Wolf Pack men's hoops outlasted 87-77 by Bethel University on the road

McKENZIE, TENN.- The Loyola University New Orleans Men's Basketball team played their second Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) road contest in three days on Saturday, traveling to the Crisp Arena to take on Bethel University.

The Wolf Pack started out hot and set the tone physically on the road, but Loyola would eventually be outlasted by the Wildcats 87-77.

So. C Nate Pierre (Folsom, La./Covington) and So. C Robert White (Los Angeles, Calif./Cathedral) made their presence felt from the very beginning by working the glass for two baskets. That led to the Wolf Pack's 10-0 run to start the game.

Loyola went cold over the next eight minutes of play, going just 1-of-9 from the field while turning the ball over six times. The result was a 19-3 run which put Bethel on top 19-13 with 8:33 remaining in the half.

Bethel continued to build on its' lead throughout the half, but the Wolf Pack were never far behind and the scoreboard read 41-32 in favor of the home team after the first 20 minutes.

The second half saw the Wildcats begin to build on their advantage and Loyola found itself down  52-37 with 15:01 remaining.

Powered by Jr. F Johnny Griffin (Chicago, Ill./Bloom Trail High), the Wolf Pack went on an 11-2 run to cut the deficit to 54-48 with 12:43 left to play.

Bethel answered the Wolf Pack by extending the lead back to 13. Loyola continued to fight back and consistently would close in on the Wildcat lead throughout the half.

A triple from So. G Sam Kohnke (New Orleans, La./Isidore Newman) put the Wolf Pack within seven with 5:33 remaining. However, Coach Hollowell's men were unable to overcome their poor three-point shooting and fell on the road, 87-77.

Loyola shot 15-of-69 (36.2%) from the field and just 3-of-18 (16.7%) from beyond the arc. They also had an underwhelming performance from the charity stripe by going 24-of-37 (64.9%).

Despite the loss,Loyola managed to force 16 turnovers and had a 46-44 rebounding advantage.

Griffin played an exceptional outing, pouring in a game-high 22 points and seven rebounds off of the bench. Jr. G Jalen Gray (New Orleans, La./Brother Martin) pitched in 15 points, while Fr. G Tre'von Jasmine (Edgard, La./East St. John High) provided 13 points and seven boards. So. G Nick Parker (Port Allen, La./Port Allen) came off the bench to give Loyola a spark with 12 points.

For Bethel, Taylor Clay and Darren Davidson each scored 17 points to lead the way. As a team, the Wildcats shot 26-of-61 (42.6%) from the field, 11-of-24 (45.8%) from beyond the arc  and 24-of-35 (68.6) from the free throw line.