Nov. 19, 2008

Box Score

BALTIMORE - Loyola cut Towson's double-digit second half lead to two with less than three minutes to play, but the Tigers held off the charge and defeated the Greyhounds, 75-66, Wednesday evening in front of 628 fans at Reitz Arena.

Meredith Tolley took a Candice Walker pass on the left side and made a 3-pointer, cutting Towson's advantage to 66-64 with 2:56 left.

Shanae Baker-Brice, however, drove the baseline and made a layup on the ensuing possession, putting the Tigers (1-0) up five, 69-64, after making a free throw for a conventional 3-point play.

After a missed Loyola shot, Towson's Omara Parker banked in an 18-foot jumper with 1:55 left, and Baker-Brice made two free throws with 1:16 left, giving Towson a nine-point lead.

The duo each finished with 23 points to tie for game-high honors.

Loyola (1-2) fell behind early, going down 11-2 In less than 3:30, as Parker scored six of Towson's first 11.

The Greyhounds responded, however, tying the game at 31-31 on a Tolley three with 3:00 left before halftime. Melissa Bangay's free throw on Loyola's next possession gave the Greyhounds their first lead.

Siobhan Prior scored 15 of her team-high 17 points in the first half, leading the Loyola comeback.

"After starting out slowly and going down 11-2 in the first few minutes, I was happy that we fought back and stayed right with them," Head Coach Joe Logan said. "I thought that Siobhan kind of put us on her back for a while and did a good job of scoring several different ways."

Towson went up three at the half, 36-33, when Parker made a 3-pointer with 46 seconds left.

Loyola tied the game twice early in the second half, the first on an Erica DiClemente three, and the second on a DiClemente jumper with 17:20 to go.

Towson, however, socred 10 of the next 12 points to go up 52-42 on a Parker three.

Kaitlin Grant scored 12 of her 13 points in the second half, and she had 11 rebounds, tying her career-high. The double-double was the third of her career.

DIClemente scored a season-high 14 points, 10 in the second half, and added three assists, three steals and five rebounds.

Walker dished out eight assists, a new career-high.

In addition to Baker-Brice and Parker's 23, Katrina Wheeler had 18 points for the Tigers.

Loyola outrebounded Towson, 20-16, in the second half and 35-34 for the game.

"We shot pretty well tonight at 44-percent, but we have to execute better," Logan said. "We had 21 turnovers, and they made us pay for a lot of them.

"Playing quality teams like Towson are going to prepare us for a challenging (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) schedule."

Loyola continues non-conference action on Sunday, November 23, with a 12 p.m. game at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y.