTRAL
  • When: Saturday, February 17, 2018
  • Where: Erie, Pa.
  • Arena: Mercyhurst Athletic Center (1,800)
  • Tip-off: 3 p.m.
  • Live Radio: Jet Radio 1400
  • Live Audio via 90.5 WERG Stream: Click Here
  • Live Webcast: Click Here
  • Live Stats: Click Here
  
GAME INFORMATION
  • Ticket Windows: Open at 12 noon. The contest will be part of a PSAC doubleheader that begins with the women's teams at 1 p.m. 
  • Directions: To Mercyhurst Athletic Center I GPS Address: 501 East 38th Street, Erie, Pa. 16546

PORRECO PRIDE OF ERIE GAME (Sponsored by Bianchi Honda and the Porreco Family)
  • The winner of each Gannon-Mercyhurst men's basketball game receives the Porreco Pride of Erie trophy and holds onto the honor until defending it during the next match-up. Also presented after the game will be a "Game Changer Award" given to the student-athlete who had the most impact on the outcome of the game.
  • "My father really valued the Porreco Cup for many years and we brought in a lot of big teams such as Georgetown and Navy, as well as players like Julius Erving," said Bianchi Honda owner Jason Porreco upon the creation of the Porreco Pride of Erie Game in 2016. "It was a great tradition that most importantly brought the community together. We thought about adding a new twist to the rivalry game within the city between two great schools." 
  • Porreco and game organizers distributed Porreco Pride of Erie Game t-shirts to Gannon's student fan base during the last game at the Hammermill Center on January 17 and will do the same for the Mercyhurst fan base while supplies last for this game at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Gift cards will also be given to random lucky fans in attendance.
  • Also planned is a halftime contest between fans with a possible grand prize of a 55-inch TV.
  • Gannon will be defending the Porreco Pride of Erie Game trophy after earning a 61-52 victory during the last match-up on January 17.
  • Senior Damon Miraud (Elizabeth, N.J./Elizabeth) received the first Porreco Pride of Erie Game Changer Award this year after recording 14 points, eight rebounds and four assists on January 17. Evan Phoenix (Baltimore, Md./Calvert Hall) and Matthew Dogan received the honor during last year's two encounters.

GAME COVERAGE
PENNSYLVANIA STATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE INFORMATION
ALL-TIME SERIES BREAKDOWN
  • All-Time Series: Gannon leads 53-22
  • First Meeting: December 29, 1974 - at Gannon 70, Mercyhurst 67 (Porreco Cup Championship Game)
  • Last Meeting: January 17, 2018 - at Gannon 61, Mercyhurst 52
  • Series Notes: Gannon has won its last three encounters with Mercyhurst, increasing its lead in the all-time series to 53-22. The Golden Knights will attempt to complete their second consecutive season sweep of the Lakers and third in four years following a 61-52 victory at the Hammermill Center on January 17. The two programs have split the last eight games played at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center.

OTHER LINKS
LAST TIME OUT
  • Gannon opened a 20-point second-half lead and held off a late Indiana (Pa.) rally with 60-percent second-half shooting en route to a 75-66 victory against the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division leader Monday night at the Hammermill Center.

GREEN'S DARK HORSE DUNKER UPDATE
  • Senior Jair Green (Williamstown, N.J./Paul VI) is one of 16 student-athletes currently competing in The 2018 College Slam #DarkHorseDunker Fan Vote that began Tuesday.
  • Bracket-style voting will determine the country's most electric "Dark Horse Dunker," an under-the-radar student-athlete with hops and creativity that belong on the national stage. The winner will fill the last spot in the State Farm College Slam Dunk Championship March 29 during the NCAA Division I Final Four Week in San Antonio, Texas.
  • Sixteen participants are competing with the top vote-getter in each match-up moving into the next round. Fan voting for the Sweet Sixteen round concludes Tuesday, February 20. Fans are able to vote once per day, per device. If a fan has a tablet, smart phone, laptop and desktop - they will be able to vote on all of those devices once per day.
  • As of Friday at 10 a.m., Green was defeating his opponent Latye Workman of Brandeis (Mass.) University with 65 percent of the votes.
  • Fans can vote for Green daily at www.darkhorsedunker.com.

