BRONX, N.Y. – The La Salle University men's basketball team connected on a season-high 14 three-pointers en route to a road victory over Fordham, 73-71, in Atlantic 10 action on Wednesday evening. Junior Isiah Deas, returning to his native New York City, scored a team-high 20 points and added six assists while graduate student Pookie Powell registered 16 points, 11 of which came in the second half.

"Great road win and we'll take any win we can get right now," head coach Ashley Howard said. "It's a learning experience. We did a really good job of staying together for 40 minutes. We didn't play perfect, but we played together all the way to the end and it's a great step in the right direction for us to get another win on the road in conference play."

"There were a lot of teachable moments that we can use to continue to get better. Like we've talked about all season, our journey is just about continuing to get better and I thought we took a step in the right direction today."

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The first half saw the Explorers torch the net for nine three-pointers, including a run in the early going where they made six of their first seven.
• Junior Isiah Deas hit a triple just past the 17-minute mark to give La Salle a 12-2 advantage and closed the period with a team-high 13 points.
• The lead grew to as many as 16 points thanks to continued hot shooting and a solid defense. Fordham missed 12 of its first 16 shots and trailed 34-18 after a layup by freshman Ed Croswell.
• The Rams closed the half on a 14-5 run and trimmed the margin to 39-30 at intermission. The Explorers finished the period shooting 53.8 percent from the field and 9-for-15 from three-point range.
• After a three from Nick Honor edged Fordham to within six to begin the second half, junior Saul Phiri knocked down La Salle's 10th three-pointer of the game to ignite a 10-2 run that re-established a 12-point Explorers lead.
• Another trifecta, this one from Deas, pushed the cushion to 54-39 before Fordham made its charge back.
• Bookend three-pointers from Antwon Portley were the keys to an 11-2 spurt that brought the home team to within six at 56-50 with 10:58 remaining.
• La Salle's lead remained in single digits the rest of the way as Fordham continued to work its way closer. A pair of free throws from Portley made the score 63-60 just prior to the six-minute mark.
• From there, Powell took over offensively for the Explorers, scoring his team's final eight points. With the Explorers once again clinging to a three-point lead and under a minute to play, Powell connected on a tough three-pointer with the shot clock running down to push the visitors in front by six.
• Fordham did not go down without a fight, hitting a layup after the Explorers had missed a one-and-one opportunity. Another free-throw attempt from La Salle was off the mark seconds later, and a foul allowed Portley to go to the line for three attempts with La Salle leading 73-69 and just 1.3 seconds left.
• Portley made the first two and, after a timeout, missed the third free throw intentionally. The carom came down to Onyi Eyisi, who had one final chance to tie the game as time expired but his attempt fell short.

• The Explorers (4-14, 2-4 A-10) knocked down 14 of their 26 three-point attempts for a percentage of 53.8, which also set a new season high.
• Phiri was a third double-digit scorer for the Explorers, closing a perfect 4-for-4 from three-point range en route to 14 points.
• Junior Traci Carter closed with 10 points and four assists in 31 minutes of action.
• La Salle also dished out 18 assists, one shy of its season high which was set twice previously (vs. Villanova, vs. Alabama A&M).
• Fordham, who fell to 9-10 overall and 0-6 in A-10 play, was led by Portley who closed with 22 points.

• La Salle has a full week off before its next contest on Wednesday, Jan. 30 against Massachusetts at Tom Gola Arena at TruMark Financial Center.
• Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m., with all of the action available on ESPN+.
• The game will feature Fan Appreciation Day, with numerous giveaways -- including an autographed Lionel Simmons shirtsey -- being given out throughout the contest.
• For tickets, visit goexplorers.com/buytickets or call 215-951-1999.