Men's Basketball | November 12, 2014

PHILADELPHIA – The La Salle men's basketball team will open up its regular season on Saturday, November 15 vs. Colgate at 3 PM. Homecoming festivities will take place throughout the day.

Colgate Raiders at La Salle Explorers
Saturday, November 15 | 3 PM | Tom Gola Arena

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Game Notes
La Salle | Colgate

GameDay Information
- La Salle alumni are invited to the pre-game Homecoming tent. The tent will be set up on the Belfield tennis courts with admission $25 for alumni and guests and $5 for children under 12.
- Veterans receive free admission with a valid ID
- Traffic advisory: Wister Street
- GoExplorers.tv will offer a free video stream for fans that can't make the game.

Last Time Out
La Salle took down Philadelphia University, 79-61, in an exhibition Monday night behind 16 points (5-13 FG, 4-7 3-PT, 2-2 FT) from Jordan Price. The Explorers shot 50 percent (31-62) from the field, 47.4 percent (9-19) from behind the arc, and 80 percent (8-10) from the charity stripe. Steve Zack contributed 13 points of his own (5-6 FG, 2-2 3-PT, 1-1 FT) to go with three blocks and five rebounds.

All-Time Series
This is the first ever matchup between the two programs. La Salle does have history with the majority of the Raiders coaching staff however. Head Coach Matt Langel was a standout player at Penn from 1999-2002 where the Quakers and Explorers split four matchups. After his playing days were over Langel made stops at his alma mater and Temple as an assistant where 12 times he matched up against La Salle. Two of Langel's assistant coaches Dave Klatsky and Mike Jordan also played at Penn where each made three career matchups against the Explorers.

Scouting the Explorers
La Salle expects to feature one of the conference's top frontcourts, anchored by Atlantic 10 second-team preseason choice Jerrell Wright and third-team preseason selection Steve Zack. Wright was efficient in his 18 minutes on Monday night, tallying five points and five rebounds while shooting 2-4 from the field. Zack showed his all-around game during the exhibition going 5-6 from the field including a perfect 2-2 from behind the arch for 13 points to go with five rebounds and three blocks in just 15 minutes of action.

The Explorers started three guards Monday evening, going with senior D.J. Peterson and a pair of transfers in Jordan Price and Khalid Lewis. Price had an impressive game in his first time suiting up for La Salle. He led the team with 16 points, and proved to be a threat from distance, shooting 4-7 from three point land. Price also added five assists to just two turnovers in his 25 minutes. Lewis was efficient going 4-5 from the field.

Redshirt freshman Amar Stukes provided a spark off the bench for the Explorers, going 4-5 from the field for 10 points and grabbing three rebounds while dishing out two assists. Fellow redshirt freshman Tony Washington provided vital minutes down low off the bench. The big man rejected two shots in his 13 minutes while adding four points and three rebounds. Rohan Brown tallied six points while grabbing five rebounds as he provided 19 key minutes.

Scouting the Raiders
Colgate returns four starters and 14 overall letterwinners from last year's team. The Raiders return 73% of their scoring from last season and 74.5% of their rebounds. They also add in a pair of transfers in forward Tom Rivard from James Madison and Ethan Jacobs a center who transferred from Ohio University.  

The Raiders are predicted to finish in eighth place in the Patriot League based on their preseason poll. The Raiders finished last season in seventh place in the regular season before having their season come to an end in the Quarterfinals of the Patriot League Tournament.

Seniors Luke Roh, Ethan Jacobs, Damon Sherman-Newsome and Pat Moore and junior Austin Tillotson all return as starters from last season's team. Tillotson is the team's top returning scorer as he averaged 13.3 ppg. He led the team by shooting 48% from behind the arc. Tollotson also was named to CollegeHoopsDaily first team All-Patriot League. Pat Moore returns after an injury cut his junior season to just nine games. He was shooting 45% from three point range before getting hurt.
 
Up Next
The Explorers hit the road for the first time in the 2014-15 season as they head to Hamden, Connecticut to take on the Quinnipiac Bobcats. The game is scheduled for a 7:30 tip on Tuesday, November 18 at TD Bank Sports Center.