Box Score The Wolf Pack saw their second-half lead vanish, but they only allowed the Crusaders to score three points in the final five minutes Saturday
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The No. 17 Loyola Wolf Pack saw all five starters play at least 36 minutes in a 69-63 win over William Carey Saturday. Each of those five starters - Josh Leaney, Matt Maturah, Zach Wrightsil, Tensley Aldridge and Myles Burns - scored in double figures as well, as the Wolf Pack earned their sixth conference win.
They currently sit in third place with a 6-3 Southern States Athletic Conference record with a 16-5 overall mark.
Josh Leaney made his first 2-of-3 tries from the 3-point line in the first seven minutes of the game, helping the Wolf Pack to a 10-5 lead. A 2-point field goal, a 3 by Tensley Aldridge and another 3-pointer by Leaney extended Loyola's advantage to 18-8 halfway through the first half.
The Wolf Pack held a 10-point lead at four different points of the first 20 minutes, and their largest lead came when Burns scored with four minutes left to take a 29-17 lead. The Crusaders fought back to cut it to 33-26 by halftime, though.
The second half was a tale of two halves, as Loyola led by as many as 11 points early on only to see the lead disappear with eight minutes to go. Leaney, Maturah and Andrew Stagni hit triples in the first eight minutes, but it wasn't enough to keep the lead. Trailing 38-27, William Carey outscored the Pack 33-15 during the next 11 minutes to grab control of the game 60-53.
Loyola, however, only allowed the Crusaders to make one of their last six shots, as the Pack closed the game on a 16-3 run. William Carey's lone field goal during that stretch cut Loyola's lead to 64-63 with two minutes to go, but Maturah and Leaney made two free throws each and Wrightsil came up with a big basket to finish off the Crusaders.
Next up for the Wolf Pack is a trip to Brewton-Parker on Thursday, as tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
Wolf Pack Head Coach Stacy Hollowell
"Really proud of our guys for staying focused and playing through some adversity. We had five guys play big minutes tonight. We went down by seven points late in the second half, and our guys' character and resolve pulled them through."
Pack Facts
Myles Burns had his fourth game of the season with at least six steals Saturday, and that allowed him to move up in the Loyola record book. He jumped up two spots to fifth in Loyola history with 144 career steals, and after breaking the single-season school record with 85 steals as a freshman, he's now third in the record book with 59 steals as a sophomore.
Burns is now second in the NAIA with those 59 steals, one behind the top spot, and he leads the country with a 3.47-steals-per-game average.
Zach Wrightsil also made some moves in the program's record book. With five assists, he now has 232 for his career and that puts him at seventh all-time. The sophomore also pulled down 10 rebounds, giving him 461 for his career and moving him into the Top 10 in the Loyola record book.
Both Burns and Wrightsil had double-doubles as well, as it was Burns' fifth of the season while Wrightsil now has eight.
Josh Leaney continues to be effective from the 3-point line, making 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. He's now 16-for-28 (57 percent) from 3 this season. He also led the Wolf Pack with 15 points, a new career-high.
Matt Maturah notched his fourth straight double-digit game, scoring 14 Saturday.
You can keep up with the Pack by following Wolf Pack Athletics on Facebook at Facebook.com/LoyolaWolfPack, Twitter and Instagram @LoyolaWolfPack, and by checking out our website at LoyolaWolfPack.com.
