PHILADELPHIA – A short-handed La Salle men's basketball team suffered defeat inside Tom Gola Arena on Saturday afternoon, VCU grabbing an 85-66 victory.
 
Without two regular starters, the Explorers were forced to use a smaller lineup, showing fatigue in their first game back after two games against Rhode Island and Saint Louis were postponed this week. La Salle moves to 5-7 (0-2 A-10) on the season, the visiting Rams now 9-4 (2-0 A-10).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After leaving the game injured after six minutes against Fordham, Anwar Gill made an instant impact on the opening possession by forcing a Ram turnover and finishing with a dunk on the other end.
• The Rams countered with the next seven points, churning out a 19-6 lead with just over 13 minutes on the clock.
• La Salle cut the deficit to single digits after a tough pull up jumper from Khalil Brantley tickled the twine as the freshman was fouled, cutting the Ram lead to 24-15.
• The two teams traded buckets to close the half, Brantley finding Christian Ray for an easy layup under the rim with minimal time on the clock to cut the VCU lead to 38-28 entering halftime.
• A game after recording his career-high of 26 points against Fordham, Clifton Moore continued to play a heavy roll both sides of the ball along with the rookie Brantley. The two combined to score seven of the first nine points in the second half for the Explorers.
• The visitors, shooting over 50% for the majority of the game, continued their hot shooting to increase their lead to as much 23 points at 76-53.
• La Salle was unable to mount a comeback, falling at home in an 85-66 defeat to the Rams.

 
GAME NOTES

• For the second-straight game, Moore produced career numbers. The Ambler, Pa. native posted a game-high 21 points to score 20+ for the second straight game. Moore added a career-high 12 rebounds, securing his first collegiate double-double. The redshirt senior also finished with three assists and three blocks.
• Brantley added a career-mark of 18 points on 6-15 shooting. The freshman dished out two assists and forced two steals in the loss.
• After being a late scratch in the Fordham matchup, Ray returned to the court with eight points and seven rebounds while also adding two assists and two steals.
• Gill led the team with seven assists to go along with six points, the third time this season tallying seven or more helpers.
• VCU shot well above its season average, knocking down 32-62 (51.6%) field goals while connecting on 9-21 (42.9%) attempts from distance. The Explorers finished 24-56 from the field for 45.3%.
• The Explorers were hampered in the first half by a 10-3 turnover margin in favor of VCU, one the Rams would capitalize on by outscoring La Salle 15-6 in points off turnovers. The final numbers showed a 19-8 advantage for VCU, equating to a 30-12 margin in scoring off of turnovers.
• La Salle took just three attempts from distance in the first half, kept off of the three-point line with a 0-3 tally. The Explorers finished 5-14 from distance, connecting on 5-11 (45.5%) attempts in the second half.
• VCU finished with 22 assists, nine different Rams registering a dime on the night. Marcus Tsohonis had a team-high 17 points while Vince Williams added 16 points and six rebounds.

 
UP NEXT

• The Explorers return to Gola on Tuesday, January 11^th to take on St. Bonaventure.
• Tip is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.