ST. LOUIS (March 6, 2020)
 
In Short
Second-seeded Loyola University Chicago (21-11) got a season-high 28 points from Keith Clemons but couldn't make an 18-point second-half lead hold up in falling to No. 7 seed Valparaiso (18-15), 74-73, in overtime tonight in a quarterfinal round contest in the Missouri Valley Conference Championship. This marks only the second time since joining the MVC that the Ramblers did not win a game at Arch Madness.
 
Head Coach Porter Moser's Throughts
"Obviously, it was a really tough loss. I've got to congratulate Valpo. They made some really, really winning plays. Free throws have been our Achilles heel all year. If it wasn't tonight, it was going to be one of these other two nights. You can't win this thing shooting 50 percent from the foul line."
 
How It Happened
A red-hot Keith Clemons helped Loyola take hold of a lead as large as 14 points in the first half. The junior guard knocked down 4 of 5 shots from behind the arc and totaled 17 points in the opening 20 minutes alone, helping fuel a Rambler offense that connected on 52 percent (13-for-25) of its field goal tries, while a stifling Loyola defense held Valpo to just 9 of 27 shooting (.333).
 
The Crusaders raced out to a quick 7-2 advantage and led 14-11 before Loyola spun off 10 straight points to grab a 21-14 lead. Five unanswered Crusaders tallies trimmed the Maroon and Gold's lead to 21-19, but Clemons drained two treys during another 10-0 spurt that extended the edge to 31-19, and Loyola took a 36-22 lead into the locker room at the half.
 
Valpo closed the gap to 38-27 in the opening minutes of the second half, but a Tom Welch triple capped a 7-0 burst that bumped the Loyola advantage to 45-27. That lead proved to not be as comfortable as it appeared, with the Crusaders assembling an 13-2 run to slice the Loyola advantage to 47-40.
 
Loyola built the lead back up to as many as 11 points, the last coming at 57-46, but Valpo closed regulation on a 22-11 run, tying the game at 68-68 on Ryan Fazekas' three with 10 seconds left to play. 
 
In overtime, a Donovan Clay basket with 1:39 remaining gave Valpo a 72-71 lead in a back-and-forth battle. After nearly 90 seconds of scoreless play, Cameron Krutwig was fouled and calmly drained a pair of free throws with 13 seconds left on the clock to put the Ramblers back on top, but Eron Gordon's layup with three second remaining provided the difference as Valpo picked up its first victory over Loyola since joining the MVC for the 2017-18 season.
 
A Look At The Numbers

• Clemons was sensational, hitting 5 of 6 threes on his way to a season-best 28 points, and in addition to adding three steals he was the lone Rambler to reach double figures in scoring.
• Krutwig finished with nine points, 11 boards and three assists, while Lucas Williamson contributed eight points and three steals and held Valpo's leading scorer, Javon Freeman-Liberty, to six points on 2 of 10 shooting.
• Loyola was done in at the foul line, where it converted just 14 of 27 attempts.
• Fazekas led Valpo with 15 points.