La Salle Explorers

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La Salle University is a private, co-educational, comprehensive university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Named for St. Jean-Baptiste de la Salle, the school was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. As of 2005 the school had over 6,200 students, about three quarters of whom were undergraduates. Located in northwestern Philadelphia, the university is affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church through the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.

La Salle University's sports teams, known as the Explorers, compete in the NCAA Division I and are a member of the Atlantic Ten Conference. The name derives from a famous mistake made by a local Philadelphia sportswriter. The writer thought the university was named after the French explorer Sieur de La Salle, when in fact it is named after St. Jean-Baptiste de la Salle. However, the nickname caught on, and has remained ever since. School colors are blue and gold.

The La Salle University Explorers are a storied part of Philadelphia's legendary Big 5 basketball history. Home games are played at Tom Gola Arena on the La Salle campus, which has a capacity of 4,000.

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Men's Basketball

The La Salle Explorers Men's Basketball Team is a historic basketball program at La Salle University. The program has been rated the 53rd "Greatest College Basketball Program of All-Time" by Street & Smith's magazine.

La Salle has won one NCAA National Championship, one National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Championship (1952), and advanced to two Final Fours. The Explorers have also won eight city championships and four Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championships. La Salle has also had three National Players of the Year: Tom Gola, Lionel Simmons, and Michael Brooks. Only Duke University has more. The 1954 NCAA Championship team was led by Basketball Hall of Fame player Tom Gola.

The men's basketball team is currently a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference, and they're coached by Dr. John Giannini.

La Salle has graduated 22 professional basketball players (in the NBA or ABA).

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