La Salle enters Atlantic 10 Tournament vs. St. Joseph’s on a winning streak
The Explorers won their final three games of the regular season, including a win over the Hawks.
Dayton. St. Joseph’s. Duquesne.
It’s a mantra that La Salle head coach Ashley Howard repeated to himself over and over as the regular season came to a close. It was just three games. The Atlantic 10 Tournament was coming soon. They closed out hte regular season with those three opponents.
Among the Explorers’ leaders is senior Clifton Moore, who has been big on offense and defense. He’s second of all-time in single-season blocks in program history, while sitting sixth all time in career blocks.
Jack Clark, another senior, is a quieter offensive player who lets his performance do the talking. He scored a career-high 30 points against Duquesne in the finale.
» READ MORE: Jack Clark’s career-high 30 points help Explorers find victory
Although still very new to the program, freshman Khalil Brantley makes the most out of every minute Howard gives him in games. An ambitious shooter and playmaker, and a vocal presence on the court, when Brantley talks, his teammates listen. Howard has dubbed him “Mr. Personality”, and has acknowledged that while the Bronx native enjoys being the center of attention, he has grown into more of a team player.
“I have some guys on my team that think that they’re, like, offensive juggernauts,” Howard said. “And I’ve had to be like, ‘Guys, we’ve had more games where we haven’t seen the ball go in the basket than games where we’ve come out and shot the ball well.’ So it doesn’t make sense for us to hang our heads and allow our offense to impact our effort.”
As the Explorers prepare to take on St. Joseph’s in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament on Wednesday, they understand the gravity of this event. They have a lot to prove after an 10-18 regular season, and the pressure is only heightened by playing a Big Five and Atlantic 10 rival.
“All of our players know all of their players, so it’s one of those things where it’s a real Big Five game,” Howard said. “In a year where we’re still trying to figure out what our identity is, to have a game like this, where you feel like you’re playing for something substantial, I think it really adds to the experience for our players.”