New to Explorer basketball? Columnist reveals what freshmen and other new fans should know about La Salle hoops

By Adam Bagni
Collegian Staff
November 15, 2006

How do you pronounce Giannini? The answer is “ja-knee-knee.”

If you’re a freshman at La Salle, you might have a few other questions about the La Salle men’s basketball team, of which you are now a defacto fan.

Explorer basketball is good entertainment for the students - Mike McDonald

Well, fear not, because I’ve compiled a list of the five basic things you need to know about La Salle hoops.

1) History. This La Salle team is no upstart program. La Salle men’s basketball has a great history of both success and recognition – far too much for me to write about in this column. In short, the Explorer program was rated number 53 last year among Street & Smith’s “100 Greatest College Basketball Programs of All-Time.” La Salle has won one National Championship (1953) and one NIT (1952 – before it was the “not invited tournament”).

The two names no Explorer fan can forget are Gola and Simmons. Both are, arguably, among the greatest college basketball players ever. Only two college basketball players have ever scored more points than Lionell Simmons, and Tom Gola is a Basketball Hall-of-Famer. Believe it or not, if you divide up the various “national player of the year” awards, less than a handful of schools have had more than La Salle.

2) The Big 5. La Salle has played in the hardly “unofficial” Philadelphia Big 5 Conference for over 50 years. The Big 5 consists of the five biggest (sorry, Drexel) Division I basketball programs in the Philadelphia area: La Salle, Penn, Villanova, Temple and Saint Joseph’s.

The conference has repeatedly been praised throughout the nation, and is often the explanation when many commentators declare Philadelphia the nation’s best college basketball city. Big 5 games are known for their unpredictability, with many players squaring off against former high school teammates or opponents. La Salle got its first Big 5 win since 2002 in February, beating Hall-of-Famer John Cheney’s squad at a sold out Tom Gola Arena.

As for rivals, the Hawks of Saint Joseph’s have become La Salle’s biggest enemy, drawing the ire of Explorer fans for decades.

3) No joke. Make no mistake about it: “small-time” La Salle plays “big-time” basketball. Some of the nation’s best players, coaches and programs square off against the Explorers every year.

This year alone, La Salle will play against a host of teams that have frequented the NCAA tournament in the last few years. Among them are Charlotte, Dayton, George Washington, Iowa, Penn, Saint Joseph’s, Temple, Richmond, Villanova and Xavier.

Many of the teams I mentioned are members of the Atlantic 10 Conference, which La Salle joined in 1995. The division is one that is very underrated, and there promises to be more than a fair share of riveting finishes and upsets throughout the conference this season.

4) Quickly recovering. Although most fans would like to forget about it, it’s important for every fan to know that the rape allegation scandal in 2003 completely changed the landscape of Explorer basketball. It cost the team two coaches and three starters (one of whom was the nation’s fourth highest scorer last season), and many saw only dark times ahead for a program that was already struggling. Despite a laundry list of coaches turning down the head-coaching job (either formally or reportedly), John Giannini took the helm and has thrived ever since.

Giannini took the team to a third-place finish in the Atlantic 10 last year. In fact, milestones defined Giannini’s squad last season: first AP Top 25 vote since 1999, first Big 5 win since 2002, first match up of Big 5 undefeated teams (Villanova) since 1981, best ever A-10 finish, first back-to-back A-10 Player of the Year (Steven Smith), first winning season since 1994 and a top-20 ranked recruiting class.

5) Worthy of your (free) attention. In addition to the points I mentioned above, the men’s basketball team is really the one event on campus that everyone can get behind. The Athletic Department does a good job in offering every student a free ticket to each home game. Students can also get a free bus ride to games at the historic Palestra – possibly the greatest venue in college basketball.

If you’re a busy body on campus, have no fear. Games are often over in two hours, and you can often grab some free food before the game, or a snack with your Gold Card at halftime.

Did I mention that rabid fans can join the Explorer Entourage for a free T-shirt?

Yes, the price is right for La Salle’s cash-strapped student body.

A senior friend of mine shared some words of wisdom my freshman year: “It’s a free ticket to a Division I basketball game—you can’t go wrong with that!”

Not only was he right, but the students who attended La Salle’s upset over Temple last year would probably say that quote is an understatement.

So show up this season and see for yourself. Win or lose, you won’t be disappointed.

bagnia1@lasalle.edu