BEHREND MEN CLAIM TOP SEED, HOSTING RIGHTS FOR AMCC TOURNAMENT

The AMCC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament makes a return in 2022 after a one year hiatus due to the covid-19 pandemic. With 13-3 conference records, Penn State Behrend and Penn State Altoona finished as regular season co-champions, but Behrend swept Altoona in the regular season to earn the top seed and hosting rights for the conference tournament. In first round matchups, #6 Hilbert College will travel to #3 La Roche University, while #4 Medaille College will be hosting #5 Pitt-Greensburg. #1 Penn State Behrend and #2 Penn State Altoona will each receive first round byes. 

Top seed Penn State Behrend (13-3) will be looking for their seventh AMCC title, and first since 2019. AMCC Preseason Player of the Year Kenny Fukon leads the Lions, and is fifth in the conference, with 16.9 points per game. Fukon adds 7.6 rebounds per game, while also dishing out 3.4 assists per game. Senior F PJ Gourley is right behind Fukon in scoring with 16.8 points per game, while his 8.0 rebounds per game ranks second in the league, and his 56.5 field goal percentage is third. Sophomore G Tommy DiRienzo also contributes 11.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game for the Lions.

Altoona's share of the AMCC regular season title marks the first time in Penn State Altoona men's basketball history that the team has tied for the top record in the conference to become regular season co-champions. #2 Penn State Altoona (13-3) is led by junior G/F Andruw Harman who leads the Lions with 13.5 points per game, while also ranking fourth in the conference with 7.2 rebounds per game. Junior G Robbie Hicks adds 12.8 points per game, while freshman PJ Charles' 55.4 field goal percentage is fifth-best in the AMCC.

La Roche (11-5) enters the tournament as the #3 seed and will be looking to defend their conference title from 2020. Junior G Devon Darrell and sophomore G/F Joe Pipilo pace the Redhawk offense with 13.4 points per game a piece. Darrell's 64 assists in conference play is tops in the league, while his 22 steals are fifth. Freshman F Kadyn Hannah averages 13.1 points per game and ranks fifth in the AMCC with 12 blocked shots on the year.

With a 9-7 record in conference play, Medaille enters the tournament as the #4 seed. Medaille senior G/F Rodney Graves has been a force for the Mavs all season. His 18.5 points per game rank third in the AMCC, while his 6.1 rebounds rank 12th. Graves has also recorded 24 steals this season, good for third in the conference. Junior F Jorarei Bile has an AMCC-leading 65.7 field goal percentage, as he has connected on 56-of-87 shots, giving him 8.2 points per game. 

Coming in as the #5 seed is 8-8 Pitt-Greensburg. Senior G Jojo France leads the way offensively for the Bobcats, averaging 18.5 points per game, ranking him fourth in the league. Junior G/F Micah Jones leads the Bobcats with 7.1 rebounds per game, while also ranking fourth in the conference with a 42.6 three-point field goal percentage, draining 29-of-68 attempts. 

Rounding out the championship field is #6 Hilbert (7-9). Freshman G Quran Briggs leads the Hawks offense with 13.0 points per game while senior G Shawn Gashi adds 10.5 points and 3.5 assists per game. Freshman F Edward Perez leads the Hawks on the boards with 6.7 rebounds per game.

The winner of the AMCC basketball championship tournament will receive the conference's automatic bid to the national tournament. 

Men's Basketball Tournament Bracket
First Round: Tuesday, February 22 - 7p
#6 Hilbert at #3 La Roche
#5 Pitt-Greensburg at #4 Medaille
Bye:  #1 PS-Behrend & #2 PS-Altoona

Championship Round at #1 seed
Semifinals: Friday, February 25
6pm:  #1 PS-Behrend v. winner of 5v4
8:30pm:  #2 PS-Altoona vs. winner of 6v3

Finals: Saturday, February 26 - 3pm