PHILADELPHIA — The La Salle men's basketball team faced off against Lafayette on Wednesday in non-conference action, but the Leopards came away with a 90-65 win at Tom Gola Arena at TruMark Financial Center.
The loss put the Explorers at 5-7 on the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Explorers got off to a slow start, as Lafayette raced out to a 13-4 lead in the first four minutes of the game.
- The Explorers came back to tie the Leopards at 13 after going on a 9-0 run over the next three minutes. Josh Nickelberry sparked the run with a three-pointer, Fousseyni Drame added four points on a pair of free throws and a layup in the paint, and Mamadou Doucoure scored the tying basket by muscling his way in for a layup.
- But, the Leopards went on to outscore the Explorers, 27-14, in the final 12:53 of the half to take a 40-27 lead at the break.
- In the second half, the Explorers managed to get the deficit down to 54-46 with 14:20 left. Khalil Brantley was a major catalyst for the Explorers' during that six-minute stretch, scoring nine points.
- Unfortunately, the Bearcats outscored the Explorers, 46-19, to go on to win the game.
GAME NOTES
- Brantley led the way for the Explorers with 14 points and four assists.
- Nickelberry also scored in double figures, adding 10 points — seven of which came in the second half.
- The Explorers committed a season-best six turnovers in the game. They bounced back from had a season-high 25 turnovers against Cincinnati last Saturday.
- Despite the loss, the Explorers lead the all-time series against Lafayette at 35-12.
UP NEXT
- The Explorers hit the road next week for a two-game trip to the Washington D.C./Virginia area. The Explorers will head to D.C. to face Howard on Thursday, then open up Atlantic-10 play on Saturday when it takes on VCU at VCU. Tip-off for both games are set for 2 p.m.
