Jan. 13, 2010

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PHILADELPHIA - Freshman Aaric Murray notched a career-high for the second straight contest and the shorthanded La Salle Explorers edged George Washington, 65-64, on Wednesday night at Tom Gola Arena. Murray had 21 points on 9-for-11 shooting, while seniors Yves Mekongo and Rodney Green had 19 and 15 points, respectively.

"We're thrilled to win an A-10 game against a good team," head coach Dr. John Giannini said. "Especially when we were missing two of our four pillars over the past four years."

Playing without seniors Kimmani Barrett, who sprained his right foot in the Massachusetts game, and Ruben Guillandeaux, who has missed 12 games with a stress fracture, the Explorers played with just two guards (Green and freshman Parrish Grant). Add in a suspension to junior Terrell Williams (team rules violation) and head coach Dr. John Giannini had a rotation of seven players against a Colonial team that played 12.

The shortened lineup was just enough to beat GW, with Grant (career-high six assists, one turnover) playing a key role. The rookie notched 32 minutes of action, while another freshman, Murray, was a force in the paint.

"Parrish's passing and ball-handling was key," Giannini said. "We played better with him in the game."

Murray attempted two three pointers, making both, and hit seven shots inside the arc for his career-best 21 points. He had 18 points on Sunday at UMass.

Mekongo, who also played well at UMass (17 points), delivered when his team needed him most, playing 40 minutes and connected on all six shots from the charity stripe.

In a game that saw 12 ties, the Explorers finally went ahead 61-59 on Green's lay-up with 2:43 to play. GW cut it to one on Hermann Opoku's free throw, but Mekongo connected on two foul shots to extend the lead back up to three. Junior Jerrell Williams (team-high nine rebounds) made two more free throws to bump the lead to five, the largest of the game for either team, with 1:14 to play.

But the hosts began to unravel, committing a costly foul and five-second violation that gave GW the ball with eight seconds remaining. A three by Travis King was off the mark and La Salle escaped with their second straight A-10 win, 65-64.

Damian Hollis led the Colonials (11-5, 1-2 A-10) with 17 points, while Andre Ware had 16.

The Explorers (9-7, 2-1 A-10) will head to Richmond for a 4 PM start on Saturday. The game will be broadcast locally by Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia.