BRONX, N.Y. - The La Salle University men's basketball team used a strong first half to secure its first Atlantic 10 victory of the season, a 66-60 win over Fordham on Sunday. Senior Isiah Deas, making a return to his native New York, scored 11 of his team-high 13 points in the opening half as the Explorers improve to 10-4 on the year and 1-1 in A-10 play.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• La Salle jumped out to a quick 9-0 run thanks to three straight three-pointers, including two from junior Scott Spencer.
• A jumper from Fordham's Kyle Rose cut the advantage to 13-9, before an 11-1 run grew the lead to double figures.
• Deas was a key part of the run, scoring seven of his 11 first-half points during the spurt.
• The lead grew to as many as 17 points for the Explorers in the opening period, and La Salle entered the locker room with a 34-20 advantage.
• After Josh Colon knocked down a triple to open the scoring in the second half, La Salle scored nine of the next 11 points to take its largest lead of the game at 44-25.
• The lead stood at 19 with 13:38 on the clock, when Fordham began to chip away. Ivan Raut made a free throw that pulled the home team within 50-40 at the 8:12 mark.
• From there, the Rams put together an 8-2 run over a span of 3:19, and a layup by Ty Perry put the score at 57-51 with 2:37 to go.
• On the ensuing possession, junior David Beatty knocked down a critical three-pointer to re-up the lead to nine. 
• Fordham would continue to battle, with Raut's three bringing the score to 60-56. But Beatty hit four straight free throws and the Explorers went 6-for-6 in the closing moments to secure the victory.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• La Salle held Fordham to just 29.2 percent shooting in the first half and, for the game, limited the Rams to six made three-point field goals on 21 attempts (28.6%).
• The Explorers held a 35-27 rebounding advantage, with sophomore Ed Croswell and freshman Christian Ray each hauling in six.
• Ray posted nine points, two steals and a blocked shots in addition to his six boards.
• Spencer matched Deas' 13 points while Beatty registered 11. Beatty, Deas, senior Saul Phiri and freshman Ayinde Hikim each had three assists.

UP NEXT

• La Salle returns to the road on Wednesday, Jan. 8 with a contest at Massachusetts. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.