Box Score Loyola was unable to pull off the upset, as they fall to the Dalton State Roadrunners on Thursday night.
The Loyola University New Orleans Wolf Pack men's basketball team were looking to build on a two-game winning streak as they were welcomed into Bandy Gymnasium for a matchup against the No. 4 Dalton State Roadrunners on Thursday evening.
Revenge was also on Loyola's mind, as the road squad hoped to avenge a 68-100 defeat at home to the Roadrunners on Dec. 29.
The Wolf Pack would hold a slight advantage down the stretch but were unable to hold on as they fell to the Roadrunners 77-74.
Loyola drops to 14-8 overall and 7-6 in Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) games.
Dalton State scored the first points of the ballgame to take the lead in the early stages of the game. The Wolf Pack responded with a bucket by two-time SSAC Player of the Week Johnny Griffin Jr. (SR/Chicago, IL.) to knot the game at 2-2.
Over the next 13 minutes of play, the road team found themselves trailing their conference rivals 31-15 at the 6:58 mark of the opening half.
But Loyola would need a run of their own, turning key turnovers by the Roadrunners into points to get within single digits (36-27) at the 1:47 mark of the opening half.
Tough Wolf Pack defense once again forced another turnover, leading to the fastbreak by the road team. Griffin Jr. was unable to convert the layup but Parker followed up the miss with a putback layup to draw within five (36-31) with only 35 seconds to play until halftime.
The score remained the same with the Wolf Pack heading into the locker room with only a five-point deficit.
The Wolf Pack shot just 13-of-33 (39.3%) from the floor, including 0-8 from beyond the arc.
Parker led his team with 10 points on 4-of-9 (44.4%) shooting in the opening half.
Loyola opened the second half with some much needed momentum. Back-to-back three pointers by Tre'Von Jasmine (SO/Edgard, La.) tied the game at 45-45 with 13:24 to play in the contest.
The combination of Isaiah Box and Mike Harden put the Roadrunners back up four over the next 60 seconds of play.
The Wolf Pack continued to chip away, as a free throw by Parker tied the game once again at 55-55. Griffin Jr. gave Loyola its first lead of the contest as he poked the ball free for the steal and took it the distance for the lay in to put his team on top 57-55 with 8:38 remaining.
Loyola led 62-59 until a layup followed by a three-point play opportunity by Harden put Dalton State back on top 64-62 over the next five minutes of action.
The Wolf Pack found themselves trailing the Roadrunners 74-67 with 47 seconds to play down the stretch. But the road team refused to go away as Jalen Gray (SR/New Orleans, La.) knocked down a three pointer to narrow the deficit to just four (74-70).
In spite of the comeback effort, Dalton State was able to hold on and defeat Loyola 77-74 in Bandy Gymnasium.
Loyola shot well from the floor in the second half and connected on 27-of-57 (47.3%) from the floor for the game. Conversely, the team shot just 4-of-19 (20.5%) from the three-point line in the contest.
Both teams recorded a combined 48 giveaways in Thursday night's matchup.
Griffin Jr. led the way for the Wolf Pack once again with 24 points and 12 boards in the losing effort. Parker added 17 points on 7-of-17 shooting (41.1%) and had three steals in the game.
Isaiah Box and Mike Harden both led the way for Dalton State with 23 and 16 points, respectively.
The Wolf Pack will continue its Georgia road trip with a matchup against Middle Georgia State on Feb. 4.
Saturday's game is set to tip-off at 4:30 p.m.
