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Late run leads La Salle men to victory over Penn

12/11/2021, 8:15pm EST
By Jerome Taylor

Jerome Taylor (@ThatGuy_Rome)
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With their first Big 5 win of the season on the line, La Salle relied on their strongest position group to carry them across the finish line.

Coming into Saturday’s contest against the University of Pennsylvania, the Explorers were riding a two-game win streak with a 19-point (over Holy Cross) win and 26-point (over Fairleigh Dickinson) win. But, against the Quakers, the decision was in the balance until the final shot.

Anwar Gill celebrates with teammates

Anwar Gill (above) has adjusted nicely to his role in the starting lineup. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

With six seconds remaining, Penn’s Jordan Dingle caught the baseline inbound pass and fired up a three at the buzzer that would’ve given Penn a victory, but it rimmed out, and the Explorers won 76-74.

The Explorers led throughout the early portion of the game. Yet with 14:08 remaining in regulation, they were trailing by seven and on the brink of blowing a lead as big as 15.

“We just really needed to lock in our game plan… and just communicate and fly around and go back to our core values which are defend and rebound,” redshirt senior Clifton Moore said. “That was the biggest part [in the comeback].”

Another part of that comeback came from the guard play late in the game, specifically from the newest member of the starting lineup, sophomore Anwar Gill.

Gill made his first start of the season against Fairleigh Dickinson on Tuesday and finished that game with nine assists. He picked up where he left off in Saturday’s matchup, dropping seven dimes.

“He’s an aggressive driver, and obviously you have to respect that he’s a great scorer,” Moore said. “It’s tough on the defense because either they have to help off, or he gets an easy bucket. So obviously, that’s a great opportunity for me to be right around the basket and clean up.”

Gill’s playmaking ability has drastically improved. The Montverde Academy (Fla.) product has upped his assists per game from 1.2 last year to 3.9 this season. And it took some convincing from his head coach for Gill to tap into this new aspect of his game.

“At times, young people hear something different than what you’re telling them,” La Salle head coach Ashley Howard said. “I’m telling him, ‘Hey man, you can be a playmaker.’ He's hearing, ‘You don’t want me to shoot,’ and that’s not what I’m saying.

“What I’m saying is, ‘I want you to be aggressive, I want you to attack the paint, but I also want you to be able to get your teammates involved as well,’ and when he plays that way, we’re a better team.”

Clifton Moore holds a basketball

Clifton Moore (above) chipped in 13 points for the Explorers. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

The D.C. native’s most pivotal moments came during the Explorers’ run to regain the lead on Saturday. From when La Salle went down seven until they regained the lead with 4:34 remaining in regulation, Gill had eight points and three assists. He finished with 12 points, seven assists and three steals. 

“He made some huge plays for us down the stretch,” Howard said. “Having him on the floor definitely helps, especially when he’s playing with a clear mind and the right way.”

Gill’s insertion into the starting lineup means that junior Sherif Kenney had to go to the bench. 

“I think when you can bring Sherif off the bench, now it gives you another scorer and gives you firepower coming off the bench,” Howard said.  “Sherif was the Sixth Man of the Year last year in the A-10, so he’s comfortable in that role.”

With an improved shot-maker on the bench and additional playmaker in the starting lineup, there’s less of a burden on the Explorers’ leading two scorers, junior guard Josh Nickelberry (13.1 points per game)  and sophomore guard Jhamir Brickus (10 points per game).

Additionally, freshman guard Daeshon Shepard is starting to see the court more. The Archbishop Wood product has appeared in three straight games for La Salle, and he was one of the first subs in after Gill got into foul trouble in the first half.

In Saturday’s game, all five starters notched double digits points: Nickelberry had 15, Brickus and Moore each had 13 and junior Christian Ray had 10, in addition to Gill’s aforementioned 12 points.

Penn got double-digit performances from five players, too: Junior Jonah Charles led all scorers with 18, Dingle had 14, junior Michael Moshkovitz had 13, senior Jelani Williams had 11 and freshman George Smith had 10. 

The Explorers’ backcourt is going to carry them through this season. And with more backcourt players emerging in their roles, it makes the Explorers more dangerous.  

“Hopefully, we can continue to grow, and guys can get comfortable in their roles, and I think that’s the challenge of the season,” Howard said. “Hopefully, we can settle in and start to figure out how good we can be.”


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