Concord Begins Season Against IUP, Pitt-Johnstown

Concord Stats - IUP Stats - Pitt-Johnstown Stats - Live Stats - Live Video - Complete Game Notes

ATHENS, W.Va. - The Concord University men's basketball team tips off the 2025-26 season at the Hilton Garden Inn Classic hosted by Indiana (Pa.) Friday and Saturday inside Memorial Fieldhouse. CU is slated to play the home-standing Crimson Hawks 7:30 p.m. Friday before facing Pitt-Johnstown 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

LIVE COVERAGE
The Indiana (Pa.) Sports Information Department will have live statistics and live video of both games. 

Live Stats
Live Video

SERIES HISTORY vs. IUP: IUP leads 6-1
SERIES HISTORY vs. Pitt-Johnstown: UPJ leads 9-5

Last Five Meetings vs. IUP
November 10, 2023: Concord 61 - #4 Indiana (Pa.) 57 (Indiana, Pa.)
November 12, 2022: #3 Indiana (Pa.) 77 - Concord 60 (Clarion, Pa.)
November 13, 2021: #18 Indiana (Pa.) 98 - Concord 78 (Indiana, Pa.)
November 9, 2019: #11 Indiana (Pa.) 80 - Concord 73 (Indiana, Pa.)
November 9, 2018: #8 Indiana (Pa.) 83 - Concord 72 (Indiana, Pa.)

Last Five Meetings vs. Pitt-Johnstown
November 11, 2023: Concord 78 - Pitt-Johnstown 71 (Indiana, Pa.)
November 12, 2021: Pitt-Johnstown 96 - Concord (OT) (Indiana, Pa.)
November 8, 2019: Concofd 79 - Pitt-Johnstown 76 (Indiana, Pa.)
November 10, 2018: Concord 81 - Pitt-Johnstown (Indiana, Pa.)
February 26, 2013: Pitt-Johnstown 92 - Concord 82 (Athens, W.Va.)

Concord at a Glance
Overall Record: 17-11
MEC Record: 13-7
Home Record: 8-4
Away Record: 8-6
Neutral Record: 1-1
MEC Finish: Fourth

Indiana (Pa.) at a Glance
Overall Record: 14-16
PSAC West Record: 8-12
Home Record: 10-4
Away Record: 3-11
Neutral Record: 1-1
PSAC West Finish: Fifth

Pitt-Johnstown at a Glance
Overall Record: 11-16
PSAC West Record: 7-13
Home Record: 6-6
Away Record: 4-9
Neutral Record: 1-1
PSAC West Finish: Eighth

TALE OF THE TAPE: Concord vs. IUP

Concord	Statistical Category	IUP
17	Wins	14
88.2	Points Per Game	72.5
85.3	Points Allowed Per Game	73.2
41.7	Rebounds Per Game	37.2
11.8	Assists Per Game	11.9
5.2	Blocks Per Game	3.6
5.5	Steals Per Game	7.3
47.0	Field-Goal Percentage	43.5
36.6	Three-Point Percentage	32.1
76.4	Free-Throw Percentage	70.0

TALE OF THE TAPE: Concord vs. Pitt-Johnstown

Concord	Statistical Category	UPJ
17	Wins	11
88.2	Points Per Game	80.1
85.3	Points Allowed Per Game	83.4
41.7	Rebounds Per Game	36.1
11.8	Assists Per Game	14.8
5.2	Blocks Per Game	1.9
5.5	Steals Per Game	6.8
47.0	Field-Goal Percentage	48.2
36.6	Three-Point Percentage	32.7
76.4	Free-Throw Percentage	76.1

Concord Leaders
Points Per Game: Kraig Gilbert (9.1), Ken Sallee (9.0), Josiah Rickards (8.9)
Rebounds Per Game: Kraig Gilbert (6.0), Boubacar Djigo (5.4)
Assists Per Game: Brendan Hoffman (1.3), Josiah Rickards (1.1)
Blocks Per Game: Kraig Gilbert (1.8), Boubacar Djigo (0.5)
Steals Per Game: Josiah Rickards (0.5), Boubacar Djigo (0.4)
Field Goal Leader: Kraig Gilbert (45.6)
Three-Pointers Made: Ken Sallee (41)
Free-Throw Percentage: Josiah Rickards (82.2)

IUP Leaders
Points Per Game: Christian Moore (16.8), Damir Brooks (10.3), Ian Herring (6.9)
Rebounds Per Game: Damir Brooks (7.2), Ian Herring (5.9)
Assists Per Game: Christian Moore (2.6), Damir Brooks (1.1)
Blocks Per Game: Damir Brooks (1.7), Ian Herring (0.6)
Steals Per Game: Ian Herring (1.7), Christian Moore (1.4)
Field Goal Leader: Damir Brooks (58.1)
Three-Pointers Made: Christian Moore (80)
Free-Throw Percentage: Christian Moore (83.0)

Pitt-Johnstown Leaders
Points Per Game: Jay Rose (14.4), Vinnie Cugini (8.8), Nick Watts (6.1)
Rebounds Per Game: Jay Rose (4.3), Nick Watts (4.0)
Assists Per Game: Jay Rose (1.3), Nick Watts (1.2)
Blocks Per Game: Jay Rose (0.4)
Steals Per Game: Jay Rose (0.8)
Field Goal Leader: Jay Rose (47.8)
Three-Pointers Made: Jay Rose (45)
Free-Throw Percentage: Nick Watts (80.3)

YOUNG CATS
Starting his 10^th season on the sidelines in Athens, head coach Todd May welcomes back eight players that have seen time in the Maroon and Gray. However, no player has appeared in more than 50 games. Junior forward Boubacar Djigo has the most playing time at CU among returners with 49 career games, but no starts. The most starts among returning players is sophomore forward Kraig Gilbert. The Grove City, Ohio native started 25 games last season as a true freshman. Sophomore guard Josiah Rickards is the only other Mountain Lion that has started games at Concord as he got the call in the starting lineup 14 times a season ago. The eight returning players account for a total of 198 games played. Gilbert (28), Rickards (28) and senior forward Ken Sallee (26) join Djigo among players with 25 career games played.

