Box Score The Wolf Pack now has a 10-1 overall record after they took Xavier to overtime
NEW ORLEANS – The Loyola Wolf Pack's undefeated season came to an end Tuesday, losing to the Xavier Gold Rush 91-89 in overtime.
Loyola sits at 10-1 overall now and remain 2-0 in Southern States Athletic Conference play.
The Wolf Pack trailed for most of the first half, falling behind by as much as 12 points when it was 20-8 seven minutes into the contest. Loyola battled back to cut it to single digits, but the Gold Rush pushed their lead to 30-19 with six minutes left in the half.
Loyola cut Xavier's lead to 36-31 with a minute and a half to play in the first, but the home team scored the final four points to take a 40-31 lead into the locker room.
Xavier extended its lead to as much as 14 in the second half before the Wolf Pack stormed back. Loyola trailed 47-33 less than three minutes into the second, but tied the game at 51-51 with 12 minutes left in the game.
During that 18-4 run, Andrew Stagni nailed two 3-pointers off the bench, then another 3 from the freshman gave Loyola its first lead since the opening minutes, 56-54, with 10 and a half minutes left.
The two teams went back and forth for the rest of the second half with six ties and nine lead exchanges in the final 10 minutes.
Xavier held a slim 80-79 lead with 7 seconds remaining when 1-of-2 free throws pushed the advantage to two points. As Loyola pushed down the court, Tim Cameron found Terry Smith Jr. underneath for an easy game-tying basket at the buzzer to send it to overtime tied 81-81.
In overtime, neither team held a lead larger than four points, as Loyola had a chance to send it to double overtime with two final attempts at the basket. However, Xavier held on for the 91-89 win to give the Wolf Pack their first loss of the season.
Loyola will take an 18-day hiatus before its next game, as the Gold Rush will make their trip to The Den for a 4 p.m. game on Saturday, Dec. 14.
Wolf Pack Head Coach Stacy Hollowell
"Credit goes to Xavier. They had a solid plan and executed well. We dug ourselves a hole in the first half with empty possession after empty possession. We were able to fight back and make a game but didn't execute well enough to close it out. Free throws and defense have been issues for us all season but have been masked by our wins. Tonight it showed up and we didn't get the win to hide it."
Pack Facts
Zach Wrightsil tallied his seventh straight game with at least a double-double, scoring 11 points with 10 rebounds.
Myles Burns scored at least 20 points for the second time this season, leading the Wolf Pack with 23. He also had eight rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Terry Smith Jr. notched his third game this season with at least 20 points, as he was second on the team with 20 points.
Tim Cameron ties his career-high in rebounds, pulling down seven against Xavier. He's done that four times this season, too.
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