PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Head coach of the Sacred Heart University men's basketball team Anthony Latina could not have dreamt of a more exciting way to secure his 100^th career win than with an 86-81 win over La Salle in overtime. The Pioneers start the season 1-0 for the first time since 2015.  
 
Records
Sacred Heart: 1-0
La Salle: 0-1
 
Top Performers
Tyler Thomas (SHU): 24 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal
Bryce Johnson (SHU): 11 points, 10 rebounds 3 assists
Alex Watson (SHU): 16 points, 5 assists, 1 steal
Joey Reilly (SHU): 13 points, 2 assists, 1 steal
 
Of Note
Sacred Heart trailed by nine with eight minutes remaining in the second half when it was charged with a pair of technical fouls. The Explorers missed all four from the stripe which shifted the momentum into SHU's favor and helped spark an 11-0 run with under four to go. 
 
Senior Aaron Clarke sent the game into overtime with a buzzer-beating three in front of the Sacred Heart bench. The veteran subbed into the game with 20 seconds remaining in regulation after sitting for over 15 minutes in the second half. 
 
Junior Joey Reilly drove to the basket at the three-minute mark in OT to kickstart an 8-0 run. The run gave the Red & White a five-point cushion with under two minutes remaining. The Pioneers would go on to drain six-straight from the charity stripe, led by Clarke with four, to seal the win. 
 
Coach Latina secured his 100^th career win at the helm, moving his career record to 100-140. 
 
The win over La Salle is the first over an A10 opponent since 2016 when SHU topped Fordham, 71-70. 
 
The Pioneers shot 45.7% from the field (32-70) and 35.5% from long distance (11-31). Comparably, the Explorers were 38% (30-79) from the field and 42.9% (6-14) from three. Despite making more three-pointers than the home team, SHU posted 42 of its 86 points from the paint, compared to La Salle with 24 paint-points. 

Sacred Heart also out-rebounded La Salle, 50-41, led by Tyler Thomas with a career-high of 11.
 
Bryce Johnson and Thomas both tallied their first career double-doubles. Thomas led both on the boards and in scoring with 24 and 11 while Johnson contributed 11 points and 10 rebounds. 
 
Alex Watson notched a career-best 16 points while sophomore Nico Galette grabbed a career-high eight rebounds.