McKeesport, Pa. – After a wild weekend in Penn State University Athletic Conference play, the field is officially set for the 2018 PSUAC Playoff tournament with 16 team vying for the Men’s and Women’s PSUAC Championship. Penn State Greater Allegheny is represented on both sides of the bracket with the Women’s Basketball Team (15-10, 11-4) sitting as the #2 seed in the PSUAC West while the Men’s Basketball Team (16-8, 13-6) grabbed the #3 seed in the PSUAC West Division.
The path to the PSUAC Championship was pretty well defined for the women as they headed into the weekend, with the number two seed firmly in their grasp, they were playing for who they would face in the first round when they took on PSU-Fayette on Friday night. A win would have pitted them against #4 seed PSU-DuBois while a loss put them up against #3 seed PSU-Fayette.
Unfortunately for the ladies, they ended up falling to PSU-Fayette 73-66. After leading 32-29 at halftime, Fayette put together a combined 44 points over the final two quarters to sink PSUGA. The loss set up a grudge match for the first round of the PSUAC playoffs as each team has picked up a win against the other during the regular season.
The loss also means that #1 seeded PSU-Beaver will take on #4 PSU-DuBois in the first round and PSUGA will be hoping for an upset that would give them home court advantage in the second round as well. On the other side of the state, the #1 seed from the PSUAC East PSU-Lehigh Valley will take on #4 PSU-Scranton while #2 PSU-Brandywine faces #3 PSU-Hazleton.
On the men’s side, things were a little bit tricky. The men needed a win on Friday and at least one PSU-Shenango loss to grab the #2 seed and home-court advantage in the first round of the PSUAC playoffs. PSUGA got their end of the bargain done when they defeated PSU-Fayette 81-71. It was a big night for the PSUGA offense who got some much-needed momentum heading into the PSUAC tournament.
However, PSU-Shenango finished their regular season winning their final two games and as a result, knocked PSUGA down to the #3 seed. It sets up a tough match-up for PSUGA as they have to go into PSU-Shenango, a team they have lost to twice already this season, and find a way to win as they chase the program’s fourth PSUAC Championship.
The other match-up on the PSUAC West side of the bracket will feature #1 PSU-Mont Alto against #4 PSU-Beaver. The PSUAC East Division features two big showdowns between #1 PSU-Wilkes Barre and #4 PSU-Hazleton while #2 PSU-York hosts #3 PSU-Brandywine. PSUGA will be looking for a huge upset by PSU-Beaver that would give them a second round home playoff game.
The first round of the PSUAC playoffs will take place on Tuesday February 19th followed by the semifinals on Friday February 22nd. The two teams remaining from both the men and the women will then head to University Park on Sunday February 24th where they will play in the PSUAC Championship games inside of the Bryce Jordan Center.
Tip-off for the #2 PSUGA Women’s Basketball team vs. #3 PSU-Fayette is scheduled for 6 p.m. inside the Wunderly Gym, while the #3 Men’s Basketball team will go on the road to PSU-Shenango for a 7 p.m. tip-off.
