NEW ORLEANS – The Loyola University New Orleans women's basketball team made it a perfect 2-0 week in The Den on Saturday with a 74-51 win over Thomas University (Ga.). The win moves the Wolf Pack's winning streak to 16 games, but more importantly, Loyola is now 20-2 overall and 12-1 in Southern States Athletic Conference play.
With four games left in the regular season, Loyola has two road SSAC matchups next week. First, it'll travel to Mobile on Thursday before a road trip to Montgomery, Alabama, to play Faulkner on Saturday.
The Wolf Pack defense was strong in the early stretch, not allowing a single field goal in the first six minutes of the game. By that point, Loyola led 8-1 thanks to four points from Deniya Thornton. Alissa O'Dell finished the first quarter with a team-high nine points to help make it a 20-10 lead after 10 minutes of play.
The second quarter was much closer, but the Pack held the 31-23 advantage by halftime. O'Dell scored five points to lead Loyola in the frame, as Thornton, Tiara McPipe, and SeQuoia Carroll also contributed in the quarter.
Carroll and O'Dell both hit 3s to start the second half on a good note, 37-23, then O'Dell 1,000 career point came a minute later, 40-25. Madi Walters got on the board and O'Dell scored five more points before Carroll drained another 3, 50-32, near the midway mark of the third quarter. Neither team scored much in the final few minutes of the frame, as Loyola led 54-38 heading to the fourth quarter.
Loyola continued to extend its advantage over the Nighthawks in the fourth, getting scores by Ava Shields, Caitlin Travis and Kaylee Dublin. The highlight came around the two-minute mark when Thornton drained a 3-pointer to give her 1,000 career points as well.
Pack Facts
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Loyola's 16-game winning streak matches the best streak in program history. The Pack also had 16-game win streaks in the 2022-23, 2020-21 and 2007-08 seasons.
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Alissa O'Dell led all scorers with 26 points on 9-of-11 shooting, adding 12 rebounds for her eighth double-double of the season and 15th of her career.
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O'Dell surpassed the 1,000-point mark in the game and is now at 1,008 points in her collegiate career.
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Deniya Thornton was second on the team in scoring with 14 points, also reaching the 1,000-point mark in the game. She added three steals and two blocks defensively.
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Tiara McPipe put up 12 points and 10 rebounds, collecting her first double-double of the year.
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SeQuoia Carroll also scored 12 points, going a perfect 2-of-2 from the three-point line. She also contributed six rebounds and two steals.
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