La Salle Explorers vs George Washington Colonials Prediction, 1/3/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: La Salle Explorers vs George Washington Colonials

Date: Saturday, January 3, 2026

Location: Charles E. Smith Center in Washington, DC

TV: ESPN+

The George Washington Colonials (10-4) will take on the La Salle Explorers (4-10) at Charles E. Smith Center on Saturday.

The La Salle Explorers took the court against George Mason and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 80-75 in their last game. When talking about personal fouls, the Explorers ended up finishing with 22 while George Mason finished the game with 18 personal fouls. They also knocked down 5 of 16 attempts from distance. George Mason ended up going 75.0% at the charity stripe by making 21 of 28 attempts. In addition, George Mason pulled down 32 boards (7 offensive, 25 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. George Mason distributed 12 dimes and had 3 steals for the game. With respect to defense, La Salle let their opponent shoot 48.2% from the field on 27 of 56 shooting. They also distributed 13 dimes in addition to creating 0 turnovers, but wasn't able to record a steal. In the matter of grabbing rebounds, they earned 34 with 11 of them being offensive. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Explorers made 19 of their 27 shots for a rate of 70.4%. La Salle walked away from the contest having earned a 38.7% FG percentage (24 of 62) and buried 8 of their 25 3-pointers.

Jerome Brewer Jr. is one player who was a contributor in this matchup. He finished the game at 61.5% from the floor and also recorded 1 assist. He was on the court for 31 minutes and totaled 3 rebounds. He left the arena with 21 points on 8 of 13 shooting.

Get all of our NCAA Picks Today

La Salle comes into this matchup with a win-loss mark of 4-10 on the year. They average 66.9 pts per contest (341st in Division 1) while connecting on 41.8% from the floor. The Explorers are shooting 29.8% on 3-point shots (70 of 235) and 73.2% from the charity stripe. As a team, La Salle is snagging 37.5 rebounds per contest and has accumulated 193 assists on the year, which ranks 200th in D-1 in terms of passing the ball. They are giving up possession 13.3 times per contest and as a team are committing 16.6 personal fouls every game.

On the defensive end, the Explorers are forcing 10.9 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 16.9 fouls. They are relinquishing 36.7% on 3-pointers while they are 161st in college in PPG allowed (72.1). The Explorers are giving up a FG percentage of 44.6% (361 of 810) and they relinquish 33.0 rebounds per game as a unit. They are ranked 319th in D-1 in giving up assists to the opposition with 221 relinquished on the year.

The last time they took the court, the George Washington Colonials walked away with a victory by a final of 99-85 when they faced Richmond. The Colonials snagged 20 defensive boards and 8 offensive boards for a total of 28 in the matchup. They also gave up possession 10 times, while recording 5 steals in this contest. Richmond earned 18 personal fouls for the game which took the Colonials to the free throw line for a total of 15 attempts. They were able to convert 14 of those for a clip of 93.3%. With respect to shots from 3-point land, George Washington made 17 out of 33 attempts (51.5%). In all, the Colonials shot 34 out of 58 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 58.6%. The Colonials permitted Richmond to knock down 28 of their 57 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 49.1% in the matchup. They finished 42.9% from downtown by going 12 out of 28 and ended up shooting 17 out of 21 at the charity stripe (81.0%). Regarding cleaning up the glass, George Washington permitted Richmond to pull down 21 in total (8 on the offensive glass).

Rafael Castro was important for the Colonials for the game. He knocked down 10 of 12 in the matchup for a field goal rate of 83.3%, and tallied 6 rebounds. He accumulated 27 points in his 30 minutes on the hardwood and had 1 assist in the matchup.

George Washington has a record of 10-4 this year. The Colonials have committed 18.6 personal fouls per contest while shooting 74.2% from the charity stripe. They are assisting teammates 16.7 times per game (79th in the country) and they turn it over 12.8 times per game. George Washington has earned 1,238 points for the season (88.4 per contest) and they pull in 38.5 boards per game. On the offensive side of the court, the Colonials are shooting 49.4% from the floor, which has them ranked 40th in college.

The George Washington defense surrenders 31.4% on shots from distance (110 of 350) and their opponents are connecting on 73.1% of their shots from the charity stripe. They allow 14.7 assists and 30.9 total boards per game, which has them ranked 274th and 40th in college. The Colonials defensively are ranked 197th in D-1 in points per game surrendered with 73.7. They have forced 13.6 turnovers on a nightly basis and have allowed teams to shoot 43.8% from the floor (210th in Division 1).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take La Salle

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Get college basketball picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.