PSAC TOURNAMENT IMPLICATIONS AND SCENARIOS
  • Gannon has already clinched a PSAC Tournament berth for the fifth time in the last six years.
  • The Golden Knights can clinch a top-four position Saturday with either a victory at Mercyhurst or a Pitt-Johnstown loss at Slippery Rock. That would guarantee a PSAC Tournament home game in either the first round or quarterfinal round.
  • Gannon can't clinch a top-two position, a first-round bye and PSAC Tournament quarterfinal home game with any combination during Saturday's action.
  • The Golden Knights remain alive in the race for the PSAC Western Division regular-season title, but sit two games back of Indiana (Pa.) with three to play.

GANNON (17-8, 13-6 PSAC) STORYLINES
  • Gannon continues to win games despite one of the nation's toughest schedules. The squad ranks 69th among 312 NCAA Division II programs in strength of schedule with its opponents winning 53.1 percent (285-252) of their games.
  • The Golden Knights extended their home win streak to 11 games last Monday with a 75-66 victory against division-leading Indiana (Pa.), representing the program's longest home win streak since having 12 straight victories December 14, 2013-November 19, 2014.
  • Gannon's home win streak is the 18th-longest in NCAA Division II and second-longest among PSAC teams behind Shippensburg's 16-game home win streak.
  • The Golden Knights snapped a five-game losing streak against the Crimson Hawks, winning for the first time since a 69-66 decision in the 2015 PSAC Championship Game at the Hammermill Center.
  • Gannon out-rebounded its opponent for the 23rd time in 25 games.
  • Senior Zay Jackson (Queens, N.Y./Westside) tied Chris Hollan (1988-90) for sixth place all-time at Gannon with his 148th career three-pointer.
  • Gannon out-rebounded its opponent by double digits for the 12th time this season.
  • Jackson reached double digits in scoring for the seventh consecutive game.
  • Gannon improved to 14-2 when leading at halftime, 16-3 when at least three Golden Knights reach double digits in scoring and 14-2 when scoring at least 70 points.
  • Jackson has dished out 15 assists compared to only two turnovers in 74 minutes during the last two games.
  • Gannon shot 50 percent or better for the ninth time this season, resulting in a victory every time.
  • The nine-point win was the Golden Knights' largest against the Crimson Hawks since a 73-57 road decision on January 24, 2009.
  • Gannon returned seven letterwinners and three starters from last year's 18-10 squad.
  • The Golden Knights advanced to the 2017 PSAC Final Four for the third time in four years, before falling to Kutztown (No. 5 in NCAA Division II at the time) 91-85 in overtime.
  • Head coach John T. Reilly's program has qualified for 10 NCAA Division II Tournaments since 2000, pushing its all-time total of NCAA Tournament appearances to 24.
  • The Golden Knights have qualified for the postseason (conference or national tournaments) 28 times during the last 34 seasons, advancing to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight five times.
  • Gannon returned three of its top four scorers from a year ago and four of its top six. Overall, the Golden Knights returned 64 percent (1,370-2,152) of their scoring from last year's 18-10 squad.
  • Jackson enters Saturday's game at Mercyhurst with 148 career three-pointers in two years, ranking sixth all-time at Gannon. He needs 37 triples to move past Cory Coleman (1998-02) and into Gannon's all-time top five.
  • The Golden Knights rank ninth among all NCAA Division II programs in scoring defense (64.6), ninth in rebounding margin (9.2), 16th in three-point field goal percentage defense (31.6) and 23rd in offensive rebounds per game (13.12).
  • Gannon tops all PSAC programs in scoring defense (64.6) and rebounding defense (28.9) while ranking second in rebounding margin and three-point field goal percentage defense.
  • Junior Evan Phoenix (Baltimore, Md./Calvert Hall) sits fifth among all PSAC players in total rebounds per game (8.8), sixth in offensive rebounds per game (3.1), sixth in defensive rebounds per game (5.7) and sixth in field goal percentage (53.5).
  • Gannon's eight losses have come against teams with a combined 135-62 record - West Chester (20-4), Wheeling Jesuit (20-5), Kutztown (18-5), Shippensburg (19-5), Indiana (Pa.) (19-7), Slippery Rock (19-7), Bowie State (12-12) and Seton Hill (8-17).
  • The Golden Knights were predicted to finish second in the PSAC Western Division according to the league's preseason coaches poll. Gannon won back-to-back PSAC Western Division regular-season championships in 2014 and 2015. The Golden Knights won their second PSAC Tournament title since joining the league in 2008-09 three seasons ago.
  • Gannon entered the 2017-18 season 15th among all NCAA Division II programs in all-time winning percentage, beginning the season with a 1,232-699 (63.8 percent) record in 73 seasons. More recently, Gannon was 27th among Division II programs with a .693 winning percentage (203-90) during the 2000s.
  • Reilly entered the 2017-18 season 24th among active NCAA Division II coaches in career victories (441) and 67th in career winning percentage (.613). He became the 24th active NCAA Division II coach to record 450 career wins January 8, 2018 against Seton Hill. Reilly recorded his 200th victory at Gannon January 11 at Edinboro, becoming the program's first-ever coach to reach 200 wins.

