Men's Basketball | January 15, 2023

PHILADELPHIA — The La Salle men's basketball team goes for its third Atlantic-10 win on Monday when it takes on rival Saint Joseph's at Tom Gola Arena at TruMark Financial Center. The game is presented by Independence Blue Cross. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
 
The game will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network, with Chris Lewis and Chris Walker delivering the play-by-play and color commentary. Explorers fans can also listen to an audio broadcast through GoExplorers.com/watch, with Kale Beers and Rich Prendergast providing the play-by-play and color commentary. In addition, Explorers fans can follow the team on Twitter @LaSalle_MBB and Instagram @lasallembb.
 
The game will also celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. There will also be a pre-game reception at the Hideaway at Blue and Gold Commons. The Hideaway will open at 1 p.m. to all fans.
 
NEWS & NOTES

• The Explorers will go up against the Hawks for the 125th time in program history. Saint Joseph's leads the series with a 67-57 record. 
• The Explorers are coming off a heartbreaking 66-64 loss to Fordham last Saturday at home. In the game, the Explorers managed to erase an eight-point halftime deficit and tied the game with 14 seconds left before Fordham hit a game-winning shot at the buzzer.
• The Explorers will look to win their fourth straight against the Hawks after beating them three times last season, including earning a 63-56 victory in the first round of the Atlantic-10 Tournament.
• The Explorers have three players averaging close to double figures in Khalil Brantley, Josh Nickelberry, and Jhamir Brickus. The three guards combined for 35.7 points per game, with Brantley scoring 14.9 per game, Nickelberry chipping in 10.8 per contest, and Brickus averaging 10.0 per game. 
• The Explorers are led by head coach Fran Dunphy, the all-time winningest coach in Philadelphia Big 5 history. A 1970 La Salle graduate, Dunphy sports a 588-334 career record and a 331-131 mark in conference games.

 
GETTIN' JIGGY WITH IT

• Jhamir "Jig" Brickus has shown he can step up and score, as evident of his career-high 25 points that he scored twice this year against Penn and UMass.
• In the Explorers' win against Penn on Dec, 3, Brickus shot 9-for-12 from the field, including 6-for-8 from three, in 43 minutes. The Coatesville, Pa. native's six three-pointers made and minutes played were career highs.
• Against UMass, Brickus scored 22 of his career-high 25 points in the second half. He also matched his career high in threes with six — all of which came in the second half — and his season-best in field goals made with nine. 
• Brickus came up with big plays in the Explorers' 77-75 overtime win over Rhode Island. He made three clutch free throws with 3.7 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and send it to overtime. In overtime, he scored five of the team's six points, including the go-ahead three-pointer with 31.3 seconds left.
• Brickus has scored in double figures in five straight games and  in eight of his last nine games. 
• Brickus has shot well from three-point range, as he ranks second in the A-10 in three-point field goal percentage at 47.4 (27-for-57).
• He also showed this type of scoring prowess against Georgetown on Nov. 20, when he had a game-high 14 points. All 14 of Brickus' points came in the second half. 
• Brickus also has shown great stamina for La Salle, playing 32.7 minutes per game, which is good for 15th in the A-10.

 
SERIES HISTORY

• The matchup between La Salle and Saint Joseph's dates back to 1934.
• The Explorers have won seven of the last 10 meetings dating back to 2019. 
• The Explorers have won the last three games, all of which came last season. 
• The Explorers' 57 wins against the Hawks are the most victories against one opponent in program history.

 
SCOUTING SAINT JOSEPH'S

• The Hawks enter the game at 7-10 and 1-4 in A-10 play after they beat Loyola Chicago, 86-55, on Saturday at home. The Hawks' other six wins were against Lafayette (63-59), UAlbany (99-79), Penn (85-80 in OT), Saint Peter's (73-57), Sacred Heart (77-59), and Central Connecticut State (83-66), respectively.
• The Hawks' 10 losses were to Houston (81-55), Georgia (66-53), USF (75-62), Fairleigh Dickinson (97-80), Temple (70-60), Villanova (71-64), Saint Louis (83-78), Dayton (76-56), Fordham (66-54), and Duquesne (92–80), respectively.
• Last year, the Hawks finished tied for 13th in the A-10 last year with the Explorers.
• The Hawks have two players averaging double figures in Erik Reynolds II and Cameron Brown. Reynolds II leads the way with 17.2 points per game, while Brown has averaged 13.6 points per game.
• Saint Joseph's is led by Billy Lange, who is in his fourth season as head coach for the Hawks. Coaching his 13^th season overall, Lange has a 29-70 record with the Hawks and a 160-204 mark overall.