Men's Basketball | January 26, 2021

PHILADELPHIA - La Salle returns home to Tom Gola Arena in search of its third consecutive Atlantic 10 Conference win when the Explorers host Rhode Island on Wednesday. The game will stream on ESPN+ and tip-off is slated for 5 p.m.

NEWS & NOTES
•The Explorers picked up their biggest win of the season on Saturday, coming from behind to knock off Atlantic 10 preseason favorite Richmond on the road, 84-78.
•Six Explorers scored in double figures led by sophomore Sherif Kenney, who had a team-high 17 points and four assists over a season-high 34 minutes.
•La Salle shot a season-best 52.9 percent from three-point territory and made 57.1 percent from the floor for the second straight game.
•The Spiders led by seven midway through the first half before the Explorers chipped the difference down to just one at halftime.
•After La Salle started the second on a 16-8 run to go in front, Richmond responded with an 11-2 run to regain the lead.
•The Explorers quickly went back on top and stretched their advantage to nine with 1:18 to go, and La Salle made 11-of-14 foul shots over the final two minutes to seal it.
•Junior Jared Kimbrough had 12 points, his second straight double-digit scoring output,  on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting day to go with a season-high nine rebounds.
•Sophomore Christian Ray tallied 11 points and eight rebounds, while freshman Jhamir Brickus, redshirt senior Scott Spencer and redshirt sophomore Jack Clark each chipped in 10 points apiece.
•The Explorers made a season-high 19 foul shots on 24 attempts and held a lopsided 34-2 advantage in bench scoring.

SCOUTING RHODE ISLAND
•The Rams enter the contest at 8-8 overall and 5-4 in the Atlantic 10, however, they are just 1-5 on the road this season.
•Rhode Island defeated Fordham at home on Sunday, 52-42, behind Jeremy Sheppard's 16 points and nine rebounds.
•The Rams have notable non-conference wins vs. USF, San Francisco and Seton Hall.
•Fatts Russell leads the team with 15.2 points, 4.1 assists and 2.1 steals per game.
•Sheppard adds 10.4 points per contest for a Rhode Island squad that averages 72.8 points per game and ranks third in the A-10 with a 4.8 rebounding margin.

KIMBROUGH NAMED BIG 5 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
•Junior Jared Kimbrough was named Philadelphia Big 5 Player of the Week as well as College Sports Madness Mid-Major Player of the Week after putting forth a lights-out performance over La Salle's 2-0 week.
•Over the two wins, Kimbrough averaged 18.0 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting an incredible 94.4% (17-for-18) from the field.
•The 6-8 big man demolished his career high with 24 points in last week's win over Saint Joseph's and was nearly perfect from the floor, shooting 12-for-13 with the only miss coming on his only three-point attempt of the season. He also added six rebounds.
•In a road win over preseason Atlantic 10 favorite Richmond, he had 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots while going perfect from the field (5-5).
•The Neptune, N.J. native has come on strong as of late, averaging 12.8 points on 85.7 percent shooting and 5.8 rebounds over his last four games.

KENNEY'S KOOKIN'
•Sophomore Sherif Kenney has come on strong on the offensive end as the season has progressed, leading the team with 9.1 points per game.
•Kenney was on point in Saturday's win at Richmond with a team-high 17 points on 5-of-6 shooting (2-3 3PT, 5-6 FT) while slinging four assists for the second straight game.
•Over a four-game stretch from mid-December into January, he averaged 16.0 points while shooting 53.8 percent from the floor and 54.5 percent from downtown to lead La Salle to a 3-1 mark.
•As a result, the 6-4 guard was named Philadelphia Big 5 Player of the Week on Jan. 4.
•Against reigning A-10 champion Dayton, he tallied 14 points, 12 in the second half, as the Explorers downed the Flyers for the first time at UD Arena in 21 years.
•Three days later, the Washington, D.C. native poured in a season-high 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting in a 37-point win over Fordham.

SPENCER HEATIN' UP FROM DEEP
•Redshirt senior Scott Spencer has shown off an effective touch from beyond the three-point line this season.
•The 6-6 guard is shooting 65.5 percent from long range over the last six games.
•Over those six games, he has made 2+ three-pointers five times and has knocked down 17 triples on 29 attempts.
•Spencer ranks fourth in the Atlantic 10 Conference in three-point shooting, hitting at a 43.3 percent clip.