EVANSVILLE, Ind. (January 10, 2020)

In Short…
Abby O'Connor and Allison Day both recorded double-double performances as Loyola University Chicago battled past Evansville (3-11, 0-3 MVC) by a final score of 71-61 this evening at Meeks Family Fieldhouse in Evansville, Ind.  Tonight's victory, which sees Loyola improve to 11-3 overall and 2-1 in Missouri Valley Conference action, keeps the Ramblers perfect on the road, moving the Maroon & Gold to a spotless 7-0 away from Gentile Arena.
 
How It Happened
Ellie Rice connected on a corner three just over two minutes in that gave Loyola a 5-4 advantage.  A scoreless drought of nearly three minutes followed, with both teams struggling to settle into a rhythm on the offensive end.  Evansville would open up its largest lead of the night after Sydney Tucker drained a contested triple to give the hosts a 14-9 edge, but Loyola never let the Purple Aces run away, pulling back within one, 16-15, following two Day free throws in the closing seconds of the first quarter.
 
Loyola's bench looked to provide a spark early on in the second frame, with back-to-back layups from Jala Johnson and Kat Nolan giving the Ramblers a 19-18 edge.  Following an Anna Newman finish inside that pulled the Purple Aces level at 23-23, the Maroon & Gold would lock in defensively over the final 3:06 of the first half, holding Evansville scoreless as a Sam Galanopoulos score capped off a quarter-ending 7-0 run that sent Loyola into halftime with a 30-23 lead.
 
Day converted in the paint just 17 seconds out of the intermission, pushing the margin to 32-23.  Evansville battled back to within three at 35-32 before O'Connor responded with a conventional three-point play to stretch the lead to six, 38-32, nearing the midway point of the quarter.  After a Kat Nolan layup upped the gap to 42-33, Evansville connected from distance on three separate occasions over the final 2:56 of the third quarter to climb back within four, 49-45.
 
O'Connor snapped a nearly four-minute scoreless stretch for the Maroon & Gold with a key triple at the 6:08 mark of the fourth quarter, extending Loyola's lead to five, 52-47.  Janae Gonzales added a trey of her own just over a minute later to push the margin back out to eight, 55-47, but the Purple Aces refused to go quietly, again closing to within four following a Newman three-point field goal with only 3:20 remaining.  O'Connor put away any hopes of a comeback by the hosts in the ensuing minutes, rattling off five straight points to stretch the lead again to nine, 64-55.  Loyola went on to put away the game from the free throw line down the stretch, securing its sixth straight win over Evansville.
 
Inside The Box Score
- After being limited to just two points in the first half, O'Connor erupted for 19 points over the final 20 minutes to finish with a game-high 21 points (7-13 FGs, 3-5 3FGS, 4-5 FTs).  O'Connor, who also collected 12 rebounds in addition to two assists, a block, and a steal, is now just 16 points shy of reaching the 1,000-point mark for her career.
- Day, who finished with 12 points in the first half, closed the night with 16 points (6-10 FGs, 4-4 FTs), 10 rebounds, and a block.
- O'Connor and Day are the first Ramblers to post double-doubles in the same game since both members of the duo accomplished the feat back on February 3, 2019 against Bradley.
- Tiara Wallace handed out a game-best eight assists, one off her career high, as part of a seven-point (2-7 FGs, 3-6 FTs), five-rebound effort.
- Loyola controlled the battle on the glass, outrebounding Evansville by a season-high tying +28 margin (55-27).  Included in that dominant showing were 18 offensive rebounds, also matching a season high.
- Newman led Evansville with 17 points (7-10 FGs, 2-2 3FGs, 1-5 FTs).
 
Up Next
Loyola heads north to Terre Haute, Ind. on Sunday afternoon for a 1 p.m. (CT) tip-off against Indiana State inside the Hulman Center.