CHICAGO – Loyola Chicago fell in a down-to-the-wire contest against Dayton in Gentile Saturday afternoon, 70-68. The Ramblers led by as much as 15 in the first half, but the Flyers used a 13-0 run in the second to battle back for the win.
 
Loyola falls to 5-10 overall and 1-1 in A-10 play.
 
"There are a lot of positives to come from today, but our late game execution has got to be better," said head coach Drew Valentine. "Even though we've gone 2-2 over the last four games, the team has looked and felt different. The defense has improved, our guys are making plays, and there's a sense of urgency. We look more like the team we thought we'd see at the beginning of the season."
 
How It Happened
Loyola scored the first five points of the game before Dayton took off on a 9-0 run to capture an early lead just 3:30 into the game. Alexander Richardson cut inside for a dunk over a defender while Xavier Amos tied it 9-9 just after the 16-minute media timeout.
 
The Ramblers built their lead to double-figures on a 13-0 run that stretched over a five-minute scoreless Dayton drought. Joshua Ola-Joseph, Justin Moore, and Kayde Dotson had three consecutive threes to cap the run and put Loyola up by 11. The Ramblers kept their foot on the gas and went up by 15 on a put-back dunk by Kyman Houinsou with 2:18 to play. The Flyers scored the final seven points of the half to get within eight. Loyola led at the break, 39-31.
 
The second half started in a back-and-forth battle, and the Flyers couldn't get closer than six in the opening 10 minutes. Loyola had back-to-back jumpers in the paint from Miles Rubin and Moore that pushed the lead back to 12 by the 11:15 mark. The lead would stay north of 10 until the Flyers used a 13-0 run to tie the game 63-63 with 3:38 to play.
 
Loyola held on to the lead until Dayton went up by one with just under 30 seconds to play. Houinsou converted two late free throws to knot the game one more time with eight seconds on the clock, but Javon Bennett drove in for the final basket of the game to seal the Dayton win, 70-68.
 
Inside the Box Score
- Moore led Loyola with 19 points on 8-16 from the field. He hit three from deep and added two rebounds and five assists.
- Dotson extended his double-figure scoring streak to seven straight games with 16 points on 6-16 from the field and four threes. Dotson tallied four rebounds and two assists.
- Rubin notched a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. He blocked four shots.
- Loyola dominated the glass, 43-28. The Ramblers turned 16 offensive boards into 11 points.
- The Ramblers shot only five free throws to Dayton's 25.
 
Up Next
Loyola stays at home to open next week. The Ramblers will play Davidson on Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. CT.