Men's Basketball | December 17, 2021

PHILADELPHIA – The La Salle men's basketball team goes on the road for just the third time this season, second outside of city limits, when they face Bucknell in a Saturday afternoon matchup. The Explorers put a three-game win streak on the line, searching for their first road win of the year.
 
NEWS AND NOTES

• For the final time of the nonconference and only the second time all season, the Explorers leave Philadelphia when they take on the Bucknell Bison on Saturday. The matchup sees just the third road game for La Salle and only the fourth home game for Bucknell.
• The Explorers grabbed its first win of the season against a Philadelphia foe last time out, knocking off Penn 76-74 to move to 1-2 against the Big Five.
• Five of La Salle's nine games have been decided by one score or less at the end of regulation. After four straight one possession games after 40 minutes to start the season, the Explorers had four straight games of double-digit margins, splitting them evenly before a two point win over Penn.
• Winning five-straight games in Gola and heading into Saturday's matchup on a three-game win streak, the Explorers put their run on the line in search of their first road win of the season.
• La Salle hasn't left city limits in nearly a month, when they made their first road trip of the season at Delaware.
• The Explorer offense has awoken over the last three games, shooting a flaming 50.8% from the field on their three-game win streak. La Salle has claimed its three best shooting efforts in its last three games. In the win over Penn, all five starters finished in double-digits for just the second time on the season.
• Josh Nickelberry produced his third straight game with double-digit scoring, tallying a game-high 15 points against the Quakers.
• Anwar Gill once again directed the offense, finishing with a season-high 12 points while dishing out seven dimes - only two short of his career-mark that he set in the previous win over FDU.

 
SCOUTING BUCKNELL

• The Bison enter Saturday's contest on a three-game losing streak, waiting 11 days in between their last game and the weekend fixture to look to get back to winning ways. Bucknell is 2-8 on the season, holding a 2-1 record inside Sojka Pavilion.
• Averaging more than 70 points per game, the Bison find their struggles on the other side of the ball, giving up 82 points per game, allowing a season-low 56 points in their last home match vs. Siena.
• Bucknell is led by Andrew Funk, the senior guard averaging 17.9 points per game. Xander Rice (12.1), Alex Timmerman (10.9) and Andre Screen (10.3) all join Funk in double-digits. Timmerman and Screen combining for 14 rebounds per game, ranking 1st and 2nd on the roster.
• Rice leads the Bison with a team-high 39 assists and 11 steals.

 
SHINING ON SATURDAYS

• Nine games in, the Explorers are unblemished on Saturdays, winning all four games played. All four wins also came in the daytime, La Salle 1-4 when playing at 6 pm or later.
• The 26 point rout over FDU is the first time that the Explorers won on any day besides Saturday and after 4 p.m.

 
SHOOTING THROUGH THE SLUMP

• After two matchups against Big Five opponents, the Explorers shook off the rust of two shooting performances against Temple and Villanova. After combining for 31-111 (25.2%) from the field against Philly foes, the Explorers recovered by shooting 34-64 (54.0%) against Holy Cross, their highest shooting percentage of the season.
• La Salle backed up its performance with a similarly strong offensive output against FDU. The Explorers recorded a 48.4% shooting percentage on 30-62 from the field, connecting on 13-28 (46.4%) of their attempts from range.
• Back to the Big Five, a third consecutive shooting night saw the Explorers go 29-58 (50.0%) from the field and 10-23 (43.5%) from behind the arc for their third straight win and first against the Big Five.

 
GILL'S GOT GAME

• Anwar Gill's first game of the season saw the sophomore pad the stats. Scoring in double figures, Gill's 10 points were joined with five rebounds, five assists and five steals. The five steals mark a previous high, previously forcing two swipes on six different occasions.
• In 19 minutes, the sophomore guard filled the stat sheet with eight points, a career-high six assists and seven rebounds against Temple.
• In his best game of the season for the Explorers, Gill made the most of his first start against FDU. The sophomore collected a career-high nine dimes on the night, tallying five rebounds on an efficient 3-5 night from the field for seven points.
• Gill followed up his FDU performance with a season-high 12 points against the Quakers, commanding the offense with seven assists and adding three steals on the other side of the ball.

 
MORE FROM MOORE

• Clifton Moore has proven himself to be a menace on the defensive side of the ball, ranking 33rd in the nation in blocks with 23.
• With six blocks against Army West Point, Moore recorded the most blocks in a game since November 20, 2010 when Aaric Murray recorded nine in a 79-74 win over Morgan State. The six blocks is fourth-most in program history.
• Moore had a career-day against the Crusaders, grabbing a career-best 15 points and four assists. The Ambler, Pa. native also grabbed a season-high eight boards, blocking five shots - one short of the record set against Army.

 
HOME SWEET HOME

• The Explorers spend their non-conference campaign local to the City of Brotherly Love, only leaving Philly twice before the new year. Already playing Delaware and Temple on the road, the last trip coming with a visit to Bucknell on Dec. 18.
• La Salle holds a five-game win streak inside Tom Gola Arena, the only loss coming in the home opener in overtime to Sacred Heart. The streak is the most since the 2016-17 season, that squad tallying seven-straight wins on 20th and Olney.

 
SERIES HISTORY

• The series sees the 27th matchup between the two teams on Saturday, La Salle holding a 20-6 advantage.
• La Salle opened the series with 11 straight wins, winning 15 of the first 16 contests.
• Five of Bucknell's six wins have come since 2007, winning four of the last seven.
• Last time against Bucknell, the two teams battled at The Palestra over the holiday break. Kenney and Ray played minimal roles in the game, combining for five points in the 12 point win.
• Coach Howard is 1-1 against the Bison.
• The series began in 1959, La Salle winning the inaugural matchup in a narrow 70-68 win.