Feb. 10, 2011
Box Score
CHICAGO - Lisa Samplawski came off the bench to deliver a career high 23 points and Loyola's reserves accounted for 36 total points as the Ramblers raced past Milwaukee, 89-74, this evening at the Gentile Center. The Ramblers move back to the .500 mark (11-11, 5-6 Horizon) with their second-straight win while Milwaukee slumps to 9-14 (6-6) with the loss.
"I thought we played great team basketball tonight," said head coach Eric Simpson. "We got tremendous contributions from a lot of different players and our bench really gave us a big lift."
The game was played at a fast pace from the opening tip and consecutive three-pointers helped the visitors jump out to a 14-10 lead just over six minutes into the game. Three-pointers from Brittany Boeke and Monica Albano helped close the gap to one and an Albano pull-up gave the Ramblers their first lead (20-19) at the 10:20 mark. Lindsey Sebetic capped a 7-0 LU run with a basket to give the home team a 33-26 lead and Samplawski capped off a sizzling opening half with a three-pointer in the waning seconds to send the Ramblers to the locker room with a 47-38 lead. The junior from Portage, Ind. was on fire in the period, knocking down all five of her shots, including three from downtown, and tied her career-best for a game with 13 points.
Abby Skube scored the first basket of the second half to give Loyola its first double-digit lead of the game and a Katie Kortekamp triple capped a half-opening 9-2 run that made it a 56-40 game with 15:53 left to play. Samplawski continued to impress, drilling another shot to give LU a 67-50 lead but UWM battled back, using a 14-5 run to get within eight (72-64) with 5:31 on the clock. However, Albano knocked down a big three-pointer to stem the tide and the Panthers would get no closer than nine points the rest of the way.
Samplawski needed just eight field goal attempts to earn her 23 points, finishing 7-of-8 from the floor, 4-of-4 from downtown and 5-of-6 from the line. Albano added 20 points of her own, her ninth game of 20+ points this season, while Boeke (16 points, four blocks) and Troy Hambric (career-high 13 points) also reached double figures.
"When we move the ball like we did tonight and take care of the basketball like we did tonight (eight turnovers), we can score some points," continued Simpson. "Lisa works hard every day in practice and she really stepped up scoring the ball for us tonight. Troy has played well the last few games and it was nice to see her have a real breakout game. We will need to do the same kinds of things well on Saturday against a good Green Bay squad."
In fact, Samplawski and Hambric combined for all 36 LU bench points, shooting 13-of-15 from the floor. Lindsay Laur finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds to lead Milwaukee.
Loyola returns to action on Saturday afternoon when the Ramblers battle No. 18/16 Green Bay. Tip time is scheduled for 12:30 p.m.
