That’s exactly how La Salle wanted its home opener to go.
On Tuesday night, the Explorers defeated Delaware, 74-68. The win evened up their record at 1-1, and the home crowd got to see something that was missing all of last season: Depth. Head coach John Giannini used a nine-player rotation to help the Explorers defeat Delaware, which was clearly a difference from last season.
Senior Jordan Price, who played his final home opener for La Salle, led the way with 15 points. The guard had three three-pointers, and was by far the most effective player for the Explorers.
Turning point
Pookie Powell hit a three-pointer with 15:22 left in the second half, and from there, the Explorers took over. Price quickly followed Powell with a jumper of his own to push the lead to eight, and La Salle didn’t give the lead back from there.
Big men on campus
Price often finds himself as La Salle’s leading scorer, and this is mostly because of attempting the most field goals in its games. To go with his 15 points on 5 of 13 shooting, Price added five rebounds and three assists.
Delaware guard Cazmon Hayes created problems for the Explorers all game long. He finished with 19 points and four assists for the Blue Hens.
Inside the box score
• La Salle attempted 15 three-pointers in the first half, which more than doubled Delaware’s attempts, which were six.
• Delaware guard Ryan Daly came into Tuesday night with just six points on the season. He finished the game with 19 points.
• Both teams played a pretty clean game, combining for 22 turnovers.
What’s next?
La Salle welcomes Texas Southern to the Tom Gola Arena for its homecoming game on Saturday at 3 p.m.