The Loyola Ramblers picked up their fifth win in a row tonight, taking the season sweep over the Saint Joseph’s Hawks by a score of 64-59. The win now moves them to 10-2 on the conference slate (18-7 overall), and they now sit in a tie with Dayton for first place in the conference. Here are three observations from the win:
First half madness
The Ramblers were off to a dream start at the first media timeout, extending their lead to as much as 14 points before even allowing the Hawks to grab a bucket. It looked poised to be a blowout early on, but instead of pulling ahead, Loyola seemingly took their foot off the gas.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
The Hawks went on a mini-run of their own, taking the lead with a dagger from beyond the arc to take a one point lead into the half. The Hawks finished the half with a 35.5 percent clip from the field, nothing crazy, but considering their first point came at 13:48 in the first half, not half bad either.
Alston, Watson leads second-half comeback
The Ramblers came out in the second half with the same fire that they did in the first, fighting a back and forth affair to claw back. Philip Alston led the way with another strong effort on offense with 14 points.
Junior Des Watson extended his streak of double-digit scoring to five games, converting on all 12 of his points in the second half. As the game got to its late stages, his 4-4 mark from the free throw line helped the Ramblers to ice the game out and secure the win.
Rebounding comes up clutch
Defense played a huge role in keeping the Ramblers in the game, especially in the rebound department. The Ramblers tallied 42 rebounds, an impressive number in itself, but even more impressive when you consider they only allowed 26 from the Hawks.
Second chance points were a delivering factor as the Ramblers collected 11 offensive rebounds as a team. Alston and Watson both contributed massively to that total, each collecting 8 rebounds to lead the team.
The Ramblers now hit the road to take on Rhode Island this Sunday, with tipoff set for 11 a.m. on CBS Sports Network.