Box Score The Wolf Pack used a balanced scoring effort to notch the 90-76 victory over Middle Georgia State in the final game of 2016.
The No. 22 Loyola University New Orleans men's basketball team looked to put the difficult 100-68 loss against Dalton State behind them as they welcomed Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) rival Middle Georgia State University to First NBC Court for the final game of 2016.
The Knights, who came into today's matchup with an overtime loss to Mobile on Jan. 29, were also looking for redemption.
Loyola rode the momentum of five players scoring in double figures to notch the 90-76 victory on Saturday afternoon.
With the conference victory, the Wolf Pack improves to 3-1 in SSAC play and 10-3 overall on the season. On the other side, Middle Georgia State drops to 1-2 in conference play and 5-3 on the year following the loss.
A basket by Johnny Griffin Jr. (SR/Chicago, IL.) and two free throws by Jalen Gray (SR/New Orleans, La.) put Loyola on top 4-0 in the first minute of the game.
A three-pointer by Kieston Standfield brought the visitors within one (4-3) on the next possession.
The Knights would tie the game at 8-8 over the next two minutes of play. A layup by White off of the entry pass by Griffin Jr. put the Wolf Pack back on top 10-8 at the 15:44 mark of the first half.
A three-point field goal by Nick Parker (JR/Port Allen, La.) capped off a 7-0 run by the home team, bringing the score to 15-8 with 13:45 to go in the opening half.
The Wolf Pack increased the early lead to ten points (29-19) until back-to-back three-pointers by the Knights brought the score to 29-25 with seven minutes to go before intermission.
Griffin Jr. took flight for a reverse two-handed slam off of a lob pass by Parker to put his team back up 33-25 over the next minute of play.
Loyola saw its largest lead of the first half after a field goal by Parker brought the score to 43-28 at the 2:41 remaining in the first frame.
Despite being outscored over the final two minutes, the Wolf Pack went to the locker rooms with a 51-40 lead over Middle Georgia State.
Loyola shot a sizzling 51.4% from the floor (18-of-35) while connecting on 6-of-11 three-pointers (55%). The team also shared the ball well in the first half, handing out 12 assists on 18-made baskets.
The second half was more of the same, as Loyola capped off a 13-5 run with a bucket by Griffin Jr. The basket gave the Wolf Pack its largest lead of the game at 64-45 with 13:53 to go in the contest.
The visitors continued to battle as Roshaun Milline connected on back-to-back three-pointers to cut the lead to 11 (77-66) at the 3:13 mark of the ballgame.
Loyola managed to handle the full court pressure by the Knights over the final moments of the game and was able to hold off the late rally by the visiting team to earn a 90-76 victory at home.
The Wolf Pack bounced back in a big way on Saturday, shooting 29-of-64 (45.3%) from the field and 8-of-18 (44.4%) from beyond the arc.
Parker led five players in double figures with 22 points. Gray added 16 points and nine boards for the Wolf Pack and Robert White (JR/Los Angeles, Ca.) tallied a career-high 15 points to go along with 10 rebounds in the win.
Gray's 16 points against Middle Georgia State puts him just one point shy of 1,000 points for his career.
The Wolf Pack will be on the road as conference play continues with a matchup against Faulkner University on Jan. 7. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. in Montgomery, Ala.
