PHILADELPHIA – Junior Myles Cherry of the Lafayette men's basketball team recorded his first career double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds to power the Leopards past La Salle for win number one of the 2018-19 campaign on Saturday in Philadelphia, 77-76.

It was a battle all afternoon for the Maroon and White as they had to overcome a game-high 26 points from La Salle's Pookie Powell. The win puts Lafayette at 1-1 on the young season and drops La Salle to 0-2 overall.

Cherry was one of four Leopards to score in double-figures on the day, joined by classmate Kyle Stout with 14 on 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc. Sophomores Justin Jaworski and Alex Petrie chipped in with 13 points, with Petrie hitting the biggest bucket of the game in the final moments.

Out of a timeout with Lafayette down one, 76-74, sophomore Dylan Hastings forced a miss on the block from La Salle's Miles Brookins and Lafayette called timeout with a chance to win it or send it to overtime. Petrie went to work quickly out of the stoppage, driving down the right side of the lane and finishing through a foul to give the Leopards a 77-76 lead. Powell's jumper at the buzzer fell off the right rim and the horn sounded on a Leopard victory.

Rebounding was a decisive factor on Saturday as the Leopards held a 42-30 edge on the glass, with 11 coming on the offensive end. Lafayette recorded 18 assists on its 25 field goals and went 25-of-53 overall (47.2%) and 9-of-20 from three-point range (45.0%).

La Salle came out with a blitz in its home opener, hitting its first four shots from the field, including three triples for an 11-0 advantage after the first three minutes. Cherry was able to calm the Leopards down after an early timeout with back-to-back buckets from the block to take the game to its first media at 11-4.

Following a Pookie Powell triple that moved La Salle's lead back up to eight, 14-6, the Leopards dug in with 11 of the next 13 points to swing momentum in their favor and take their first lead of the contest into the under-12 media timeout, 17-16. The Explorers took it back, but not by a stronghold over the next four minutes as two three's from former BU standout Cheddi Mosely put the home side in front at the eight-minute mark, 24-20.

The sides traded a trio of triples around the seven-minute mark as the next four-minute stretch was played evenly with La Salle still ahead by three, 33-30, with 3:40 to play in the half. Six of the final eight points came on the free-throw line as Jaworski hit a pair with four seconds remaining to send the game into the break with a manageable deficit, 37-34.

Lafayette came out with the better energy in the opening minute of the second, as a Paulius Zalys layup preceded Stout's fourth three in transition to put the Leopards in front again, 39-37. A 9-2 burst from the home side answered to put the Explorers ahead by five, but Petrie's drive-and-finish took the game to the under-16 break at 46-43.

The Leopard offense continued to execute to the midway point as Petrie's three in transition tied the game at 52 with 12:26 to go. The momentum continued to the seven-minute mark as Jaworski answered a Isiah Deas three with one of his own in the left corner to push the lead to five, 67-62.

The game went under the three-minute mark within a point as Powell free throws made it 72-71 in favor of the home side. Remaining within a bucket to the final minute, Petrie's first chance to tie it at the 40-second mark fell short on a baseline jumper from the right side as La Salle called timeout with a two-point lead, 76-74, but he earned redemption in the final moments, with the winning bucket in a 77-76 final.

Lafayette finishes out its three-game season-opening road trip back in Philadelphia on Tuesday, traveling to The Palestra to take on Penn at 7 p.m.