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CHICAGO - For the second time in as many games, Loyola found itself in a big first-half hole and could not recover as it fell to No. 19/21 Michigan State, 90-38, this afternoon at Gentile Arena. The Spartans improve to 6-2 with the win, while the Ramblers drop to 2-6.

The visitors from East Lansing, Mich. jumped out to an early 7-2 advantage with just under four minutes gone. A Taylor Johnson jumper put the Maroon & Gold back to within three (9-6) at the 15:12 mark of the half. Following another Johnson score with 13:33 left that cut the deficit to four (12-8), Loyola went cold, managing only three points over a nine-minute span, as the Spartans took off on a 20-3 run to take a commanding 37-11 lead with 4:33 remaining. Becca Smith's bucket with 4:25 to play broke a six-minute field goal drought for the Ramblers but Michigan State refused to take its foot of the gas, as the Spartans raced into the locker room with a 48-15 halftime lead.

As was the case in last Sunday's matchup with Northwestern, Loyola struggled to find its footing in the opening stanza. The Ramblers shot just a notch above 21% (6-of-28) from the field, while the Spartans operated at nearly a 50% clip (17-of-35). Johnson led Loyola with eight points during the first half. Tori Jankoska and Becca Mills paced the Michigan State attack with 12 points and 10 points, respectively.

Loyola came out fighting in the second half but had little success in putting a dent in its deficit. Smith's score with 18:29 to play chipped the Michigan State lead back down to 31 (52-21) but that proved to be as close as the Ramblers could get for the remainder of the afternoon. Back-to-back jumpers from Lexi Gussert pushed the Spartans' lead to the 40-point plateau (66-26) for the first time with just a tick under 12 minutes to play. The nationally ranked Spartans coasted to the finish line from there en route to their sixth victory of the season.

Johnson finished with 14 points to lead the Ramblers on the offensive end of the floor. The redshirt sophomore out of Frankfort, Ill. also came away with five steals. Ryaen Johnson pulled down a team-high six rebounds. Four Spartans reached double figures in scoring, led by Smith's game-high 22 points. Aerial Powers notched a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds.

The Ramblers will be back in action on Wednesday morning when city-rival No. 24/25 DePaul makes the short trip up from Lincoln Park. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m. from inside Gentile Arena.