Update, 9:27 p.m….The final here is 80-58, what can be described as nothing short of embarrassing for the Colonials. Not only did they lose to a team that is usually one of the worst in the conference but they did it at home. GW is now dead last in the conference standings. See gwhatchet.com tomorrow morning for a complete recap.

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Update, 8:27 p.m…La Salle continues to dominate this game, up 38-20 at the half. Nothing is going the Colonials’ way, whether it’s shooting, rebounding, or hitting free throws. They also picked up three more fouls than the Explorers. It’s been a very unpretty night of basketball so far, which is not lost on the fans. A lot of students were already exiting Smith Center before the first half ended.

A little ceremony is taking place right now at the half, with all the school’s athletes, band members, dancers and cheerleaders being honored for their academics. Each one gets a nice handshake from Director of Athletics Jack Kvancz as a reward.

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Update, 7:55 p.m….La Salle started the game on an 11-0 run and the score is currently 16-7. The Colonials are completely cold so far. They’ve missed multiple jumpers and have also missed three free throws. Not the way GW wants to start.

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The Colonials (5-12, 1-6 Atlantic 10) host the Explorers (8-12, 3-4 A-10). La Salle is one of the weaker teams in the A-10 and in the lower tier of the conference’s new opponents system. Every A-10 team plays three conference teams twice based on which tier it is placed in, and the tiers are down based on how the program finished the year before. La Salle plays Richmond, St. Bonaventure and Duquesne twice while GW plays Rhode Island, Xavier and Saint Louis twice. A bit of a difference there.

GW has played well in its past two home games, against Xavier and Saint Joe’s, who are both better teams than La Salle, so the Colonials could pick up their first win in seven attempts tonight. But with this GW squad, anything is possible.

With about half an hour to tip, not a lot of people at Smith Center so far. Perhaps the UNC/Duke game, which is on at 9, is keeping some fans away. Also not a lot of media here for this one, but I think that is to be expected.