The East Stroudsburg University basketball programs are set to face a pair of nationally-ranked IUP teams on Saturday in the PSAC Semifinals. The second-seeded (East) ESU women's team will face the No. 1 seed (West) and No. 7 IUP women at 3:30 p.m. from the Kovalchick Complex in Indiana, Pa. with the winner advancing to face either Shippensburg (No. 1 East) or Gannon (No. 2 West) on Sunday at 3 p.m. for the championship. The second-seeded (East) ESU men's team will face the No. 1 seed (West) and No. 7 IUP men at 1:00 p.m. from Heiges Field House in Shippensburg, Pa. with the winner advancing to face either Shippensburg (No. 1 East) or Mercyhurst (No. 2 West) on Sunday at 3 p.m. in the championship contest. The is the first time in school history that both ESU basketball teams have appeared in the PSAC Semifinals in the same season.

Pregame info and links to follow both games are available below:


1:00 PM  l  ESU Men (20-8, 15-7) vs. No. 7 IUP (26-2, 20-2)
* Game Notes (PDF)
* Radio: ESPN 840 AM
* Live Video
* Live Stats

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
The No. 2 seed in the PSAC East ESU (20-8, 15-7 PSAC) faces the top seed in the West and seventh-ranked IUP (26-2, 20-2 PSAC) in the PSAC Semifinals on Saturday at Shippensburg's Heiges Field House. The winner will advance to the PSAC Championship Game, which will be played on Sunday, March 8, also at Heiges Field House.

WARRIORS NOTES
Kitt Najee Walls was named to the All-PSAC East Second Team on Thursday ... The Warriors are currently seventh in Division II with 10.0 steals per game and rank fifth in turnover margin at 5.5 ... ESU tops the PSAC in steals per game, total steals (281), turnover margin (5.7) and turnovers forced per game (18.8) ... Walls places third in the league in steals per game (1.9) and is fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.2) ... Marc Rodriguez ranks eighth in the PSAC with 65 threes made on the season ... ESU claimed its third-straight 20-win season and 13th overall in program history ... The Warriors have won 10 consecutive games, which is their 15th win streak of 10 or more in program history ... ESU has reached the PSAC Tournament in 11 straight seasons and has finished among the top-three seeds in the PSAC East in eight consecutive seasons.

SERIES HISTORY
ESU and IUP will meet for the 27th time in series history on Saturday with the Crimson Hawks holding a 19-7 edge after winning eight of the last 10 matchups. Earlier this season, IUP defeated ESU 80-56 in Indiana behind 16 points from Anthony White and a double-double (13 pts, 10 reb) by Shawndale Jones. The Warriors and Crimson Hawks have squared off five previous times in the postseason (4 in PSAC Tournament, 1 in NCAA), and IUP has come out on top in all five meetings.

For complete game notes, please click here.


3:30 PM  l  ESU Women (20-9, 15-7) vs. No. 7 IUP (27-2, 22-1)
* Game Notes (PDF)
* TV: IUP TV
* Listen
* Live Video
* Live Stats

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
ESU (20-9) meets nationally-ranked No. 7 IUP (27-2) in the PSAC Semifinals for a chance to advance to the PSAC Championship on Sunday afternoon. This is the first time that the Warriors and Crimson Hawks have faced each other in the PSAC Playoffs.

WARRIORS NOTES
ESU set a program record for conference victories in a season after finishing with a 15-7 mark during the regular season. The Warriors tallied 14 conference victories in consecutive seasons (2016-17, 17-18). The Warriors are fourth in the conference as a team with 406 assists and are second in turnovers per game (13.4). ESU also ranks second in scoring defense (56.6 ppg) and assist turnover ratio (1.04). ESU finds itself ranked in the top five of several different categories in PSAC, including assists, assist turnover ratio, fewest turnovers, turnovers per game, scoring margin, and scoring defense. The Warriors

SERIES HISTORY
This will be the 23rd all-time meeting between ESU and IUP. The Warriors last defeated the Crimson Hawks in 2001. The Warriors last defeated IUP on the road during the 1995-96 season (Nov. 25, 1995). IUP has won 14 consecutive matches against ESU, including a 65-50 decision earlier this season. The series dates back to 1990 as the Crimson Hawks won each of the first two meetings before ESU tallied back-to-back victories in 1995. The two teams did not play each other from 1992-94.

For complete game notes, please click here.