The Saint Joseph’s Hawks (20-4) will have their hands full against the top shooting defense in the Atlantic 10 when they take on the La Salle Explorers (5-17) at Michael J. Hagan ’85 Arena. Action begins at 8:00 pm ET on Saturday, Feb. 13.
The Hawks come into this game on a high note after blowing out George Washington 84-66 on Wednesday. Isaiah Miles led all scorers on the team with 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting. The Explorers, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 79-66 loss against Davidson on Wednesday. Yevgen Sakhniuk had a team-high 20 points.
Scoring opportunities from the charity stripe may be sporadic for the Explorers in this one. They’re 334th in the nation in FTA rate (29.1), while Saint Joseph’s is among the nation’s least foul-prone teams (yielding a rate of 23.8, ranking fourth overall).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Hawks won the first game 69-48. DeAndre’ Bembry was a standout player in the game, producing 16 points, four rebounds, six assists, four steals, and one three-pointer.
The Hawks come into this game 20-4 Straight Up (SU) and 16-7 Against The Spread (ATS). Below-average play has been the norm lately for the Hawks. In the last 10 games, Saint Joseph’s has only averaged 58.3 points per game compared to the 75.5 they’ve averaged on the season. Saint Joseph’s has an edge in the rebounding department for this game, where it racks up an average of 39.5 rebounds per game. Few teams in the nation have a higher assist-to-turnover ratio than Saint Joseph’s, which ranks 29th at 1.41. The Saint Joseph’s defense has done poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 73.6 points per game, well above their season average of 67.4. Teams have to fight for open shots against the Hawks, who have one of the best opponent field-goal percentages in the country at .397.
On the other side, the Explorers head into the game with records of 6-13 ATS and 5-17 SU. La Salle performed well ATS during its last 10 games, earning an 8-2 record. The Explorers have shown improvement on the offensive end over the most recent 10 game stretch. Over that span, La Salle is averaging 76.4 PPG, significantly more than their season average of 63.5. The Explorers average 73.9 points allowed per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 63.7 points per game during that span.
The Hawks’ win over La Salle in their last game evened up the two teams’ head-to-head record over their most recent games (5-5). The Hawks lead the matchup ATS with a record of 5-4-1. Saint Joseph’s held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five matchups. On the other side of the court, La Salle never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – StJoes, ATS Winner – StJoes
Notes
La Salle averages 63.5 points per game, placing the team just 246th in the nation. Saint Joseph’s ranks 64th in points allowed, giving up 67.4 points per game.
The Saint Joseph’s Hawks have a defensive rating of 97.0 (ranked 44th), while the La Salle Explorers have an offensive rating of 96.4 (ranked 317th).
La Salle has an average field goal percentage of 40.9%. Saint Joseph’s is a fantastic 8-2 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Saint Joseph’s Hawks rank higher based on their field goal percentage (182nd) than their effective field goal percentage (200th). The La Salle Explorers rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (265th) than their field goal percentage (311th).
Saint Joseph’s ranks 99th in assists, registering 14.7 per game. La Salle performs worse at 276th with 11.9 assists per game.
Saint Joseph’s, the 49th-ranked team in rebounding, register an average of 39.5 rebounds per game. La Salle does worse, ranked 347th with 29.8.
The La Salle Explorers average 7.2 steals per game. The Saint Joseph’s Hawks are undefeated with a 3-0 record when they give up at least 7 steals.