CARRY OVER
Rickards looks to build off the finish of a stellar freshman season. The Virginia Beach, Virginia native was named to the All-Mountain East Conference Tournament Team in helping CU get to the MEC Semifinals a season ago. Rickards dropped in a career-best 23 points against nationally-ranked West Liberty in the semifinals. In the final 12 games of the year in which Rickards started, he averaged 10.7 points per game while shooting 50 percent or better in six of the last seven games of the year. Gilbert finished second in the MEC in blocks per game last year (1.8). Offensively, Gilbert is CU's top returning scorer and rebounder at 9.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. Djigo became a rebounding machine down the stretch of the season as he averaged seven rebounds in the final 15 games of the year. And sophomore guard Brendan Hoffman averaged 14.7 points per game in the final four games of 2024-25 despite not starting in any of those contests.

OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER
CU is coming off one of its best offensive seasons in program history as the 2024-25 Mountain Lions averaged 88.2 points per game which was tied for the sixth best average in program history. Though the Mountain Lions lost three double-digit scorers from last year's squad with two playing Division I currently, Corey Boston (IU-Indy) and Kollin Tolbert (East Texas A&M), Coach May brought in transfers to help fill the void. Junior guard Khamani Wertz scored 15.0 points per game last season at Division II Belmont Abbey. Junior forward Anfernee Hanna tossed in 18.6 points per game at the junior college level, playing for Motlow State in Tennessee. Junior forward Eldon Terry scored 8.6 points per game at Quincy College, a junior college in Massachusetts. And two years ago, senior guard Savier McCall scored 14.6 points per game at Riverland Community College.

SET THE TONE
The Mountain Lions will look to get off to a better start this season than the 2024-25 campaign. Concord started 0-4 season last year with two losses being by five points or less. After the tough start to the season, the Maroon and Gray ripped off seven wins over their next nine games. Last season, CU did not play in a conference challenge to begin the season, but in Coach May's previous eight seasons, the Mountain Lions have always won at least one game on opening weekend, including going 2-0 in 2017-18 and 2023-24. The 2-0 start in 2023-24 was the beginning of Concord winning seven of its first eight games.

SUCCESSFUL ROAD TRIP
CU enters a tough venue to play this weekend as IUP's tournament will shift from its main arena, the Kovalchik Center, to Memorial Fieldhouse on the Crimson Hawks' campus. Even though the Mountain Lions only went 8-6 on the road last season, Concord finished last year by winning seven of its last eight true road games. Not only did the Mountain Lions win against nationally-ranked, fourth-rated Indiana (Pa.) two seasons ago, but CU collected a 78-71 victory over Pitt-Johnstown. The only two CU players on the current roster that traveled to IUP two years are Djigo and Hoffman. Neither one played at IUP during the 2023-24 season.

PROGRAM HALLMARKS
In Coach May's tenure, the Maroon and Gray has always been a solid rebounding team. And while the Mountain Lions don't return a double-figure scorer from last year's 17-11 campaign, Concord welcomes back its second and fourth-leading rebounders from last year in Gilbert (6.0) and Djigo (5.4). Among returning players in the MEC, Gilbert is fifth from last year entering this season. In eight of the last 10 seasons, CU has finished with a positive rebounding margin, and in the last three years Concord has outrebounded teams by an average of at least five per game. IUP brings just as good a rebounding presence as the Crimson Hawks have not been outrebounded for a season since the 2017-18 campaign.

EXPERIENCE MATTERS
Coach May ranks third all-time in wins at Concord with 137, behind only Steve Cox (336) and Don Christie (171) who the Carter Center floor is named after. But, this weekend the Mountain Lions face Pitt-Johnstown led by Bob Rukavina who is tied for the longest-tenured coach at one school in Division II as he begins his 36^th season on the sidelines in central Pennsylvania—Steve Ridder also starts his 36^th season Embry-Riddle this year. Rukavina has racked up 565 career wins. CU is just 5-9 all-time versus Pitt-Johnstown, but has won three of the last four against the Mountain Cats. In Concord's 78-71 win over UPJ two years ago, Concord outrebounded the Mountain Cats 52-38.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
4- Rickards extended CU's streak of four consecutive years with a player on the All-MEC Tournament Team in March.

11- Gilbert's 51 blocks last season were the 11^th-most in a single season at CU.

26.8- Concord held IUP to 26.8 percent shooting in the 61-57 win in November 2023.

SCOUTING THE CRIMSON HAWKS
IUP returns its top scorer from a season ago in Christian Moore who poured in nearly 17 points per game. Damir Brooks scored 10.3 points per game while leading the Crimson Hawks in rebounding (7.2). Ian Herring threw in 5.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. Indiana (Pa.) is coming off its first losing season since 2007-08 . IUP started the year last season by losing to Charleston and Glenville State in a conference challenge at Charleston.

SCOUTING THE MOUNTAIN CATS
Pitt-Johnstown also had an uncharacteristically down year last season, finishing 11-16. Jay Rose threw in 14.4 points per game last year as UPJ's second-leading scorer. Vinnie Cugini scored 8.8 points per game in 2024-25. Ten different players started at least two games last winter for Coach Rukavina. While the Mountain Cats scored 80 points per game, UPJ surrendered 83.4 points per game. Pitt-Johnstown is just three seasons removed from a 20-11 record.