La Salle tops Davidson in Charleston tourney
La Salle tops Davidson in Charleston tourney
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Once the game sped up, Davidson couldn't keep up.
La Salle used its versatility and athleticism to break away from the outmanned Wildcats in the first half and coast to an 84-70 victory DFriday night in the Charleston Classic's consolation bracket at the Carolina First Arena.
Senior Rodney Green led five Explorers in double figures with 21 points, including 15 in the second half. The Philadelphia native and Prep Charter graduate also led the team with 10 rebounds.
Green had a game-high 23 points and six boards in the tournament's opening-round loss Thursday to South Carolina.
Friday night, La Salle's Yves Mekongo added 17, including 11 from the free throw line. Aaric Murray had 14 and Kimmani Barrett added 13. Ruben Guillandeaux scored all of his 11 points, including three 3-pointers, in the first half.
La Salle (2-1) will close its tournament at 12:30 p.m., Sunday against Tulane (1-2), which defeated Penn State earlier Friday.
The Explorers made just 5 of 14 shots to start against Davidson, holding a modest 19-17 lead with 7:39 to play in the first half. But a quick 7-0 run, consisting of Guillandeaux's first three-pointer and two Mekongo jumpers, opened the game a bit.
Guillandeaux and the Explorers continued applying the scoring pressure right up to the halftime horn. Barrett banked in a three-pointer at the buzzer to give La Salle its largest first-half lead, 46-30.
The Wildcats (0-3) continue to look for a scorer or two in the wake of losing Stephen Curry to the NBA a year early. Bryan Barr led Davidson with 19 points, hitting 5 of 13 three-pointers.
Davidson closed to within 11 on a couple of occasions in the second half. But when La Salle needed a bucket, Green was there.
He made a clutch three-pointer with 12:47 to go after Davidson had cut the lead to 60-49 with 13:09 to play.
The Explorers were able to milk the shot clock on a number of occasions before Green made something happen. or instance, once with the shot clock down to three seconds, he found Murray for a dunk to put La Salle ahead 72-56 with 6:39 to go.
