Men's Basketball | January 7, 2020
AMHERST, Mass. - La Salle men's basketball returns to the road on Wednesday evening when it takes on Massachusetts in another Atlantic 10 matchup. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m., with a broadcast of the game available online through ESPN+. An audio airing of the game is also available through the TuneIn Radio App and Stretch Internet Radio.
NEWS & NOTES
•The Explorers recently earned a 66-60 road victory over Fordham on Sunday, using a dominant first half to take control.
•A trio of players scored in double figures for La Salle, led by senior
Isiah Deas and junior
Scott Spencer who each had 13.
•Eleven of Deas' 13 came in the first half that helped the road team establish a 34-20 lead at halftime.
•Fordham shot just 29.2 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes while La Salle clipped the nets at an even 50.0 percent.
•Freshman
Christian Ray came off the bench to provide a spark, scoring nine points and tying for team-high honors with six rebounds (
Ed Croswell also had six). Ray also added two steals, a blocked shot and an assist in 22 minutes.
•La Salle is looking for its third straight win on the road, which would mark the first time the Explorers have accomplished the feat since the 2014-15 season.
SCOUTING MASSACHUSETTS
•The Minutemen began Atlantic 10 play on Sunday with a road matchup with Saint Louis, falling in overtime by a score of 83-80.
•Freshman Tre Mitchell had 20 points, nine rebounds and a pair of blocked shots, while Samba Diallo had a double-double (11 pts., 14 rebs.).
•UMass is led by T.J. Weeks who is averaging 14.7 points per game and shooting 48.5 percent from three-point range.
•Three other players are averaging 12 points or more per contest -- Mitchell (14.4 ppg), Carl Pierre (14.1 ppg) and Sean East II (12.1 ppg).
•East II is the reigning A-10 Rookie of the Week after scoring 18 points and dishing out five assists to go along with four steals against the Billikens.
WHAT IT TAKES TO WIN FOR THE EXPLORERS
•Through 14 games this season, a number of trends have started to develop as it relates to La Salle's success.
•The Explorers held Fordham to just 60 points in Sunday's A-10 win, improving their mark to a perfect 8-0 in games that they've held an opponent to below 70 points.
•Offensively, La Salle is 8-1 this season in games that it has scored 70 or more points and 5-0 when shooting more free throws than its opponent.
•The team is also 5-0 in games that it outrebounds the team its facing, 10-0 when leading at halftime and 9-0 when leading with five minutes remaining in regulation.
•One streak will for sure be on the line on Wednesday, when the Explorers wear their road navy jerseys. The team is 5-0 this year wearing blue (all three games of Gulf Coast Showcase, at Drexel, at Fordham).
