2/20/2006 - Smith leads La Salle past Dayton

It was apparent from the opening tip-off Saturday at Tom Gola Arena that the feel-good story evolving at La Salle had yet to spread to Dayton, as the up-and-down Flyers boldly answered just about everything the Explorers tossed at them.

Highly entertaining from start to finish, the Atlantic Ten Conference game was like a show in which everyone had a chance to stand at center stage.

But as the game neared conclusion, it became obvious the outcome would be decided by one of the two best players on the floor: La Salle's Steven Smith or Dayton's Brian Roberts.

Smith and the Explorers (17-7, 9-4) won out, and La Salle stretched its winning streak to seven games and came a step closer to nailing down a first-round bye in the conference tournament with a 74-71 win over Dayton (12-14, 4-8).

Smith scored 19 of his game-high 25 points in the second half, when he hit all 11 of his free throws, and along with his teammates held his breath at the end, when Roberts, a dynamic sophomore, was off-target on consecutive three-point attempts before the horn sounded.

"Brian Roberts was extremely hard to stop," said La Salle coach John Giannini, whose team clinched its first winning record in the A-10 since joining the league in the 1995-96 season. The Explorers are in sole possession of third place. "We were very fortunate they missed those last couple shots."

Giannini was being gracious. Roberts, who scored 21 of his 24 points in the second half, was smothered on the perimeter by rapidly switching La Salle defenders. Roberts, who had made four of his previous five three-point shots, was about five feet behind the stripe when he launched the first one with fewer than five seconds to go. After teammate Charles Little tapped the rebound back out to him, Roberts was no closer on his next attempt, ending a Dayton possession that lasted the final 33 seconds. Earlier in the possession, La Salle's Sherman Diaz blocked a short jumper by Roberts, who then was off on a contested drive to the basket.

"We just didn't want to get caught on a screen or let someone get open," Giannini said.

The game had 20 lead changes, 15 in the second half. Sophomore Darnell Harris, one of the league's most dangerous three-point shooters during La Salle's winning streak, scored 16 points. He gave the Explorers a 55-53 lead with 9 minutes, 5 seconds left on a three-pointer and they never again trailed.

"My confidence [in shooting threes] has always been up there, but it's even better when you're winning," said Harris, who sank four of La Salle's 10 three-point baskets against a team that leads the league in defending against them. He had no turnovers.

Smith raised La Salle's lead to 62-55 with an amazing turnaround three-pointer from the wing just as the shot clock expired.

"I just wanted to get a shot to the rim and hopefully one of our guys would get the rebound," Smith said. "Somehow, it straightened out and went in. I didn't even follow through on it. I just flicked it up there. That was pretty funny to me."

Harris followed with a deep three-pointer, and Smith helped hold off Roberts' surge from the free-throw line.

Jermaine Thomas contributed 17 points and five assists for La Salle.

Next up for La Salle is a visit Wednesday to league heavyweight and No. 7-ranked George Washington.

"We know how good they are. We know they are living up to their ranking," Giannini said of the Colonials. "It's a tremendous challenge for us."

Monty Scott, Dayton's second-leading scorer, returned after missing five games with a stress fracture in his left foot. He played 16 minutes and had one basket.

Notes.Giannini said he would be surprised if freshman guard Marshall Taylor returned this season.

The 6-foot-4 Taylor had surgery Wednesday after his appendix ruptured. He was scheduled to be released from Albert Einstein Medical Center on Saturday.

"He's doing better," Giannini said. "Everything went well. He's passed the worst part of it. There may be a chance [of returning], but I would be surprised."