Loyola drops close contest with Dalton State

NEW ORLEANS – The Loyola Wolf Pack men's basketball team kept things close on the road against the Dalton State Roadrunners, but ultimately fell 65-63 Thursday night. Loyola (7-15, 6-9 SSAC) will look to bounce back in another road matchup with Life University on Saturday at 12 p.m. CST. 

Loyola played the Roadrunners well in a tightly contested first half, with the first 20 minutes featuring six ties and 13 lead changes. Julian Baldwin got the game's scoring started with a free throw almost two minutes in. Milan Mejia and Baldwin hit back-to-back shots a few minutes later, and a free throw and jumper by Braelee Albert tied things at 8-8. Albert dished it to Leonard Jackson for his first three-pointer of the game, then Jackson found Alex Hammond for another triple to put the Wolf Pack up 14-12. 

Hammond would score nine points in the opening half, but it was a close game the whole way, with Loyola's largest lead of the half at two points. Dalton State took a 33-32 lead into the break. 

The Roadrunners started to gain control in the second half, building a lead as large as seven points at 48-41, but Mejia kept the Wolf Pack in the game, putting up 12 points in the first nine minutes after halftime. Hammond got into double figures with a make at the 6:25 mark to get Loyola within one point at 50-49. Afterwards, the Roadrunners hit enough free throws to keep their lead intact for the remainder of the game. Dalton missed two attempts at the stripe to give the Pack one last chance, but a turnover in the final seconds ended Loyola's chances. 

Pack Facts

• Milan Mejia had one of his best scoring games of the season, shooting 8-of-11 from the field and 3-of-6 from long range to finish with 22 points, plus five rebounds and a game-high three steals. 

• Alex Hammond and Leonard Jackson were both in double figures with 11 points apiece. 

• Zachary Lee continued his recent active rebounding stretch, finishing with 10 for the game. It was his fifth straight game grabbing at least 10 boards.