Rhode Island Starters
Jeremy Sheppard, Ishmael Leggett, Makhi Mitchell, Makhel Mitchell, Ishmael El-Amin
 
La Salle Starters
Anwar Gill, Jack Clark, Mamadou Doucoure, Clifton Moore, Khalil Brantley
 
How it Happened 
A stellar second-half defensive effort helped Rhode Island overcome a lackluster first half and edge La Salle 56-54 Wednesday night.

The Rams (12-4, 3-1 Atlantic 10) got the go-ahead basket on a drive to the basket by Ishmael Leggett with 23 seconds to go. La Salle (6-9, 1-4 A-10) had three shots in a frantic final 11 seconds, but a layup and two 3-point shots fell off as URI survived for its third straight victory.

La Salle scored 11 points off eight Rhode Island turnovers to help build a 35-27 lead by halftime. The Rams came out with a new energy to open the second half, forcing six turnovers in the first six minutes of the second half, opening the period on a 10-2 run to tie the game on a Makhel Mitchell layup from Leggett.

Though Rhode Island had the momentum, La Salle never went away. The teams were never separated by more than three points and the score was tied six times over the final 14 minutes before Leggett's game winner.

Inside the Box Score

• Rhode Island was just 1-of-9 from the foul line in the first half. The Rams finished the game 9-of-22 from the charity stripe, connecting on a season-low 40.9-percent of their attempts.
• The Rams improved to 8-0 in the Ryan Center this season.
• La Salle did most of its damage at the rim in the first half, scoring 24 of its 35 points in the paint. Rhody's defense limited the Explorers to just eight points in the paint during the second half.
• The Explorers held an 11-2 advantage in points off turnovers during the first half, while Rhody had an 11-0 edge in points off turnovers in the second half.
• Makhi Mitchell and Makhel Mitchell matched one another in scoring with 10 points apiece. Makhel added four blocks, two rebounds, one steal and one assist while Makhi had four boards, two blocks, two steals and one assist.
• Seven different players combined for Rhody's 11 assists, led by Jeremy Sheppard's three helpers. He also recorded six points, four rebounds and one steal.
• Ishmael Leggett and Jalen Carey registered seven points apiece, followed by Antwan Walker and Sebastian Thomas, each of whom scored six off the bench. 

Up Next
Rhode Island returns to action on Saturday afternoon when it hosts George Washington at 12:30 p.m.