CHICAGO (January 31, 2021) –
 
In Short…
Led by a game-high 19 points from Ellie Rice and another swarming defensive showing, Loyola University Chicago completed a weekend sweep of visiting Southern Illinois (5-7, 2-5 MVC) this afternoon, picking up a 55-46 win inside Gentile Arena.  Winners of five of their last six games, the Ramblers now sit at 7-4 overall and have matched the program's best seven-game start to a Missouri Valley Conference slate, moving to 5-2 in league play following today's win.
 
Head Coach Kate Achter's Thoughts…
"It was a great weekend for my team.  I'm really proud of their toughness.  Southern Illinois is a really gritty, physical, and tough basketball team.  I thought we matched them and today in the fourth quarter, I thought we exceeded them.  We still have areas for improvement, but all wins are good wins."
 
How It Happened
Loyola got off to a slow start, digging itself into an early 7-2 hole following a Rachel Pudlowski three just over two minutes in.  The Ramblers found their footing in the ensuing minutes, using a 6-0 spurt that included buckets from Julia Hoefling and Rice to pull in front, 8-7.  A conventional three-point play by Rice with three seconds remaining pushed Loyola out to a 12-9 lead as the Maroon & Gold held the Salukis to one make over their last nine attempts in the first quarter.
 
The Ramblers pushed the lead to eight, 17-9, on a corner triple by Maya Chandler with 6:49 to go in the first half.  An Adrianna Katcher layup shortly after snapped a stretch that saw Southern Illinois go scoreless for over six minutes, trimming the margin to 17-11.  With the lead sitting at 19-11 after a Sam Galanopoulos layup, Payton McCallister connected on a three that sparked an 8-0 Saluki surge that pulled the visitors level at 19-19 with 2:11 remaining.  Loyola again closed the quarter with a strong defensive effort, keeping Southern Illinois off the board for the rest of the half, as scores from Bre Hampton-Bey and Alexis Meyer sent the Ramblers into the locker room with a 23-19 lead.
 
After seeing the Salukis close within 25-24, Rice erupted for seven of Loyola's next nine points, the last two of which gave Loyola its largest lead of the day, 34-24, with 3:15 remaining in the third quarter.  Southern Illinois refused to go away, with post scores from Abby Brockmeyer and Gabby Walker trimming the margin to 38-33 heading to the fourth quarter.
 
Rice came up big again just past the midway point of the final frame, drilling her second trey of the day to put Loyola in front by seven, 44-37, and force a Saluki timeout.  Jala Johnson effectively put the game out of reach shortly after, rattling off six straight points over a 1:20 span to push the gap to 50-40.  As was the case in Saturday's victory, Loyola closed the show from the free throw line, connecting on five of its six attempts from the charity stripe in the final minute to pick up its second win in as many days.
 
Inside The Box Score
- Rice finished just a point off her career high with her aforementioned 19-point output (7-13 FGs, 2-5 3FGs, 3-3 FTs).  The senior guard continued her standout work on the defensive end, holding Makenzie Silvey, who entered the week averaging a team-high 13.4 points, to just eight points (3-10 FGs, 2-5 3FGs) in addition to collecting a pair of steals.
- Kat Nolan corralled a season-high eight rebounds, while Johnson finished the day with a team-best three takeaways to go along with six points (3-3 FGs).
- Southern Illinois shot only 34.6 percent (18-for-52) as Loyola held an opponent below 40 percent from the field for a third-straight game and fifth time over its last six contests.
- Brockmeyer recorded a double-double (14 points, 13 rebounds) to pace the Salukis.
 
Up Next
Loyola is back at Gentile Arena next weekend, February 5-6, to host Drake as it closes out a four-game homestand.  Both matchups against the Bulldogs are slated to tip-off at 6 p.m.