First place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference keeps getting closer for the Loyola men?s basketball team.
Loyola (11-10, 7-3) is mere gameback of first-place Siena (13-7, 8-2), Rider (15-6, 8-2) and Marist (14-7, 8-2) after rallying for a 79-60 victory at Manhattan on Saturday.
“We really had to grind this win out,” Loyola coach Jimmy Patsos said. “We answered the bell in the second half and our experience really showed. We were able to go inside and get to the free-throw line in the second half and that was the difference.”
Loyola?s win over the Jaspers was a microcosm of its season. After a slow start, the team came on strong with defense, rebounding and getting to the free-throw line. Despite averaging 22 three-point attempts per game, the Greyhounds aggressively attacked the basket and were a staggering 30-of-34 from the charity stripe on Saturday.
Marquis Sullivan scored a game-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting against the Jaspers (8-12, 2-8), making him the third Greyhound to lead the team in scoring in the past four games ? all wins.
Patsos moved Sullivan, who averages 11.9 points and shoots 40 percent from behind the arc, to the bench to provide scoring as the team?s “sixth man.”
The switch has paid off.
“Marquis has really accepted his role off the bench,” Patsos said of the former Spalding star. “[He] came in and really played some good defense.”
Next up for the Greyhounds is an non-conference game against New Jersey Institute of Technology on Tuesday night at 7 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The Highlanders (0-21) are in their second year as a Division I program, but have struggled all season, averaging just 52.3 points per game and are ranked 340th in the Ratings Points Index ? next to last.
The only team that?s ranked worse is North Florida, which at 0-17, is the only other winless Division I program. But if Loyola, which was picked to finish second in the MAAC?s preseason poll has learned anything this season, it?s to take no team lightly.
“We came out a little too emotional and felt like we have this ranking and expectations and it was something we couldn?t handle,” Loyola guard Gerald Brown said. “Now, we are learning how to play despite all the stuff we hear and we read. Everyone is playing their role and that?s how we are winning.”
Loyola vs. NJIT
» Tipoff: Tuesday, 7 p.m.
» Where: Prudential Center, Newark, N.J.
» Radio: 1300 AM
