Men's Basketball | December 14, 2019

Box Score PHILADELPHIA - Senior Isiah Deas scored a career-high 31 points, including a run of 17 straight in the first half, as the La Salle University men's basketball team improved to 6-3 on the year with an 85-68 victory over Morgan State on Saturday. Junior David Beatty also posted a new personal best with 18 points, highlighted by an emphatic transition dunk midway through the second half that helped the Explorers fend off a rally by the visitors.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Explorers, who led by as many as eight points in the early going, saw Morgan State come back and take a three-point lead following an old-fashioned three-point play by Jamar Brown at the 9:52 mark.
• From there, Deas took over, turning a three-point deficit into a 12-point lead with a personal 17-2 run over a span of 5:32.
• The 6-6 guard made five triples over that span, including three in less than a minute of game action to give the Explorers a 33-21 lead.
• Beatty joined the party at the 2:20 mark with a three-pointer of his own and La Salle went into the locker room with a 41-27 advantage.
• La Salle continued to lead by double figures until Morgan State went on a 9-1 run early in the second half to put the score at 51-45 with 13:11 to go.
• With momentum slipping away, Beatty took a feed from freshman Sherif Kenney and threw home a one-handed, tomahawk dunk over a Morgan State defender to turn the tides.
• Even still, the Bears continued to pester throughout the second stanza before freshman Christian Ray made an impact off the bench.
• With the lead at 58-51, Ray pulled down an offensive board and was fouled on the putback attempt. He converted two from the charity stripe, and scored four more points in a game-clinching 10-2 spurt.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Deas eclipsed his previous career high of 25, set last season at Davidson. Beatty's prior collegiate mark came while at South Carolina (16 points vs. Limestone). His Explorer high was 15 points against Iona in the season opener.
• The Explorers committed just seven turnovers and forced Morgan State into 16 miscues that led to 28 points.
• La Salle also utilized transition opportunities throughout the contest, scoring 19 fast-break points to just eight for its opponent.
• Ray and Kenney paced the Explorers with seven rebounds apiece, but Morgan State held a 41-32 edge on the boards.

UP NEXT

• La Salle continues its homestand on Wednesday, Dec. 18 with a matchup against Wagner. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m., with tickets available by visiting goexplorers.com/tickets or by calling 215-951-1999.