Jan. 5, 2012

Box Score

CHICAGO - Visiting Wright State closed the game on a 15-3 run, the last two points coming on a Kim Demmings basket with four seconds left, to stun Loyola, 64-62 tonight at Gentile Arena. The loss sends the Ramblers to 6-8 (1-2 Horizon) while Wright State moves to 10-5 (3-0) with the win.

Junior Patrice King got off to a hot start, pushing Loyola into the lead early but Wright State grabbed its first lead (14-12) on a Breanna Stucke three-pointer just over seven minutes into the game. The Ramblers bounced right back and closed the half with a flourish, holding Wright State scoreless for the last 9:04 and rattling off the last 16 points of the period to take a 36-22 lead into halftime. King was terrific in the opening 20 minutes, pouring in 15 points while the Ramblers also got eight first-half points off the bench from Lyndsey Booker.

A Katie Kortekamp three-pointer just over three minutes into the second half pushed the lead to 15 (43-28) and an Abby Skube triple later kept the Rambler lead at 12 with just over 12 minutes to go. Each time Wright State made a push, Loyola had an answer. A Shaunda Sandifer basket pulled the Raiders within six but consecutive baskets from Simone Law bumped the lead back to 10 (59-49) with 5:18 on the clock. However, three quick Wright State baskets cut the LU lead to four and the Raiders eventually pulled even at 59 on two Sandifer free throws with 51 seconds left. Loyola turned it over on the ensuing possession and Courtney Boyd knocked down a three-pointer from the wing to give WSU its first lead since the 9:04 mark of the opening half. King buried her fifth trey of the game with nine seconds left to tie it but Demmings raced the length of the floor and connected on a floater for the game-winner.

King put together one of her best games of the season, finishing with 25 points (10-18 FGs, 5-7 3FGs) and seven rebounds. She was joined in double figures by Law, who tallied 12 points and nine rebounds. Loyola's defense held Wright State to just 29% shooting for the game, aided by a program-record 14 blocked shots. However, Wright State collected 21 offensive rebounds and, courtesy of Sandifer's career-high 23 boards, ended the game with a 57-48 edge on the glass.

Loyola gets right back on the floor, returning to action on Saturday with a 2 p.m. game against Detroit.