As the 2010-11 Freedom Conference basketball season hits the second half, both Misericordia teams find themselves in the middle of hotly-contested playoff races. The Cougar squads host Delaware Valley tomorrow afternoon, and donations will be collected to aid cancer awareness.

Coaches of both teams will participate in the Coaches vs. Cancer campaign, wearing suits and sneakers to commemorate the occasion.

Coaches vs. Cancer is a nationwide collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) that empowers basketball coaches, their teams, and local communities to make a difference in the fight against cancer.

Today, more than 2,000 Division I, II, and III college coaches are involved in the program. Coaches vs. Cancer has raised nearly $50 million since its inception to support the American Cancer Society's lifesaving mission to eliminate cancer as a life-threatening disease. Additionally, more than 100 high school coaches also participate in the program.

This will be a huge game for the Cougar men (11-7, 4-3), who are tied for second in a packed Freedom Conference. With four of its final six games on the road, Misericordia will look to take another big step towards the playoffs when they host the league leaders.

Junior Ethan Eichhorst (19.0 ppg, 7.3 rpg) leads MU in both scoring and rebounding. Classmate Jeff Slanovec is averaging nearly four three-pointers made per conference game, which leads the league by a large margin.

The Delaware Valley men (12-6, 6-1) have been the surprise of the season so far, jumping out to a two-game lead in the conference standings after just seven games.

The Aggies have won six in a row and are led by senior guard James Jones, a former All-Region selection. Jones is leading the league in scoring (19.8 ppg), and dropped a career-high 43 points as DVC beat Wilkes, 77-73 last weekend.

Sophomore Jeremy Beckett, the Freedom's leading rebounder (11.4 rpg), could also cause problems for the undersized Cougars. Beckett used his size and athleticism to submit a 27-22 in a win over Penn State-Abington, Tuesday.

The MU women (10-7, 5-2) enjoyed a one-game run at the top of the league, but dropped to second place after falling to FDU-Florham last weekend.

Junior Christine Marks has established herself as one of the league's dominant post players, ranking third in the Freedom in scoring (18.3 ppg) and second in rebounding (9.8 rpg).

The Aggie women (8-10, 2-5) come to Dallas in need of a victory to keep pace with the Freedom playoff contenders. Junior Jackie Shunkwiler is the reigning conference Player of the Week after averaging 25 points and 8.5 rebounds over her last two contests.

On January 8 in Doylestown, Tyann McDaniel's 17 points led MU to a 67-47 victory over the Aggies.

The women tip-off at 1 PM, and the men play at 3 PM.