La Salle Team Report

GETTING INSIDE

It’s fair to say that La Salle got snubbed of an NIT berth last season, more a reflection of the team’s first-round loss to St. Louis in the Atlantic 10 tournament than its overall body of work that included 18 victories.

The Explorers are back with a vast amount of experience and skill. Perhaps the NIT won’t have to snub them this season because they might be good enough to return the program to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1992.

Four senior starters return for coach John Giannini and one of the top big men prospects in the nation, Aaric Murray, could land himself the remaining starting job in the middle.

“Our seniors have been the cornerstone of building our program,” La Salle coach John Giannini said. “They are deeply invested in and committed to La Salle basketball. They are the key reasons we have the potential to have a great year.”

Two of those seniors, guards Rodney Green and Kimmani Barrett, are the club’s best scorers. Green averaged 17.8 points, 3.4 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.9 steals last year. The 6-5 playmaker should be in the running for top player in the conference.

Barrett, a 6-6 wing, was second to Green in scoring last year, averaging 11.8 points a game. Like Green, Barrett will use his size to hit the glass and get to the rim. He’s versatile enough to also knock down shots from the outside shot with relative consistency.

If the freshman Murray, a 6-foot-10 Philadelphia native, lives up to his potential, he’ll complement the Explorers’ most experienced team and perhaps its best in years.

NOTES, QUOTES

• The Explorers will break out a new look this season with a navy jersey with yellow lettering and white piping.

• G Vernon Goodridge was ruled ineligible for this season by the NCAA, ending his collegiate career. The NCAA ruled that the Brooklyn, N.Y., native played in an organized high school game after turning 21 and before entering Mississippi, which ate a year of eligibility. Goodridge would have given the Explorers five returning starters.

• The big question mark is who runs the offensive show? Green is capable, but he’s more of a pure scorer than a point guard and would benefit more playing off the ball. Ruben Guillandeaux is not a true point guard either, but he did average 3.1 assists and just 1.7 turnovers last year. The 6-5 senior is also the team’s best outside shooter and knocked down nearly 35 percent of his attempts.

Last Year:   18-13 overall, 9-7 in the A-10.

Head Coach:   John Giannini (career 368-228); 6th year at LaSalle (71-79).

Quote To Note:   “We would like to play as many high level programs as possible on a home-and-home basis, but we have not had any new takers despite our persistent efforts calling those people.—Coach John Giannini on his scheduling philosophy.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Scouting The Newcomers:   Coach John Giannini believes Aaric Murray is a recruit of tremendous potential and could have an immediate impact. Considered one of the best center recruits in the nation, he is big, strong in the hips and legs, athletic and skilled for a young player. Devon White will be a redshirt freshman. He is projected to be a strong rebounder and shot blocker.

Key Early-season Games:   La Salle again will pride itself on taking on big-time conferences and programs in the preseason. On Nov. 19, the Explorers get South Carolina at home, play at Villanova (Nov. 28), face Kansas in Kansas City (Dec. 12) and play at Oklahoma State (Dec. 21).

Program Direction:   The Explorers have gone from 10 wins to 15 to 18 and are poised to take it to 20 or more with an experienced team that could see five seniors in the starting lineup. Of course, in the back of everyone’s mind is the last time La Salle came off an 18-win season. They went on to win 10 in 2006-07.

Probable Starting Lineup:   G Rodney Green, G Ruben Guillandeaux, G Kimmani Barrett, F Yves Mekongo Mbala, C Aaric Murray.

Roster Report:  

• G Rodney Green registered 14 performances of 20 or more points last season, which placed him in a tie for third in the Conference. By comparison, the Philadelphia, Pa., native scored 20 or more points just three times 2007-08. The senior guard averaged 17.8 ppg. a year ago, good for fifth in the league and up from 13.4 ppg. as a sophomore.

• F Yves Mekongo Mbala made himself into a consistent scorer last year and led the way on the glass with team-high 6.0 rebounds a game. He can also move outside and drain the perimeter jumper, even beyond the 3-point line now and again. His outside shooting ability bodes well with the arrival of center Aaric Murray, who will command plenty of attention underneath, meaning Mekongo Mbala should get plenty of open looks outside the paint.

• F Devon White won’t get as much publicity as Murray, but he could also provide an immediate impact for La Salle. He’s another homegrown product, like Murray, of Philadelphia that the Explorers were able to corral. White redshirted last season after averaging 11.6 points and 12 rebounds as a high school senior.