Box Score The fifth-ranked Wolf Pack needed a strong finish Thursday night to defeat Dillard on the road
NEW ORLEANS – The Loyola Wolf Pack men's basketball team faced another tough game against a crosstown rival Thursday night, as the team battled the Dillard Bleu Devils for a chance to open the season 3-0. After trailing by nine points at halftime, the Pack roared back in the second half, out-scoring their opponents by 20 points in the latter period, with a 16-6 run in the final minutes, to capture the win 85-74.
The 3-point shot was falling early on for the Wolf Pack, and Andrew Fava, Myles Burns and Brandon Davis all got shots to drop to take an 11-4 lead three minutes into the game. After Dillard cut the score to two, a drive through the lane for Fava, followed by Zach Wrightsil slamming home an offensive rebound kept Loyola ahead, 23-20. A steal-and-score by Cameron Dumas broke a 23-23 tie, but the Bleu Devils took a 26-25 lead moments later.
Jalen Golloway scored after another offensive rebound for the Wolf Pack, giving the team a 30-26 lead, but Dillard went on a 13-0 run to jump up 39-30 with 2:23 left on the clock. The Bleu Devils would go into the break with a 42-33 lead.
Davis made a 3-pointer early in the second half, but Dillard pushed its lead to 10 points, 48-48, a few minutes later. Terry Smith Jr. and Milan Mejia each scored four points in a short time span, cutting the deficit to 52-48, and two Josh Leaney free throws after that prompted a Dillard timeout with 12:30 to go. Wrightsil and Burns made back-to-back good plays on Loyola's end of the court, as Wrightsil grabbed an offensive rebound and scored then Burns scored and stole the in-bounds play, making it a 56-55 Dillard lead with eight minutes left.
Davis had back-to-back baskets right after that, driving into the lane on both scores, converting an and-1 on the latter play to tie the game, 60-60, with 6:37 on the clock. After trading made shots, Mejia's 3-pointer finally put the Wolf Pack ahead for the first time in the second half, 65-65, then they started to flex their muscle a little bit. A couple of steals by Cameron Dumas led to points, and a steal by Davis led to an alley-oop to Burns to extend Loyola's advantage to 75-68 with 1:43 left.
Davis and Dumas combined for eight of the final 10 points to help seal the win.
After playing its first three games in six days, Loyola will have to wait a week until its next game. The Wolf Pack will host No. 6 LSU Shreveport next Thursday at Devlin Fieldhouse.
Pack Facts
Loyola out-scored Dillard 52-32 in the second half. They also finished the game on a 16-6 run.
The Pack made 14-of-38 baskets (37%) in the first half and 18-of-39 (46%) in the second. Dilard's numbers changed inversely, as the Bleu Devils shot 15-for-32 (47%) in the first period and 12-for-34 (35%) in the second.
Brandon Davis led the way with a season-high 21 points. He also posted team highs with five assists, two triples, and a 5-5 performance at the charity stripe.
Zach Wrightsil collected his first double-double of the season with a 16-point, 15-rebound game. Nine of his boards were on the offensive end.
Myles Burns finished with 18 points on 8-of-16 from the floor while grabbing eight rebounds and three steals.
The Wolf Pack stole the ball 11 times against Dillard. The team has recorded double-digit steals in every game this season.
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.
