Rhode Island looks to extend streak vs La Salle
La Salle (10-6, 1-3) vs. Rhode Island (11-5, 3-1)
Thomas M. Ryan Center, Kingston, Rhode Island; Saturday, 12:30 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Rhode Island looks for its sixth straight win in the head-to-head series over La Salle. In its last five wins against the Explorers, Rhode Island has won by an average of 11 points. La Salle's last win in the series came on Jan. 12, 2017, an 87-75 victory.
SUPER SENIORS: La Salle's Isiah Deas, Saul Phiri and Scott Spencer have combined to account for 40 percent of the team's scoring this season and have scored 51 percent of all Explorers points over the last five games.
DEFENSIVE IMPROVEMENTS: The Rams have allowed just 61 points per game across four conference games, an improvement from the 72.1 per game they allowed in non-conference play.DOMINANT DEAS: Deas has connected on 35.7 percent of the 70 3-pointers he's attempted and has made 8 of 23 over the last five games. He's also converted 70.9 percent of his foul shots this season.
ASSIST DISTRIBUTION: The Explorers have recently used assists to create baskets more often than the Rams. Rhode Island has 26 assists on 74 field goals (35.1 percent) across its past three outings while La Salle has assists on 39 of 69 field goals (56.5 percent) during its past three games.
DID YOU KNOW: Rhode Island has attempted the second-most free throws among all A10 teams. The Rams have averaged 21.1 foul shots per game this season.
