Game Info: Wednesday, February 12, 2025 - 7:00 p.m.
Location: Hagan Arena - Philadelphia, Pa.
Tickets | TV: ESPN+ | Listen: sjuhawks.com | Live Stats: sjuhawks.com | Saint Joseph's Game Notes | La Salle Game Notes

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Opening Tip
The Saint Joseph's men's basketball team hosts its oldest rival, the La Salle Explorers on Wednesday, February 12. Tipoff from Hagan Arena is at 7:00 p.m. with the game on ESPN+.

The Countdown Is On    
By scoring 25 against Saint Louis, Erik Reynolds II   reached a couple of milestones and moved closer to others. Reynolds scored in double figures for the 100th time in his career. He is the 10th active NCAA Division I player to accomplish the feat and is one of two to do it in four years. With 1,990 career points, he passed Bernard Blunt (1990-95) for third on the Hawks' all-time list and is one shy of Langston Galloway (2011-14) for second. With 10 more points, Reynolds would be the second Saint Joseph's men's basketball player joining Jameer Nelson (2000-04). The Temple Hills, Md. native would be the 19th Big 5 player to score 2,000 career points. He would be the first in the Big 5 to do it since Scottie Reynolds of Villanova in 2010.

Recognition    
Reynolds was honored for his work against SLU, earning Atlantic 10 Player of the Week accolades. It is the second time this season and  fourth time in his career he has been named the A-10 Player of the Week.

A Return To Form    
In the last six games, Reynolds has seen a return to numbers closer to his career averages, posting 18.6 points per contest. During the most recent four games, the scoring has been even better, netting 20.8 an outing with 20+ point efforts against Dayton, Duquesne and Saint Louis. His five threes against the Billikens moved him to 320 for his career, 10th among active Division I players and 23 away from Galloway's program standard.

The Buck Stops Here    
With the win against Saint Louis on Friday, the Hawks continue to do a good job this season of rebounding after a tough game.Saint Joseph's is 8-1 this season following a loss. It is 5-0 in home games after a setback.

That's More Like It   
After a couple of subpar shooting efforts from beyond the arc, St. Joe's got back on track from distance in the second half against Saint Louis. The Hawks shot 8-for-14 in the final 20 minutes against the Billikens. In its previous five halves, spanning to the start of the game against Duquesne on January 29, SJU had made just nine threes.

Don't Get Offended    
The Hawks owned the offensive glass, pulling in 14 rebounds off their own missed shots on Friday. It s the sixth time this season SJU has hailed in 14 or more offensive boards. Overall for the season, Rasheer Fleming leads the way on the offensive glass at 2.17 a contest.

Halfway Home    
A 12-0 run to end the first half gave St Joe's a 32-30 lead at the break. That was significant as the Hawks are 11-1 this season when leading at halftime, but 3-8 when trailing. SJU has not been tied at the half in any game this year.

Home Sweet Hagan    
Friday's win upped Saint Joseph's record to 9-4 at Hagan Arena this year. With four home games left, it guaranteed the Hawks their fourth consecutive winning season in games on Hawk Hill. In the last two seasons, SJU is 19-7 at home, a .731 winning percentage. Overall, St. Joe's has won 63.6 percent of its games at Hagan. The Hawks are 9-4 against La Salle at home since 2009.

Scouting Report    
La Salle enters play 12-12 overall with  4-7 record in the Atlantic 10 and is coming off a 78-55 loss against UMass on Sunday.

Graduate transfer Corey McKeithan leads the offense at 15.2 points per game. Two other players score in double figures with Deuce Jones posting 11.3 a contest and Daeshon Shepherd scoring 11.2. Demetrius Lilley tops the team at 6.5 rebounds per game. McKeithan has 64 assists.

La Salle has made good use of the transfer portal as McKeithan (Rider), Jahlil White (Temple) and Mac Ettienne (UCLA/DePaul) have combined for 39.2 percent of the Explorers scoring and 35.7 percent of the team's rebounds.

While the portal may have provided an immediate veteran boost, Jones has been a bright spot for La Salle, earning A-10 Rookie of the Week honors a league-high five times, including three of the six since conference play started.

The team will give up its share of points, ranking in 14th in the A-10 in points allowed per game at 75.6. Opponents are also shooting 45.6 percent against La Salle, also 14th in the conference.

One of the most revered coaches in college basketball history, Fran Dunphy is in his third season as the head coach of his alma mater and his 30th year as a collegiate mentor overall. He enters Saturday with 623 career wins and is one of 46 men's basketball coaches with more than 600 victories at the Division I level.

All-Time Series    
The Hawks hold a 72-58 series advantage against the Explorers. 130 matchups between SJU and La Salle are the second most in St. Joe's history behind 165 games against Temple. The Explorers are Saint Joseph's oldest opponent, as the teams met in the second ever game in SJU program history in 1909.

Last Time Against La Salle    
The Hawks used a blistering second half shooting performance to win its 22nd Philadelphia Big 5 title, downing the La Salle Explorers 82-68 in the Toyota Big 5 Classic championship game on Saturday December 7. Erik Reynolds II scored 24 in the game and was named the Big 5 Classic MVP. He also added four assists and three rebounds. Xzayvier Brown netted 21 in the game, dishing six assists. Rasheer Fleming had nine points and 10 rebounds. Leading by just four at the break, SJU shot 62.1 percent (18-for-29) in the second half to pull away.

Up Next    
St. Joe's battles A-10 leader George Mason on Saturday, February 15. Tipoff from EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Va. is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. with the game on USA Network.