Jensen: First-half lapse dooms La Salle
PITTSBURGH - The La Salle Explorers had their mojo, but it was January mojo, and when the Explorers lost it, no tracking device ever quite located it.
PITTSBURGH - The La Salle Explorers had their mojo, but it was January mojo, and when the Explorers lost it, no tracking device ever quite located it.
Against Davidson Thursday in the Atlantic Ten tournament, La Salle certainly didn't pack it in, mounting a major second-half comeback. But comebacks against teams with Davidson's firepower are a tough way to live, and the 2016-17 Explorers are in the history books after a 82-73 loss.
If the game was a microcosm of the season, La Salle coach John Giannini pointed out, "Kind of in reverse order, though."
The Explorers made 7 of 10 three-pointers in the first half at PPG Paints Arena but were down 15 at the break after Davidson ended that half with seven straight makes, four threes in a row, a couple of cuts to the hoop, another three.
"I can't even put into words, and words don't do justice, how well prepared I thought we were for their offense," Giannini said later. "We've played them before, and we had three days to prepare, and we just didn't talk. We didn't do what we practiced. They are wonderful kids with great attitudes. I just can't figure out why it's so sometimes."
Giannini immediately pointed out that the Explorers did all the necessary things in the second half, fueling the comeback from 19 down to get to within three. The season mark says 15-15, and anyone at 20th and Olney would tell you they were aiming for higher than that.
"We definitely lost confidence after the VCU game and after losing a few games without Pookie," Giannini said, referring to a 90-52 loss at VCU that came right after La Salle had won seven of eight games. Pookie Powell got hurt that game, missed the next six games, and La Salle found out it couldn't play without him at point guard, losing four of the six.
Even after Powell got back, "our confidence level really never got back to where it was in the middle of January," Giannini said.
The frustration is that, while the offensive talent level is high, the Explorers also showed the ability to make head-scratching plays. Passes that don't connect. There was some of that in the first half, before La Salle got more in sync later. It was more from guys pressing to make a play than anything else.
While La Salle played better after the break, the shots didn't quite fall, only three of 11, many giving a tantalizing look at the rim before falling away. That made the comeback from 19 down to within three even more impressive.
"In the second half, they did exactly what we wanted," Giannini said of the defensive end. "I mean, we didn't miss a switch."
La Salle senior Jordan Price was the last guy to walk off the court. His career point total is 1,623 over three seasons. He was himself to the end, hitting 7 of 11 shots, 4 of 6 threes, some deep and contested but still smart, in rhythm, for 20 points.
"It hasn't really hit me yet," Price said at the press conference. "I'm just trying to get back with my teammates and just get back to the school and finish these last few months."
He was right about the missed first-half defensive assignments being spread around the roster.
"Pretty much we were all losing our man sometimes," Price said. "You've got like a crazy offense from everybody running around everywhere, and sometimes we got lost. We practice it, but within the game today, we just . . . "
He didn't finish the thought but agreed with Giannini when he made it clear he was talking about the first half. "In the second half, we locked in," Price said.
So La Salle will go on without Price and Cleon Roberts. The centerpieces should be Powell at the point and B.J. Johnson as a stretch four who can really score.
But the questions will be at the other end, whether the Explorers can lock in.
"We'll refresh ourselves here in the next couple weeks and get started with a lot of veterans and some young guys that I think are going to give us a lot of energy and that I am going to play," Giannini said.
Giannini also left with praise for Price.
"Through the ups and downs he's been consistent," Giannini said of Price. "When you go through tough times, you want to go through them with people that aren't going to change and are going to be positive, and that's what Jordan, as well as Cleon, has done for us. I just appreciate them as people and their consistency throughout some ups and downs."
@jensenoffcampus