Women's Basketball | November 28, 2022

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The La Salle women's basketball team returns home to Tom Gola Arena for its first Big 5 matchup of the season against Penn this Tuesday, Nov. 29 at 6:30 p.m. The game will stream live on ESPN+ and tickets are available for sale here.
 
The game will be dedicated to Morgan's Message and fighting the stigma against mental illness within student-athletes. La Salle also asks that all fans bring a non-perishable item for donation to the Explorers' Fansgiving Food Drive.
 
SCOUTING THE EXPLORERS:

• La Salle will return to Tom Gola Arena for its first home game in two weeks and just second of the season against crosstown foe Penn. The contest will be the first Big 5 matchup for the Explorers this season.
• This marks the second time the Explorers return to play at home following a stretch of three games on the road. La Salle is 1-0 when returning home following a road contest this season.
• The Explorers enter the contest after recording its third road victory at Lafayette. La Salle trailed the Leopards after the first quarter, but double- digit scoring efforts from Gabby Crawford and Kayla Spruill pushed the Explorers to a 71-54 victory.
• Spruill shot an impressive 77.8% (7-of-9) from the field with a perfect 2-of-2 from deep. She has now reached 10-plus points in six consecutive contests this season and is only one of two Explorers that is currently averaging double-digit scoring. She leads the team's rebounding efforts with 5.3 per game including back-to-back games pulling down eight boards. Her 77.8% shooting effort marks the first time an Explorer has shot at least 75% from the field since the graduate student did it herself last season against Richmond on Feb. 13.
• La Salle held a +17 rebound margin in the game, its largest of the season recording 57 rebounds. The contest marked the third game this season that the Explorers have outrebounded their opponent making them 3-0 when pulling down more boards than their competitor. The 57 rebounds was the first time La Salle hit 50 rebounds since Jan. 11, 2020 at Duquesne.
• The Explorers have recorded five games with 70-plus points this season. The team is now 4-1 when scoring 70 or more.
• Crawford's 16 points was her best mark of the season. She has now recorded 10-plus points in four contests this year. She shot a perfect 100% (4-of-4) from the line in the game marking the third consecutive game she has been perfect from the charity stripe and fourth overall this season.
• Mia Jacobs recorded season-highs in rebounds (11) and assists against the Leopards. Her 11 boards makes her the first Explorer this season to hit double-digit rebounding. Her perfect 3-of-3 effort from the line is the second time this season the freshman has recorded 100% from the charity stripe. 

SCOUTING THE QUAKERS:

• Penn enters the contest at 1-5 on the season having not won a single game since its season-opener against Marist on Nov. 10.
• The contest will be the third Big 5 game for the Quakers this season having already faced Saint Joseph's (50-57) and Villanova (41-67).
• The Quakers return to Philadelphia after a two-game stint out west against San Francisco and USC. The contest at La Salle marks the fifth road contest for the Quakers this season and third-straight.
• Kayla Padilla leads the scoring effort for Penn this season as the only member on the roster to average double-digits, 15.3. She started the season strong with a 31-point performance at Marist followed by a 20-point game at Northwestern. The senior has reached the double-digit mark in four games including the last two-straight.
• Floor Toonders leads the effort at the boards averaging 7.7 rebounds per game. She ties Obi Jordan in blocks with four and ranks third in assists with 13.

SERIES HISTORY:

• Tuesday's Big 5 matchup between the Explorers and the Quakers will be the 49th meeting between the teams.
• La Salle leads the all-time series 36-12 and has only dropped a home contest to Penn four times.
• The Explorers are on a single-game win streak in the series after snapping a two-game skid last year with a 63-49 victory.
• La Salle visited the Palestra last season and trailed by six at the end of the third quarter, but a 26-6 effort in the fourth comprised of an 11-point effort from Kayla Spruill pushed the Explorers to the 14-point victory.