By Matt Leon

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The La Salle Explorers will bring a 15-6 record into Saturday afternoon’s game with Fordham at Gola Arena.

The Explorers haven’t played since beating George Washington last Saturday, 80-71, as they got a break from a mid-week contest this week.

“I kind of like having the bye in February as opposed to January,” La Salle head coach Dr. John Giannini tells KYW Newsradio. “We took an extra day off and I really think it made a difference with our energy and some of our nagging injuries. Of course the trade-off is you lose a little bit of playing time and maybe a little bit of sharpness.”

Listen To Podcast With Dr. John Giannini:

La Salle is 5-3 in Atlantic 10 action, that has them in a five-way tie for fourth in the conference. Giannini says he likes the way his team’s defense has progressed throughout the season and the care they’ve taken on the basketball as of late.

“It doesn’t take much to win or lose a game at this level because every game is so close,” Giannini says. “And making people miss a couple more shots and avoiding a couple turnovers could be all the difference.”

Fordham is just 6-17 on the season and 2-6 in the A-10. Despite those marks, Giannini says his team won’t take the Rams lightly.

“These guys lost to Fordham last year, so they get it,” Giannini says. “We have a smart team, we have a motivated team. They kind of get things because of their experiences in this league.”

Gola Arena has been quite kind to the Explorers this season. La Salle is 9-2 at home.

La Salle and Fordham will tip-off at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.

You can follow Matt on Twitter @mattleonkyw.