With the Penn State University Athletic Conference North Division title already under its belt, the Pennsylvania College of Technology men's basketball team enters the playoffs as the No. 2 seed.
At 3 p.m. Saturday, the Wildcats (12-3 in the conference and 13-12 overall) will host No. 7 Penn State Brandywine (8-7, 9-15) at Bardo Gymnasium on West Third Street in a PSUAC quarterfinal game. When the two teams met in Williamsport on Feb. 7, Penn College won, 86-83.
Through 14 PSUAC games, junior guard Leroy Joiner (Williamsport) is second among conference scorers with 300 points and a 21.4 average. Joiner leads the conference in rebounds with 169 (12 per game average), has had a league-leading 12 double-doubles, is third in blocked shots (1.93 per game) and is fourth in steals (2.36 per game).
Also among the conference leaders for Penn College are senior Greg Solyak (Lititz), seventh in scoring with a 17.85 average, and freshman Ethan Kline (Bellefonte), 11th in assists with 3.07 per game.
While Joiner and Solyak have done the bulk of the scoring, seniors Nico Italiani (Easton) and Phil Kaylor (Lebanon) have been consistent contributors with averages of 9.6 and 8.9 points per game, respectively.
Teamwise in the PSUAC, Penn College is averaging 77.4 points per game on offense and allowing 70.9.
Last season, the Wildcats entered the playoffs as the No. 6 seed and finished second to Penn StateBeaver, falling in the championship, 91-68.
Two-time defending champ Penn StateBeaver (15-1, 15-10) earned the tournament's top seed and drew a first-round bye. Other quarterfinal games Saturday have No. 6 Penn StateMont Alto (8-7, 9-10) at No. 3 Penn State Wilkes-Barre (10-5, 15-9) and No. 5 Penn StateYork (9-6, 9-12) at No. 4Penn StateDuBois (10-6, 13-12).
Semifinal games are scheduled at 9 and 11 a.m. Tuesday at Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center. The championship is set for 9 a.m. Wednesday, also at the Jordan Center.
Despite tyingPenn StateYork for the eighth-best record in the conference on the women's side, Penn College is finished for the season as at least a .500 record now is needed to reach the playoffs. The lady Wildcats finished 6-8 in the PSUAC and 8-15 overall.