| La Salle Explorers Basketball | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| University | La Salle University | |||
| Head coach | Ashley Howard (1st season) | |||
| Conference | Atlantic 10 | |||
| Location | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |||
| Arena | Tom Gola Arena (Capacity: 3,400) |
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| Nickname | Explorers | |||
| Colors | Blue and Gold[1] |
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| Uniforms | ||||
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| NCAA Tournament champions | ||||
| 1954 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament runner-up | ||||
| 1955 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Final Four | ||||
| 1954, 1955 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Elite Eight | ||||
| 1954, 1955 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen | ||||
| 1954, 1955, 2013 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament Round of 32 | ||||
| 1983, 1990, 2013 | ||||
| NCAA Tournament appearances | ||||
| 1954, 1955, 1968, 1975, 1978, 1980, 1983, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 2013 | ||||
| Conference tournament champions | ||||
| East Coast: 1975, 1978 1980, 1983 MAAC: 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992 |
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| Conference regular season champions | ||||
| 1984, 1988, 1989 (MAAC) | ||||
The La Salle Explorers men's basketball program represents La Salle University in college basketball.
Rivalries
The Explorers, a member of the Big 5, have long-standing rivalries with multiple institutions including Temple University, University of Pennsylvania, Saint Joseph's University, and Villanova University. Another major rival is Drexel University who is a member of the City 6.
History
The program has been rated the 53rd "Greatest College Basketball Program of All-Time" by Street & Smith's magazine and 71st by the ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia.
La Salle has won one National Championship, one National Invitation Tournament Championship, and advanced to two Final Fours. The Explorers have also made 12 NCAA Tournament appearances, won eight Philadelphia Big 5 city championships, and four Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championships. The program is one of only two schools (with Houston) to have two players in the top 25 in all-time NCAA scoring - Lionel Simmons and Michael Brooks. It's also had three National Players of the Year.[2]
Postseason
NCAA tournament results
The Explorers have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 12 times. Their combined record is 14-11. They were National Champions in 1954.
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship |
Fordham NC State Navy Penn State Bradley |
W 76-74OT W 88-81 W 64-48 W 69-54 W 92-76 |
|
| 1955 | First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship |
West Virginia Princeton Canisius Iowa San Francisco |
W 95-61 W 73-46 W 99-64 W 73-76 L 63-77 |
|
| 1968 | First Round | Columbia | L 69-83 | |
| 1975 | First Round | Syracuse | L 83-87OT | |
| 1978 | First Round | Villanova | L 97-103 | |
| 1980 | #11 | First Round | #6 Purdue | L 82-90 |
| 1983 | #12 | Preliminary Round First Round |
#12 Boston University #5 VCU |
W 70-58 L 67-76 |
| 1988 | #13 | First Round | #4 Kansas State | L 53-66 |
| 1989 | #9 | First Round | #8 Louisiana Tech | L 74-83 |
| 1990 | #4 | First Round Second Round |
#13 Southern Miss #5 Clemson |
