Saint Joseph's Hawks vs La Salle Explorers Prediction, 1/31/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Saint Joseph's Hawks vs La Salle Explorers

Date: Saturday, January 31, 2026

Location: John Glaser Arena in Philadelphia, PA

TV: ESPN+

John Glaser Arena is the location where the La Salle Explorers (7-14) will take on the Saint Joseph's Hawks (13-8) on Saturday.

The Saint Joseph's Hawks stepped onto the hardwood against Loyola and took home the win by a score of 85-64 in their last game. Saint Joseph's walked away from the game having earned a 56.3% field goal percentage (36 of 64) and knocked down 10 out of their 24 three-point attempts. At the free throw line, the Hawks made 3 of 6 shots for a rate of 50.0%. In terms of rebounding, they earned 35 with 9 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 25 assists in this matchup as well as forcing 10 turnovers and earning 7 steals. With regard to defense, Saint Joseph's let their opponent shoot 34.8% from the floor on 23 out of 66 shooting. Loyola totaled 13 assists and had 5 steals in this contest. Furthermore, Loyola collected 30 boards (14 offensive, 16 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. Loyola finished the game shooting 72.7% from the charity stripe by knocking down 8 of 11 shots. They also knocked down 10 of 33 shots from beyond the perimeter. When discussing personal fouls, the Hawks left the arena with 9 while Loyola finished the game with 8 personal fouls.

Austin Williford is one player who was a factor for this contest. He recorded 17 points on 7 out of 10 shooting. He played for 35 mins played and grabbed 10 rebounds. He went 70.0% from the field and distributed 2 assists.

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Saint Joseph's heads into this game with a mark of 13-8 for the campaign. They are giving up possession 12.1 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 14.9 fouls per contest. As a unit, Saint Joseph's is pulling down 39.3 boards per contest and has accounted for 326 assists on the year, which is 102nd in college in terms of passing. The Hawks are hitting 29.4% on 3-pointers (163 of 555) and 75.8% from the free throw line. They are averaging 75.2 points per game (214th in the country) while hitting 43.0% from the field.

Defensively, the Hawks are forcing their opponents into 10.9 turnovers per contest while drawing 15.7 personal fouls. They are 199th in the nation in allowing assists to the opposition with 284 surrendered so far this year. The Hawks defense is allowing and opponent field goal percentage of 41.8% (555 of 1,327) and they surrender 35.7 boards per contest as a unit. They give up 33.7% from 3-point land while they are 151st in the nation in points per game from their opponents (72.6).

When they last stepped on the court, the La Salle Explorers went home defeated by a final of 64-58 when they faced Fordham. The Explorers were able to corral 21 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive boards totaling 29 in the game. They coughed up the ball 9 times, while getting 4 steals in the matchup. Fordham earned 15 fouls for the contest which got the Explorers to the free throw line for a total of 18 attempts. They were able to convert 14 of the free throw tries for a clip of 77.8%. With regard to three-point shots, La Salle buried 4 out of 18 attempts (22.2%). When the game finished, the Explorers ended up going 20 for 59 from the floor which gave them a rate of 33.9%. The Explorers permitted Fordham to knock down 24 out of their 58 attempts from the field which gave them a percentage of 41.4% in this contest. They went 32.0% from beyond the arc by hitting 8 out of 25 and finished the contest at 8 out of 8 at the free throw line (100.0%). In reference to how they rebounded, La Salle permitted Fordham to collect 37 in total (9 on the offensive glass).

Jerome Brewer Jr. pitched in for the Explorers for the game. He earned 21 points in his 37 mins on the court and added 1 assist for this game. He buried 8 of 11 for the game for a field goal rate of 72.7%, and totaled 7 rebounds.

La Salle has a win-loss mark of 7-14 so far this year. When it comes to executing on offense, the Explorers are connecting on 42.1% from the floor, which is 326th in the country. La Salle has totaled 1,399 pts for the campaign (66.6 per contest) and they average 35.2 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 13.4 times per game (233rd in the country) and they lose possession by turning the ball over 12.7 times per game. The Explorers commit 15.6 fouls every game and they hit 71.9% from the charity stripe.

The La Salle defense concedes 35.7% on 3-point shots (180 of 504) and their opponents are knocking down 69.9% of their foul shots. They have surrendered 16.4 dimes and 33.5 rebounds on a nightly basis, which ranks them 337th and 120th in D-1. The Explorers are ranked 142nd in the nation in points allowed per game with 72.3. They are forcing 11.0 TO's every game and have let teams shoot 45.5% from the floor (272nd in college).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take La Salle

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