MERCYHURST (12-11, 9-10 PSAC) STORYLINES
  • Mercyhurst had a brief two-game win streak snapped with a 73-71 overtime loss Wednesday at California (Pa.).
  • The Lakers have been great at home with a 9-2 record compared to a 3-9 road mark.
  • Mercyhurst ranks second behind Gannon among PSAC teams in scoring defense (65.0).

UP NEXT
  • Gannon returns home for its final two regular-season games, beginning Wednesday, February 21 against Clarion.
  • The contest is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at the Hammermill Center.
  • With Wednesday's game being the final one with students in session before spring break, seniors for the Gannon dance team and gameday cheerleading squad will be honored during halftime of the men's game.
  • Gannon will attempt to complete its second consecutive season sweep of Clarion and seventh in the last eight years.
  • The Golden Knights have won four consecutive games against the Golden Eagles, extending their lead in the all-time series to 38-13.
  • Gannon is 24-3 all-time against Clarion at the Hammermill Center, winning 18 straight home games in the series.
  • The Golden Eagles' last victory at the 'Mill came via an 83-80 decision during the 1981 Porreco Cup championship game.
  • The Gannon-Clarion contest can be heard live on Jet Radio 1400 and via the 90.5 WERG online stream at www.wergfm.com.
  • Outlets to follow the game include a live video broadcast (https://portal.stretchinternet.com/gannon) and live gameday statistics (http://www.sidearmstats.com/gannon/mbball).
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Players Mentioned

Jair Green

#21 Jair Green

G
6' 4"
Senior
Interdisciplinary Studies
Zay Jackson

#3 Zay Jackson

G
6' 0"
Senior
Criminal Justice
Damon Miraud

#23 Damon Miraud

G/F
6' 5"
Senior
Criminal Justice
Evan Phoenix

#2 Evan Phoenix

F
6' 9"
Junior
Marketing

Players Mentioned

Jair Green

#21 Jair Green

6' 4"
Senior
Interdisciplinary Studies
G
Zay Jackson

#3 Zay Jackson

6' 0"
Senior
Criminal Justice
G
Damon Miraud

#23 Damon Miraud

6' 5"
Senior
Criminal Justice
G/F
Evan Phoenix

#2 Evan Phoenix

6' 9"
Junior
Marketing
F