PHILADELPHIA – The La Salle men's basketball team will host the Massachusetts Minutemen this Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. at John E. Glaser Arena. The Explorers will look to avenge a loss from earlier in the season, when the Minutemen successfully defended homecourt from the visiting La Salle.
The game is themed to Super Bowl Sunday, with all fans encouraged to wear green. Food will be discounted, with a selection of alcoholic beverages, plus hot dogs and pretzels priced at $2. The first 250 students to arrive will be awarded $2 towards any promotional item.
The contest will be nationally broadcast on USA Network. The game audio will also be streamed, with Kale Beers providing play-by-play. Additionally, Explorers fans can follow the team on X/Twitter @LaSalle_MBB and Instagram @LaSalleMBB.
LAST TIME OUT - LA SALLE 66, VCU 96
- La Salle fell to the VCU Rams on Tuesday night.
- The teams were tied at 16 with 12 minutes remaining. The Rams entered halftime up 20 points. The Explorers were never able to close the gap.
- Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi scored 11 points. Jahlil White scored in double-figures for the third straight game, hitting a season-high six free throws.
- Mac Etienne blocked a career-high six shots. The third most in a single-game in program history.
NEWS AND NOTES
- Rebounding has been established as the Explorers' calling card this season. La Salle ranks fourth in the A-10 in rebounding (37.9), its most rebounds per game since 1990-91 (40.2). The Explorers check in the top 100 nationally in the category. After the Immaculata game on Dec. 21, the Explorers have recorded two games with over 50 rebounds for the first time since 2011 (4).
- McKeithan leads La Salle in scoring with 15.1 points, good for 14th in the conference.
- Demetrius Lilley is pulling down 6.8 boards per game, ranking 8th in the Atlantic-10. Lilley is in the midst of the best rebounding season by an Explorer since Ed Croswell in 2019-20.
- Shepherd is third on the team in scoring, adding 11.2 points per game. He has scored in double-figures in 16 of the Explorers' 23 games, including six of the last eight outings.
- Jones has dazzled in his rookie campaign. He is the first Explorer to win Rookie of the Week five times in the same season since 2002-03 when Gary Neal accomplished the same feat. Jones leads the A-10 in assists amongst freshmen (2.6 apg) and is second in scoring (11.8 ppg). He has exploded onto the scene in conference play, reaching double-figures in each of the last seven games, averaging 15.6 points per game over that span.
- Jahlil White rounds out the starting five. The graduate transfer from Temple is averaging 9.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. He has reached double-digits in three consecutive games for the first time this season.
- Mac Etienne has started the last four games. He tied his career-high in assists with three in addition to his outstanding performance in blocks.
SCOUTING UMASS
- The Minutemen have rebounded after a non-conference slate that saw the squad earn a 5-8 record including two losses to NEC opponents. UMass has a .500 record in A-10 play and has won four of its last six games
- Rahsool Diggins, the 2023-24 Most Improved Player in the A-10, leads the team with 16.9 points per game. Daniel Rivera is another player of note to watch, averaging 12.0 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.
- Frank Martin is in his third season with UMass. He previously was at the helm of South Carolina where he led the team to the 2017 Final Four. Martin is 332-241 overall in career and 45-40 during his time in Amherst.
SERIES HISTORY AGAINST UMASS
- La Salle and UMass are longtime conference rivals. The Explorers joined the A-10 in 1995, while the Minutemen are founding members from 1976.
- The two have met 50 times, La Salle's fifth most-played non-Big-5 opponent in program history. UMass holds the series lead, 29-21.
- The Minutemen defeated La Salle, 82-60. With the game locked at 57 with 8:47 remaining, Massachusetts ran away with the game after that point.
