RICHMOND, Va. — The VCU Rams will host La Salle on Saturday, Jan. 30 in Richmond for the first game of a back to back. 

La Salle is led by Head Coach Ashley Howard. Howard is now in his 3rd season in charge of the team after winning a few national championships with Villanova. Howard was an assistant coach under Jay Wright for five seasons, helping the Wildcats to a pair of National Championships. The Philadelphia native recruited future NBA Draft Picks Mikal Bridges (10th Overall, Phoenix Suns), Jalen Brunson (33rd Overall, Dallas Mavericks), Donte DiVincenzo (17th Overall, Milwaukee Bucks), and Omari Spellman (30th Overall, Atlanta Hawks). He was also a member of the coaching staff that developed Josh Hart into the National Player of the Year in 2016 and a first-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2016 NBA Draft. Howard also spent time as an assistant at Xavier, Drexel, and La Salle. Last year Howard led the Explorers to a 15-15 record overall and 6-12 record in conference play. La Salle was picked to finish No. 13 in this season’s A-10 Preseason Poll. So far this season the Explorers are 7-9 overall, and 4-5 in conference play. They picked up wins against Dayton, Fordham, Saint Joseph’s, and Richmond but lost to Rhode Island, Davidson, George Mason, and UMass twice.

The players to watch in this game are Sherif Kenney for La Salle and Bones Hyland for VCU.

Sherif Kenney is a 6’4 guard from Washington, D.C., currently averaging 8.9 points, 1.6 assists, and 1.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 37.9% from the field and 39.3% from three. The last time Kenney was in Richmond he scored a team-high 17 points in the Explorers upset win against the Richmond Spiders on Jan. 23rd. Last season Kenney averaged 7.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in his first season in college basketball. Kenney played his high school senior season at Orr Academy in Chicago, Ill., helping the Spartans win the Class 2A state championship and was named Honorable Mention All-State selection by the Associated Press. He also attended both Brewster Academy in New Hampshire and Rock Creek Christian Academy in Maryland before his one year in the Midwest. As a sophomore at Rock Creek, Kenney was a key member of a team that was ranked in the Top 10 nationally and advanced to the championship game of the Maryland Private Schools Tournament.

Nah’Shon “Bones” Hyland is a 6 foot 3 sophomore point guard from Wilmington, De. He is a playmaker on both ends of the floor, whether it be jumping in the passing lanes for a steal or hitting a step jump shot with a hand in his face. The preseason All-Conference Third Team selection is currently VCU’s leading scorer at 18.6 points per game. Hyland is coming off a great game against Dayton where he scored a game-high 28 points, knocking down five three-pointers in the process. He also chipped in with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals in a big-time win against the Flyers. Hyland has now had six 20 plus point games in his sophomore campaign, and he currently ranks No. 4 in A-10 scoring this season. Hyland has primarily been playing off the ball this season for the black and gold with the addition of freshmen point guard Adrian Baldwin, but Hyland remains the Rams’ number one option on offense.

Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 20 at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. The game will be broadcasted on NBC Sports Network.