BROOKLYN, N.Y. (March 7, 2023)
 
In Short…
Loyola University Chicago's (10-21) inaugural season in the Atlantic 10 Conference came to an end Tuesday (March 7) afternoon as Loyola dropped a 72-67 decision to Saint Joseph's in the opening round of the 2023 Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball Championship inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
 
Four Ramblers scored in double figures, led by Philip Alston's double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. For Alston, it marks his third double-double of the year and fifth game with 10 or more rebounds. Braden Norris nearly notched a double-double, finishing with 13 points and eight assists. Ben Schwieger added 12 and Sheldon Edwards scored 10 for Loyola.
 
The 15^th-seeded Ramblers quickly erased a six-point halftime deficit and briefly led in the second half before a run by 10^th-seeded Saint Joseph's put the Hawks back in front. A Norris 3-pointer with 1:02 left pulled Loyola within a pair but the team was unable to get any closer at the competing the comeback.
 
How It Happened
Saint Joseph's built an early 15-13 lead behind the strength of the 3-pointer. Four of the Hawks' first six shots were from long distance, including a trio by Lynn Greer III. It was a 3-pointer from Philip Alston that pulled Loyola within two at the 10:50 mark, giving the junior a team-leading five points over the first 9+ minutes.
 
The Hawks built the lead to as many as 11 in the first half, but Loyola slowly started to chip away at the lead in the closing minutes. Over the final 5:02, the Ramblers outscored Saint Joseph's by 9-4 margin to pull within six at the halftime break. Marquise Kennedy converted a layup, Philip Alston hit two from the line, Braden Norris knocked down a jumper and Sheldon Edwards ended the first-half scoring with a triple as Saint Joseph's took a 33-27 lead into the break.
 
Despite Saint Joseph's cooling off from the arc, eight of the Hawks' 11 first-half field goals came from long distance. Alston led the Ramblers in the opening half with a team-high nine points while Ben Schwieger had seven.
 
Back-to-back triples by Norris and Schwieger to open the second half immediately pulled Loyola level at 33-all. Alston converted an old-fashioned 3-point play at the 15:52 mark to give the Ramblers the 38-36 lead, the team's first lead since the 18:31 mark of the first half.
 
After Saint Joseph's pushed the lead to six, four consecutive free throws from Alston pulled Loyola within two with 11:23 to play. An ensuing 11-3 Hawks run would give Saint Joseph's a 59-50 lead with 7:50 left in the game.
 
The Saint Joseph's lead would grow to 10 with 4:12 to play before the Ramblers looked to come back in the contest. Loyola would slowly chip away at the deficit, with Norris knocking down a triple with 1:02 to play to make it a two-point game at 68-66, but Loyola was unable to get any closer as the Hawks closed out the game.
 
Inside The Box Score

• Norris finished with a season-high eight assists in the game. It was a perfect night leading the offense for Norris as he finished with no turnovers.
• Alston ends his season having scored 10 or more points in 25-of-31 games.
• After making eight 3-pointers in the first half, Loyola limited Saint Joseph's to 2-for-11 shooting from distance in the final 20 minutes.
• Alston notched his third double-double of the year and fifth game with 10 or more rebounds with a team-leading 10 against the Hawks.