RICHMOND, Va.– A strong first-half effort by the La Salle University men's basketball team was ultimately not enough, as VCU came back from a nine-point halftime deficit to pick up a 69-63 win over the Explorers in Atlantic 10 action on Wednesday evening at the Siegel Center.

Freshman Ed Croswell came off the bench to match a career high with 11 points and added a team-best seven rebounds, while graduate student Pookie Powell and junior Isiah Deas tied for team-high scoring honors with 15 points apiece.

"Difficult loss tonight in one of the toughest environments to play in all of college basketball," head coach Ashley Howard said. "I'm proud with how our guys battled and stuck together for 40 minutes. Definitely an opportunity for us to learn from and get better as we move forward in Atlantic 10 play."

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Deas was the catalyst for the Explorers early, scoring six of the team's first eight points in building an 8-3 lead over the first four minutes of action.
• A bucket inside from Croswell and a three-pointer from junior Saul Phiri bumped the cushion to 13-6, and another three by Deas extended the advantage to eight at 16-8 with 12:44 on the clock.
• La Salle's defense was just as impressive as its offense, holding the Rams to two made field goals in their first 10 attempts and to 29.2 percent overall for the first half.
• After two free throws by VCU's Vince Williams put the score at 16-10, the Explorers continued their impressive start with a 12-0 run that spanned just under four minutes to give the visitors a 28-10 lead with 8:38 remaining in the period.
• The Rams slowly chipped away, with a three-pointer from Malik Crowfield cutting their deficit to single digits at 32-23 at the 4:26 mark.
• La Salle entered halftime with the nine-point advantage, as Deas paced the team with nine points. Sophomore David Beatty also added seven points off the bench, while Powell had seven points and four steals.
• With the lead cut to six early in the second half, Croswell converted an old-fashioned three-point play and hit two free throws on the next possession for a personal 5-0 spurt that nudged La Salle's margin back to double figures at 42-31.
• Nine straight points by VCU, which included five points from Marcus Evans, trimmed the La Salle lead to 42-40 before Croswell answered with a dunk at the other end.
• The Explorers continued to hold off the Rams until midway through the second half when a free throw from Evans gave VCU its first lead of the game with 8:58 to go.
• The Rams had a decided advantage from the charity stripe, attempting 34 free throws to La Salle's 20, including a 24-11 advantage in the second half.
• VCU's mini 5-0 run increased its lead to 58-51 with 4:43 remaining, but La Salle continued to battle down the stretch.
• Deas hit a free throw and Powell converted in transition off his own steal to pull the Explorers to within 58-54 with 2:21 left.
• The four-point difference was as close as the game became over the final two minutes as VCU improved to 11-4 overall and 2-0 in A-10 play.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• La Salle and VCU battled to a deadlock on the boards, as both teams finished with 41 rebounds.
• After shooting 43.3 percent in the first half, the Explorers struggled to the tune of 27.6 percent shooting - including 1-for-10 from three-point range - in the second half.
• The home team similarly flipped its shooting numbers from the first to the second, turning around its 29.2 percent first-half shooting number to 44.8 percent after intermission.
• Croswell had four of La Salle's 14 offensive rebounds that lead to 14 second-chance points. Fellow frosh Jack Clark added six rebounds to go along with nine points.
• VCU had four players in double figures, led by 15 points from De'Riante Jenkins.

UP NEXT

• The Explorers return home for a three-game homestand beginning on Saturday, Jan. 12 against Saint Louis.
• The game, which will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network, is scheduled for a 6:00 p.m. tipoff.
• Police, fire and emergency personnel from the Philadelphia area are invited to the game as part of First Responders Day.at Tom Gola Arena.
• For more information and to purchase tickets, call the Nextiva Ticket Office at 215-951-1999 or visit goexplorers.com/buytickets.