Box Score The 22nd-ranked Loyola Wolf Pack started Southern States Athletic Conference play with a win at Middle Georgia State Thursday
COCHRAN, Ga. – The No. 22 Loyola Wolf Pack women's basketball team needed a strong second half to take down Middle Georgia State Thursday, and that's exactly what they got in the final 20 minutes. In both teams' Southern States Athletic Conference opener, the Wolf Pack defeated the Knights 61-44 after outsourcing MGA 38-17 in the second half.
Loyola's 38 points in the third and fourth quarters easily exceeded the team's first-half performance of 23 points, and the Wolf Pack defense held Middle Georgia State to single digits in both frames of the second half.
The Pack is back on the court Saturday in Mount Vernon, Georgia, to take on SSAC foe Brewton-Parker (5-1), which defeated William Carey Thursday to start league play. Tip-off is scheduled for 11 a.m. CST.
After two made free throws by Tera Snell to get Loyola's scoring started, Kennedy Hansberry got on the board with a 3-pointer to tie the game early, 5-5. Another Hansberry score put the Wolf Pack up 9-7 with four minutes to go in the first quarter, as the two teams were tied at 13-13 after the first 10 minutes of play.
Loyola had trouble scoring consistently in the second quarter, falling behind 23-16 with three and a half minutes to play, but free throws by Tay Cannon and a 3-pointer from Sydni Tangle helped keep the team in the game. Kate Petrovic cut the deficit to 25-23 before the Knights went into the locker room with a 27-23 lead.
The momentum shifted midway through the third quarter with the Wolf Pack outsourcing Middle Georgia 16-8 in the frame to take a four-point lead into the final 10 minutes of play. Tangle got things started in the second half by assisting Cannon on a fastbreak, which would be a theme in the quarter, to cut MGA's lead to 27-25 less than a minute into the third. Hansberry gave Loyola a brief lead, 28-27, then she gave the Pack the lead for good, 34-33, with four minutes left in the frame after pulling down a rebound and quickly running the floor to score. Liz Critton and Cannon both added fastbreak scores in the final 1:38 to take a 39-25 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Pack extended the lead in the fourth, scoring 22 more points to run away from the Knights. Hansberry kept the lead at four, 41-37, then Sandra Cannady and Thomas combined for the next 13 points to help push the advantage to double digits, 54-41, with 3:02 to play. Thomas hit a 3-pointer during that run, and Tangle added another with 2:28 to play, 57-41, to really put the game away.
Pack Facts
After shooting 5-for-18 (28 percent) in the first half, the Wolf Pack was 15-for-33 (46 percent) in the second half.
Loyola's bench outscored Middle Georgia State 26-10 in Thursday's contest. The Wolf Pack also performed better in the paint, scoring 24 points to MGA's 10.
Kennedy Hansberry and Taylor Thomas each had a team-high 13 points, a season-high for Thomas and the third straight game with at least 13 points for Hansberry.
Tay Cannon led the Wolf Pack with eight rebounds, and she's had at least six rebounds in all three games so far 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.
