The Penn State men’s basketball team is set to take the court on Saturday, November 15, as they face La Salle in a neutral site game at the Xfinity Mobile Arena, home of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers. This matchup is the first of a doubleheader in the Basketball on Broad Autumn Invitational, with tipoff scheduled for 1:00 PM, streamed live on Peacock. The second game will see the Syracuse Orange go head-to-head with the Drexel Dragons at 3:30 PM.
La Salle, under the guidance of first-year head coach Darris Nichols—formerly the head coach at Radford University—competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference and ended last season with an overall record of 14-19, including a conference mark of 5-13. This season, the Explorers are currently 2-1, with victories over Coppin State (87-59) and Monmouth (73-60), and a setback against Temple (90-63).
Leading the Explorers is 6’5″ graduate student guard Jaeden Marshall, who is averaging an impressive 16.7 points per game. He is supported by 6’9″ redshirt junior Jerome Brewer, who contributes 11.0 ppg, and 6’6″ redshirt sophomore Rob Dockery, who averages 9.3 ppg. Freshman Ashton Walker also makes a mark, averaging 8.7 ppg along with 5.3 assists per game.
The Nittany Lions come into the Autumn Invitational with strong momentum, having recently secured a notable victory against the Navy Midshipmen, a favored team in the Patriot League, with a score of 80-71 on Military Appreciation Night, which coincided with Veteran’s Day. Four players from Penn State are currently averaging double-digit points: freshman Kayden Mingo leads with 15.7 ppg, alongside fellow freshman Melih Tunca at 14.0 ppg. Additionally, redshirt junior Freddie Dilione V. and sophomore Dominick Stewart both contribute 11.0 ppg.
This meeting will mark only the sixth encounter between Penn State and La Salle in their storied histories, dating back to their first clash in the 1954 NCAA Final Four, where La Salle prevailed 69-54.
As anticipation builds for the game, Nittany Sports Now will be on-site at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, providing live updates and coverage of this exciting matchup between the Nittany Lions and the Explorers.