PHILADELPHIA – Four Colgate men's basketball players reached double-figures in the Raiders' season opener against La Salle on Saturday afternoon.
 
Unfortunately, Colgate was unable to come up with the victory and fell to the Explorers 57-52 after a back-and-forth contest.
 
Senior Ethan Jacobs posted a game-high 12 points, while Austin Tillotson and Damon Sherman-Newsome both added 11 points each. Luke Roh chipped in 10 points and added five boards to go along with Matt McMullen's six rebounds, which led the Raiders on the glass.
 
Sherman-Newsome finished with a career-high six assists, sophomore John Fenton notched a career-high three rebounds and McMullen matched his personal best in steals with two.
 
The Raiders finished the game making 20 of their 55 field goal attempts, but shot just 19 percent from long range. La Salle was a little better from behind the arc, shooting 23 percent to go along with its 35.8 field goal percentage. 
 
Colgate slightly outrebounded the Explorers 36-35, but committed 13 turnovers to La Salle's eight.
 
Head coach Matt Langel's squad returns to action Tuesday at nearby rival Cornell for a 7 p.m. tip.
 
Bottom Line
• La Salle 57, Colgate 52

Won-Lost Records
• La Salle improves to 1-0 overall
• Colgate falls to 0-1 overall

Facts & Figures
• Jacobs led all scorers with 12 points after going 5-of-14 from the floor. He now has 22 double-figure scoring games in his 32 contests so far in a Raider uniform.
• This is the second year in a row the four Raider players that reach double-digits in the game achieved that feat in the season opener. 
• Sherman-Newsome has now posted double-figures in the last four games dating back to March 1, 2014.
• La Salle registered 30 points in the paint compared to Colgate's 24.
• The Explorers recorded 19 bench points to the Raiders four.
• Colgate outrebounded La Salle 36-35 and earned 15 assists to the Explorers' 12

Turning Point
• Colgate had a seven-point edge twice in the opening half but saw the Explorers pull even with 3:54 left before the break.
• The Raiders then retook their lead by two with 15 minutes left to play after McMullen converted on a layup but a 3-pointer from La Salle on the other end of the floor handed the Explorers the one-point advantage.
• Despite multiple rallies from Colgate in the remaining minutes, La Salle was able to stay at least one-point ahead the rest of the game to steal the win.
 
A 'City of Brotherly Love' Welcome
• Sean O'Brien not only saw his first collegiate action Saturday but the rookie pulled down his first four boards in the game as well. He also added an assist and a steal during his time on the court. O'Brien, a Lafayette Hills, Pennsylvania, native, grew up about 20 miles from Philadelphia.
 
From the Sources
• Colgate head coach Matt Langel: (On his team's first game of the season) "It was a great atmosphere and a great college basketball game. Certainly not the prettiest, but a typical Philadelphia style game with both teams battling for their lives each and every possession.
 
"I know that our team can benefit from the experience and believe that it will make us better at some point later this season. With that being said, we have been a team to consistently make open shots and we did not do that today. We missed a few at the rim and some open three's with a few of our best shooters getting the looks we wanted.

"I am sure that La Salle's speed, length and athleticism had something to do with it, but in order to win that game, in their gym, with the crowd as into it as it was, we have to make shots and avoid a few of the defensive breakdowns we had late in the game that led to open layups for La Salle."

(On the perseverance of his team) "I was proud of our team's grit, of our toughness to rebound against their big lineup, and our belief in what we set out to do. The great thing about college basketball is we get to practice tomorrow and start preparing for Tuesday's trip to Cornell, which should be another great test for us early in the season."
 
Gate Grab Bag
• Saturday's game was played behind a sellout crowd of 3,400. 
 
Up Next
• Colgate travels to Ithaca, New York, on Tuesday for a rivalry game with nearby Ivy League foe Cornell.
• Tip off is set for 7 p.m.