Chris Matthews scored 15 points Saturday to help St. Bonaventure beat La Salle, 72-67.
Malcolm Eleby's 14 points and nine rebounds were both season highs for the Bonnies (12-10, 3-6 Atlantic 10). Jonathan Hall and Andrew Nicholson had 12 points and eight rebounds apiece, with Nicholson adding six blocks.
Kimmani Barrett and Rodney Green scored 13 points each for La Salle (12-10, 3-5 Atlantic 10). Ruben Guillandeaux had 12 points, Darryl Partin scored a career-high 11 and Jerrell Williams added eight points and 10 rebounds.
The Bonnies held a 12-point lead with 2:24 remaining, but a 3-pointer by Partin ignited a 10-1 La Salle run that cut the lead to 68-65. The Explorers threatened to take the lead, but a slam-dunk by Nicholson with 36 seconds remaining sealed the Bonnies' victory.
The Explorers last lead came at the 5:00 mark of the first half when they led 28-27. The Bonnies closed out the half on a 12-4 run and never relinquished the lead.
The Explorers played their first game without the services of junior Yves Mekongo Mbala, who suffered a broken hand in Wednesday's game against Dayton. Mekongo Mbala will be out for three to six weeks after starting a team-longest 60 consecutive games.
