DiRienzo Named AMCC Player of the Year; McDonough Earns Second Team Honors

ERIE, Pa. – Penn State Behrend men's basketball senior Tommy DiRienzo (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) and sophomore Matthew McDonough (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) earned 2024 Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Men's Basketball All-Conference honors.

DiRienzo was selected as the Player of the Year and First Team All-Conference, finishing the regular season as the AMCC leader with 468 points and first in the conference in free-throw percentage (83.7). He was also second in the conference in points per game (18.7) and fourth in the AMCC in field-goals per game (6.3).

To go along with his top-scoring mark, DiRienzo stood second on the team with 5.9 rebounds per game and 2.0 assists per game to conclude the regular season. This season, he recorded double-figures in 23 of 25 games and 16 of 18 conference games. During two contests this year, DiRienzo tallied 30-plus points, scoring a season-high 32 points against Baldwin Wallace. DiRienzo notched a double-double in four games, one of which was an AMCC game. He led the team in scoring in 14 games, in rebounding in five games, in assists in seven games, in steals in five games, and in blocks in nine games this season.

After two postseason games, he now leads the AMCC in points per game (18.9) and has amassed 509 total points this year. Also, DiRienzo recorded a double-double in the conference tournament, averaging 20.5 points per game and 12.5 rebounds per game to earn All-Tournament Team honors.

DiRienzo becomes the 12^th player in program history to be named AMCC Player of the Year and the first since Kenny Fukon was selected as Co-Player of the Year in 2022.

McDonough earned All-AMCC Second Team honors after concluding the regular season tied for 12^th in the AMCC and second on the team with 14.5 points per game. He tallied a conference-high 70 made three-pointers (2.9 per game) and was sixth in three-point percentage (40.9).

In AMCC play, McDonough ranked first with 2.8 three-pointers per game. He also stood second on the team in steals per game (1.0) and third in assists per game (1.9). In 18 games this season, McDonough registered double-figures, scoring 20-plus points in five contests and a season-high 28 points against Penn State Altoona and Mount Aloysius. He led the team in scoring in seven games, in assists in four games, in steals in 10 games, and in blocks in three games.

This marks the second time in their careers that both DiRienzo and McDonough have been recognized for end of the season honors as DiRienzo registered All-AMCC Second Team last season and McDonough was named 2023 Co-Newcomer of the Year.

The Lions will travel to Juniata to take on Saint Vincent in the Eastern Collegiate Athletics Conference (ECAC) Quarterfinals on Saturday, March 2.