PHILADELPHIA-La Salle forward Steven Smith celebrated Senior Day with 26 points and 16 rebounds as the Explorers whipped Saint Louis 62-52 this afternoon in an Atlantic 10 Conference men's basketball game at Tom Gola Arena. The win vaulted the Explorers into third place in the A-10 standing and left the Billikens in fourth place as both finished with 10-6 marks in the A-10.

"La Salle went box-and-one or triangle-and-two most of the game and forced people other than Vouyoukas, Drejaj and Lisch to make shots," said Billikens head coach Brad Soderberg. "Our other perimeter players weren't able to knock down enough open shots, and that was pretty much the story. Frankly, I'm surprised that we haven't seen more of that."

La Salle jumped on top 4-0 as forward Sherman Diaz scored on a lay-up and center Lewis Fadipe knocked down two free throws. SLU fell behind 7-2 before countering with a 6-0 run capped by Tommie Liddell's lay-up to give the Bills an 8-7 lead. La Salle ran off seven unanswered as Diaz connected on a jumper, senior guard Jermaine Thomas drained a triple and Smith scored his first bucket of the game on a lay-in. Saint Louis would never regain the lead.

The Explorers extended their lead to 23-14 on another Smith jumper, but the Billikens held La Salle scoreless for the final 3:46 of the half. SLU senior guard Anthony Drejaj and junor forward Justin Johnson sandwiched single free throws between Liddell's jumper, and the Bills trailed 25-22 at the break.

Out of halftime, the Bills got an open look for Lisch, who went scoreless in the first half and only managed two shots, but his straightaway trey went around and out. Liddell snagged the offensive rebound, but was called for an offensive foul on the follow attempt. The Billikens struggled mightily at the offensive end, but still trailed only 31-28 with 13:45 to play after senior forward Vas'Shun Newborne nailed a mid-range jumper. La Salle's Thomas countered with a threeball, and the Explorers pushed the lead to 40-30 with 8:00 remaining.

The Bills fashioned a 5-0 run on Drejaj's three-pointer and a Vouyoukas dunk, and SLU still had life, trailing 40-35 with 6:35 to play. La Salle responded with a 7-1 run sparked by Smith's deep three after a scramble for a loose ball went to the Explorers. La Salle made a dozen free throws down the stretch to put the game away.

Diaz finished with 11 for La Salle (18-9, 10-6), and Thomas contributed 10. The Explorers shot only 37.3 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from the arc, but were 79.2 percent from the free throw line. La Salle dominated the glass 44-31 and converted 13 offensive rebounds into 17 second-chance points.

Vouyoukas led the Bills with 13 points, while Drejaj contributed 11 and Liddell posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards. The Bills shot only 34.5 percent from the field, 28.6 percent from the arc and 50 percent from the free throw line. Drejaj had a game-high three steals.

Saint Louis (16-12, 10-6) has a first-round bye in the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament that begins Wed., Mar. 8, in Cincinnati's U.S. Bank Arena. The Bills will face a still to be determined opponent in the quarterfinal round on Thursday.