W 79-63 L 75-79 |
| 1992 | #13 | First Round | #4 Seton Hall | L 76-78 |
| 2013 | #13 | First Four Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen |
#13 Boise State #4 Kansas State #12 Ole Miss #9 Wichita State |
W 80-71 W 63-61 W 76-74 L 58-72 |
NIT results
The Explorers have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 12 times. Their combined record is 9-11. They were NIT champions in 1952.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1948 | Quarterfinals | WKU | L 61-68 |
| 1950 | First Round Quarterfinals |
Arizona Duquesne |
W 72-66 L 47-49 |
| 1951 | First Round | Saint Louis | L 61-73 |
| 1952 | First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals |
Seton Hall St. John's Duquesne Dayton |
W 80-76 W 51-45 W 59-46 W 75-64 |
| 1953 | Quarterfinals | St. John's | L 74-75 |
| 1963 | First Round | Saint Louis | L 61-63 |
| 1965 | First Round | Detroit | L 86-93 |
| 1971 | First Round | Georgia Tech | L 67-70 |
| 1984 | First Round | Pittsburgh | L 91-95 |
| 1987 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals |
Villanova Niagara Illinois State Arkansas-Little Rock Southern Miss |
W 86-84 W 89-81 W 70-50 W 92-73 L 80-84 |
| 1991 | First Round | Massachusetts | L 90-93 |
| 2012 | First Round | Minnesota | L 61-70 |
Explorers in the NBA
La Salle has an extensive history of players who played professional basketball, including:
- Michael Brooks, 1980 College Player of the Year
- Joe Bryant, father of former pro Kobe Bryant
- Rasual Butler
- Larry Cannon
- Ken Durrett
- Bobby Fields
- Larry Foust, eight-time NBA All-Star selection
- Tom Gola, NBA Hall of Famer, 1955 College Player of the Year
- Tim Legler, current basketball analyst for ESPN, 4th all-time in NBA three-point shooting percentage
- Ralph Lewis
- Doug Overton
- Jim Phelan
- Lionel Simmons, 1990 College Player of the Year
- Steven Smith
- Fatty Taylor
- Randy Woods
- Bernie Williams
Retired numbers
| La Salle Explorers men's basketball retired jerseys | |||
| No. | Player | Pos. | Career |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Tom Gola | SF/G | 1951-55 |
| 22 | Lionel Simmons | SF | 1986-90 |
| 32 | Michael Brooks | PF | 1976-1980 |
| 33 | Ken Durrett | PF | 1968-71 |
Coaches
Previous head coach Dr. John Giannini previously coached at Rowan College, where he won the NCAA Division III national championship in 1996, and the University of Maine, where he left with the Black Bears' best winning percentage in school history.
On April 8, 2018, La Salle announced Ashley Howard as the next head coach of the Explorers.[3] Howard as an assistant coach under Jay Wright at Villanova University. As assistant coach, he helped lead the Wildcats to two NCAA Division 1 basketball championships.
Coaching staff
- Horace Owens
- Sean Neal
- Donnie Carr
- Andrew McGlynn
- D.J. Peterson
Past head coaches
| Name | Years | Won-lost | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|
| James J. Henry | 1931 | 15-4 | .789 |
| Tom Conley | 1932-33 | 28-11 | .718 |
| Leonard Tanseer | 1934-41 | 90-59 | .604 |
| Obie O'Brien | 1942-43 | 25-21 | .543 |
| Joe Meehan | 1944-46 | 28-30 | .483 |
| Charles McGlone | 1947-49 | 61-17 | .782 |
| Ken Loeffler | 1950-55 | 145-30 | .829 |
| Jim Pollard | 1956-58 | 48-28 | .632 |
| Dudey Moore | 1959-63 | 79-37 | .681 |
| Bob Walters | 1964-65 | 31-17 | .646 |
| Joe Heyer | 1966-67 | 24-27 | .471 |
| Jim Harding | 1968 | 20-8 | .714 |
| Tom Gola | 1969-70 | 37-13 | .740 |
| Paul Westhead | 1971-79 | 142-105 | .575 |
| Lefty Ervin | 1980-86 | 119-87 | .578 |
