PHILADELPHIA –
Erik Reynolds II became the second player in Saint Joseph's men's basketball history with 2,000 career points as the Hawks pulled away late to defeat the La Salle Explorers 75-63 on Wednesday night.
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
- Reynolds hit the milestone on a three-pointer 19 seconds into the second half.
- He joins Jameer Nelson (2000-04) as the only two Hawks to achieve the 2K point plateau.
- The senior is the 19th player in Big 5 history to score 2,000 career points and the first since Scottie Reynolds for Villanova in 2010.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Reynolds led the Hawks with 22 points. It is his fourth time topping the 20-point mark in the last five games. He also topped the team with seven rebounds.
- Xzayvier Brown scored 21 in the contest, his eighth game this season with 20 or more. 16 points came in the second half.
- Anthony Finkley scored seven and grabbed five rebound in a career-high 34 minutes.
- SJU scored 51 points in the second half.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- It was a slow start for the Hawks, who opened 4-for-13 from the floor as La Salle opened a seven-point lead just more than eight minutes in.
- The defense picked up its work rate in the next five minutes, holding the Explorers to 1-for-6 shooting with three turnovers, but the offense continued to struggle to find its form.
- Once it found its stroke, SJU worked its way back into the contest quickly. An 8-1 run in a span of 58 seconds sliced the lead to 24-22 at the 3:44 mark. La Salle swung momentum in its corner to close the half, taking a 31-24 lead into the break.
- The Hawks came out with the jump in the second half, scoring 12 of the first 16 points to take a 36-35 lead in a matter of three minutes.
- Neither team held more than a five-point lead through the midway mark of the frame as the lead changed hands 10 times.
- St. Joe's was up 62-61 with 2:35 remaining before the Hawks took over down the stretch. SJU close the contest on a 13-2 run, going 3-for-3 from the floor and 5-for-5 at the line.
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.
