May 19, 2009

Philadelphia, PA- La Salle University head men’s basketball coach Dr. John Giannini has announced that 6 foot 5 inch guard Earl Pettis has transferred from Rutgers and has enrolled in classes for the summer session.

Giannini described Pettis as a “priority recruit for us when he was at Neumann-Goretti” where he helped lead the Saints to back-to-back Philadelphia Catholic League championships and was a two-time Philadelphia Daily News All-City selection. He was a four-year starter and scored 1,045 career points while averaging 14.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game as a senior.

“I always liked Earl’s talent, versatility and personality. He is a big guard who can handle the ball well, attack the basket and make good passing decisions,” said Giannini.

In two years at Rutgers he made a total of 23 starts while appearing in 60 games for the Scarlet Knights. He averaged 4.8 points and 2.3 rebounds in Big East play last season. He had a career-high 21 points against Connecticut.

“Earl has Big East starting experience and with another year of work I am very confident that he can be a big part of keeping our program in a strong position to win games. Earl is also a great person who adds to team chemistry,” said Giannini who enters his sixth season as the Explorers’ head coach.

Giannini and the Explorers have finished in the top half of the Atlantic 10 in three of the past four seasons including an 18-13 finish in 2008-09 when they tied for fifth-place in the conference.

Prior to attending Rutgers, Pettis spent a post-graduate year at the Patterson School in Lenore, N.C. in 2006-07.

Per NCAA regulations Pettis will sit out the upcoming season but will be eligible to compete as an Explorer in 2010-11.

The Explorers open their 2009-‘10 on November 14 when they host Hampton University at Tom Gola Arena.