| Speedy Morris | 1987-01 | 238-203 | .540 |
| Billy Hahn | 2002-04 | 38-53 | .418 |
| John Giannini | 2005-18 | 212-226 | .484 |
Year-by-Year Records
| Season | Overall Record | Conference Record | Postseason |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1931-32 | 15-8 | ||
| 1932-33 | 13-3 | ||
| 1933-34 | 14-3 | ||
| 1934-35 | 15-6 | ||
| 1935-36 | 4-13 | ||
| 1936-37 | 12-7 | ||
| 1937-38 | 13-6 | ||
| 1938-39 | 13-6 | ||
| 1939-40 | 12-8 | ||
| 1940-41 | 11-8 | ||
| 1941-42 | 12-11 | ||
| 1942-43 | 13-10 | ||
| 1943-44 | 8-8 | ||
| 1944-45 | 11-8 | ||
| 1945-46 | 9-14 | ||
| 1946-47 | 20-6 | ||
| 1947-48 | 20-4 | NIT | |
| 1948-49 | 11-8 | Cincinnati Invitational Tournament | |
| 1949-50 | 21-4 | NIT | |
| 1950-51 | 22-7 | NIT | |
| 1951-52 | 25-7 | NIT Champion | |
| 1952-53 | 25-3 | NIT | |
| 1953-54 | 26-4 | NCAA Champion | |
| 1954-55 | 26-5 | NCAA Finalist | |
| 1955-56 | 15-10 | ||
| 1956-57 | 17-9 | ||
| 1957-58 | 16-9 | ||
| 1958-59 | 16-7 | 5-2 | |
| 1959-60 | 16-6 | 6-1 | |
| 1960-61 | 15-7 | 7-2 | |
| 1961-62 | 16-9 | 5-3 | |
| 1962-63 | 16-8 | 7-1 | NIT |
| 1963-64 | 16-9 | 5-1 | |
| 1964-65 | 15-8 | 4-1 | NIT |
| 1965-66 | 10-15 | 3-2 | |
| 1966-67 | 14-12 | 2-3 | |
| 1967-68 | 20-8 | 8-0 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1968-69 | 23-1 | 7-0 | *Suspended from Postseason |
| 1969-70 | 14-12 | 3-2 | |
| 1970-71 | 20-7 | 5-1 | NIT |
| 1971-72 | 6-19 | 2-4 | |
| 1972-73 | 15-10 | 3-3 | |
| 1973-74 | 18-10 | 5-1 | |
| 1974-75 | 22-7 | 5-1 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1975-76 | 11-15 | 1-4 | |
| 1976-77 | 17-12 | 3-2 | |
| 1977-78 | 18-12 | 5-0 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1978-79 | 15-13 | 10-3 | |
| 1979-80 | 22-9 | 7-4 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1980-81 | 14-13 | 8-3 | |
| 1981-82 | 16-13 | 7-4 | |
| 1982-83 | 18-14 | 7-2 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1983-84 | 20-11 | 11-3 | NIT |
| 1984-85 | 15-13 | 8-6 | |
| 1985-86 | 14-14 | 8-6 | |
| 1986-87 | 20-13 | 10-4 | NIT Finalist |
| 1987-88 | 24-10 | 14-0 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1988-89 | 26-6 | 13-1 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1989-90 | 30-2 | 16-0 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1990-91 | 19-10 | 12-4 | NIT |
| 1991-92 | 20-11 | 12-4 | NCAA Tournament |
| 1992-93 | 14-13 | 9-5 | |
| 1993-94 | 11-16 | 4-6 | |
| 1994-95 | 13-14 | 7-7 | |
| 1995-96 | 6-24 | 3-13 | |
| 1996-97 | 10-17 | 5-11 | |
| 1997-98 | 9-18 | 5-11 | |
| 1998-99 | 13-15 | 8-8 | |
| 1999-00 | 11-17 | 5-11 | |
| 2000-01 | 12-17 | 5-11 | |
| 2001-02 | 15-17 | 6-10 | |
| 2002-03 | 13-16 | 6-10 | |
| 2003-04 | 10-20 | 5-11 | |
| 2004-05 | 10-19 | 5-11 | |
| 2005-06 | 18-10 | 10-6 | |
| 2006-07 | 10-20 | 3-13 | |
| 2007-08 | 15-17 | 8-8 | |
| 2008-09 | 18-13 | 9-7 | |
| 2009-10 | 12-18 | 4-12 | |
| 2010-11 | 14-16 | 6-10 | |
| 2011-12 | 21-12 | 9-7 | NIT |
| 2012-13 | 23-9 | 11-5 | NCAA Round of 16 |
| 2013-14 | 15-16 | 7-9 | |
| 2014-15 | 17-16 | 8-10 | |
| 2015-16 | 9-22 | 4-14 | |
| 2016-17 | 15-15 | 9-9 | |
| 2017-18 | 13-19 | 7-11 |
References
- ^ La Salle Logo Acceptable Color Breaks and Basic Guidelines (PDF). Retrieved 2016.
- ^ Did You Know?! :: A Few Things You Should Know About Explorer Athletics
- ^ vhttp://www.philly.com/philly/sports/colleges/la_salle/ashley-howard-will-be-next-la-salle-basketball-coach-20180408
External links
This article uses material from the Wikipedia page available here. It is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.