Perennial Contenders Highlight PSUAC Basketball Tournament Fields
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State University Athletic Conference (PSUAC) men's and women's basketball playoffs tip-off this weekend with eight first round games. Perennial contenders highlight the field, with newcomers looking to put their programs on the map. The tournament will begin on Saturday as the women's West Division no. 1 seed Penn State Beaver hosts West no. 4 seed Penn State Fayette. The remaining seven games will take place on Sunday afternoon.
Each number one seed has had recent success in the PSUAC tournament, either as runners-up or champions. Joining the Beaver women, who finished 16-3 in the PSUAC, is East Divison no. 1 seed and 2022 runners-up Penn State Schuylkill, who earned the top seed through a tiebreaker with no. 2 seed Penn State Lehigh Valley. Schuylkill swept the season series, handing Lehigh Valley their only two losses in conference play. Both teams finished 17-2 in PSUAC action. Schuylkill will face a perennial contender in no. 4 seed Penn State Brandywine, whose last title came in 2018. Lehigh Valley gets East no. 3 seed Penn State Hazleton, a program with multiple runner-up finishes in the last decade.
Penn State Greater Allegheny picked up the women's no. 2 seed in the West, going 14-5 and winning the tiebreaker with no. 3 seed Penn State Shenango. These two teams will face off for the third time this season, with Greater Allegheny topping Shenango both of the previous times. Beaver also holds the season sweep over Fayette, with both wins coming in the last three weeks.
On the men's side, 2022 runner-up Penn State Brandywine nabbed the East Division no. 1 seed, with perennial powerhouse Penn State Mont Alto looking to win their first title since 2020 after capturing the West no. 1 seed. Brandywine finished 17-2 in PSUAC play, while Mont Alto went 15-4. They will face their respective no. 4 seeds, Lehigh Valley in the East and Fayette in the West. Brandywine swept their first round foe, while Mont Alto split the season series with Fayette.
Earning the no. 2 seeds are Schuylkill in the East and Greater Allegheny in the West. Greater Allegheny will get a rematch with their last opponent, no. 3 seed Penn State New Kensington, who topped them 73-67 in the final game of the season. Greater Allegheny won by seven 10 days earlier. In the East, Penn State Wilkes-Barre will look to make a run after going 15-4 in PSUAC play. They'll need to win a tough road game at Schuylkill, a team they split with this season. Interestingly, neither game was particularly close, with Wilkes-Barre winning by 33 and Schuylkill returning the favor with a 17 point win.
The PSUAC postseason will continue with the semifinals on Wednesday, March 1st. The PSUAC begins its crossover portion of the championship tournament at that time, with the highest remaining seeds in each division hosting the lowest remaining seeds from the opposing division. The championship games will be held on Monday, March 6th at the Bryce Jordan Center in State College, Pa.
For the full schedule and information visit the championship pages linked below.