GAME NOTES: The La Salle Explorers and Massachusetts Minutemen hook up on Wednesday night at Tom Gola Arena, with both looking for their first Atlantic 10 Conference victory.

A promising 5-1 start to the season for UMass has fallen by the wayside with losses in six of the last eight games. The latest setback came in the A-10 opener on Saturday, one the Minutemen lost in a 69-55 final to St. Bonaventure on their home floor.

Trey Davis and Cady Lalanne each had 12 points, with the latter adding eight rebounds for UMass, which shot just 4-of-22 from 3-point range while committing 15 turnovers, which led to 25 points for the Bonnies.

The Minutemen have four players averaging double figures in the scoring column, led by 6-foot-8 senior forward Maxie Esho, who comes in at 13.5 ppg and is shooting 54.8 percent from the field. Lalanne (13.0 ppg), paces the team in rebounding (9.1 rpg) and already has 30 blocks.

Derrick Gordon (11.4 ppg) and Davis (11.0 ppg) area also part of the starting lineup for a team that is averaging 73.3 ppg, but is allowing 73.8 ppg. Donte Clark (9.4 ppg) is a force off the bench. Jabarie Hinds, a junior transfer from West Virginia, has averaged 7.5 points in 22.8 minutes through 14 games. Hinds has started the last six games due to an injury Seth Berger sustained to his left foot.

The Explorers are looking to bounce back from a 70-62 loss to George Mason on Saturday that dropped them to 8-6 overall.

La Salle was leading by three at halftime, but allowed George Mason to shoot a staggering 66.7 percent from the field in the second half. Trailing by one with just over five minutes to play, the Patriots used a 7-1 run to take the lead for good and hold on for the home victory, snapping the Explorers' modest three-game win streak in the process.

Cleon Roberts and Jerrell Wright each scored 16 points, while Steve Zack chipped in with 12 points in the loss. Leading scorer Jordan Price was held to just two points on 1-of-11 shooting before fouling out in just 22 minutes of action.

Price still ranks second in the A-10 in scoring at 17.5 ppg thanks to converting 83.1 percent of his free throws. Wright is the only other La Salle player to average double digits in scoring this season, coming in at 12.1 ppg. The Explorers are allowing opponents to net just 62.9 ppg this season.

UMass is 16-14 all-time against La Salle, including wins in the past two meetings.

Neither teams wants to fall to 0-2 in conference play, but considering the Minutemen are 0-4 on the road, the slight edge goes to La Salle in this one.