City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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In the annals of La Salle basketball lore, a season-opening win over a non-ranked, out-of-conference foe like Towson might not go down as one of the greatest games in Explorers basketball history.

Just in recent memory, head coach John Giannini has led his program to the 2013 Sweet 16, a season that included home wins over ranked teams in Virginia Commonwealth and Butler in back-to-back outings.

And that 1954 NCAA Championship banner hanging in Tom Gola Arena, though it happened before most of La Salle’s current fanbase was even alive, no doubt had its fair share of big clashes as well. In between, there were the heydays of the late 1980s under Speedy Morris, when Explorer legends like Lionel Simmons and Doug Overton won as many as 30 games in a year and made four NCAA Tournaments in a five-year span.

But the Explorers’ 78-76 win over Towson on Saturday afternoon was earned just the same.

Afterwards, Giannini didn’t mince words, calling it “one of the most gritty, hard-nosed wins that I’ve had in my career.”

That’s what happens when a team that only had seven scholarship players available, none taller than 6-foot-6, beats a program with a clear advantage in size, depth and athleticism. Throw past records and conference affiliations out the window: La Salle was in bad shape heading into this one.

With only nine dressed scholarship players on the roster to begin with thanks to the presence of three ineligible transfers, Giannini was going to have to manage his depth carefully all year long. Then came three concussions: one to redshirt sophomore Tony Washington, one to freshman wing Karl Harris and a third to walk-on guard O.J. Lewis.

Add in the new NCAA rule changes that are resulting in a higher occurrence of fouls, especially early in the season, and it was a recipe for disaster.

“The whole week I was ready for Hank to play,” Giannini said, referencing walk-on guard Hank Davis. “I had a similar experience back in Maine, and the kid in Hank’s position, a kid named John Wallingford, played great and helped us win a few games until everyone got healthy. I was totally ready to unleash Hank.”

Giannini didn’t ever call on Davis, who had his warm-up jacket unzipped the whole second half just in case. But he certainly came close, with Rohan Brown and Amar Stukes both fouling out; the latter left with 8:54 remaining, leaving Davis as the only other available healthy body besides the five on the court.

That entire time, sophomore forward Yevgen Sahkniuk had to play with four fouls in his first college game.

And when Towson finally took its first lead at 71-70 with under four minutes left, it finally looked like the handicap the Explorers were playing with had finally caught up to them.

Except it hadn’t.

“We fought, we didn’t turn it over and two guys made some big plays,” Giannini said. “And we’re absolutely thrilled. For us to be able to win a game like this is gigantic.”

Jordan Price led the way with 27 points, Johnnie Shuler had 15. Sahkniuk ended up making all five of his field goals for 11 points in 15 minutes, while Cleon Roberts had 11 as well.

It was ugly, it was tense, it was scrappy and it was exciting.

And what it did have in contact with those VCU and Butler wins from three seasons ago was the atmosphere. Tom Gola Arena was packed to its capacity of 3400, nearly half of which was one giant mob of students who were into the game from start to finish.

“Part of winning home games is the atmosphere, the support, the energy, it was absolutely terrific,” Giannini said. “Every program--us, St. Joe’s, Temple, Villanova--we could really use that kind of support night in and night out, not just for a first game or a homecoming event.”

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Concussion concerns

Regarding those three players out with concussions, it’s unclear when the Explorers will get them back on the court.

“I have no idea, I have no idea,” Giannini said when asked about any potential return. Though even having Harris, a 6-5 freshman wing, back would be a welcome boost to their depth, what’s more pressing is the health of Washington, a 6-10 forward and the team’s most promising post presence.

La Salle’s next game is just a few days away, with Rider visiting on Tuesday, Nov. 17; Lafayette then comes to Tom Gola on Nov. 23 before Big 5 play begins on Nov. 25 at Penn.