La Salle puts it all together in a 83-78 win over George Mason
Explorers coach Ashley Howard hails the win as "our best 40-minute game of the year,”
This story has been edited with updated information on the ejection of George Mason coach Kim English.
The story of La Salle’s season has been its inability to close out games when holding a lead.
Saturday afternoon was nearly the same, but La Salle (7-13, 2-8 A-10) utilized a late-game run and a clutch three-pointer by Jhamir Brickus to defeat George Mason, 83-78, at Tom Gola Arena.
The Patriots (11-9, 4-3), playing without A-10 leading scorer Josh Oduro, overcame a 12-point deficit, but couldn’t stop La Salle on offense late in the second half. The Explorers also took care of the ball, committing only seven turnovers.
“Today, we finally put together a 40-minute game, probably our best 40-minute game of the year,” said La Salle head coach Ashley Howard. “I’m proud of these guys.”
The major headline of the game, however, was not the La Salle victory, but rather the end-of-game temper tantrum on the Patriots bench.
With 13 seconds left to play and La Salle up six points, George Mason head coach Kim English was ejected from the game after being issued two technical fouls arguing a missed foul call. He had to be physically restrained from the referees by his assistant coaches, and arena security helped escort him off the court. The three minutes from the start of the outburst to the pause in the game it caused left the crowd fired up.
Brickus and Jack Clark both led La Salle with 18 points.
D’Shawn Schwartz led George Mason with 17 points.
Strong post defense
After giving up 89 points in their previous game, a loss at George Washington, the Explorers had to play better defense to have any chance to knock off the Patriots on Saturday. Despite the loss to GW, one area of significant improvement for the Explorers was their post defense.
George Mason didn’t score in the paint until 12 minutes into the game, their first 15 points coming from three-pointers. La Salle’s Clifton Moore was a force inside, avoiding early foul trouble and blocking two shots in the first half. The Explorers out-rebounded the Patriots by four in the opening 20 minutes. La Salle finished with a five-rebound advantage over the Patriots.
“We just practice [post defense]and really emphasize it every day, having pride in our one-on-one defense,” said Moore. “I trust my teammate to have my back.”
The Explorers did a sufficient job of doubling the Patriots big men whenever they received the ball in the paint or denying the post entry entirely.
Early green light for Nickelberry
George Mason had no answer for Josh Nickelberry, at least in the first half. After missing his first three-pointer, Nickelberry knocked down four three-pointers in the first half, including back-to-back treys in a 30-second span. His offensive contribution was one of the main reasons behind La Salle’s 18-7 run in the first half, growing its lead to 12 points.
Nickelberry’s production wasn’t just on offense. With George Mason clawing back into the game, he had a steal in the backcourt that stymied any Patriot momentum.
Nickelberry finished the first half with 14 points. In the second half, the Patriots forced him off the three-point line, making him drive the ball, a weaker part of his game. The defensive adjustment allowed the Patriots to hold Nickelberry to only three points in the final 20 minutes.
Almost another heartbreak
The Explorers took a 43-36 lead into halftime. Yet the Patriots opened the second half on a 10-3 run that cut the La Salle advantage to two points. With 12 minutes left to play, George Mason retook the advantage.
La Salle would reclaim the lead with eight minutes to play after an 8-0 run and protect it for much of the final six minutes. With two minutes left, the Explorers’ advantage was five points.
“We got down in the second half but battled back with resilience,” said Howard. “We just have to keep getting better.”
Entering Saturday, in five of their losses, the Explorers held double-digit leads. In four of those defeats, their largest lead was in the second half. Although the largest lead for La Salle against the Patriots was in the opening half, it was near heartbreak for the Explorers once again.
“It was a well-deserved win for the team and coaches and managers and everyone involved,” said Howard. “Everyone has been staying positive, even during a challenging stretch for our team.”
La Salle’s next contest is at home against St. Louis on Tuesday.