A seat at a Catholic University basketball game might be as coveted as a Stanley Tumbler.
This Friday, the Raymond A. DuFour Center will have both.
The University’s nationally ranked men’s and women’s teams will host a major doubleheader with Scranton with the games taking place at 5 and 7 p.m. respectively.
Free pizza will be given to students between games, with slices offered for $2 to non-students. During halftime of the women’s game, a raffle with prizes will be held and include the trendy and coveted tumbler, a JBL clip speaker, or a Brookland Pint gift card.
When the women’s basketball team (13-0) hosts Scranton, it will be the first time in program history that the Cardinals will face another top-15 team.
Catholic is currently 13th in the nation, with Scranton ranked ninth. The Cardinals are one of just 12 unbeaten Division III women's teams left in the country and are off to their best start since the 2012-13 season.
Coach Matt Donohue earned his 400th career victory earlier this season vs. Marymount. He has won 284 of those games at the University.
The men’s team (11-2) is ranked 25th in the country amongst Division III teams and is riding a five-game winning streak. During that stretch, the Cardinals have beaten their opponents by an average of 23.2 points.
The team ranked in the top 20 nationally in five different statistical categories, including second in defensive rebounds (33.08), fifth in defensive field goal percentage (36.1%), ninth in three-point percentage (39.5 %), 11th in scoring margin (16.4 points per game), and 17th in turnovers per game (just 10.7 per contest).
The team’s leading scorer, Jesse Hafemeister, reached 1,000 points for his career in the season-opener vs. Mary Washington and is now 27th in the program’s history with 1,169 points.