TOWSON, Md – Loyola University Maryland's Andrew Kostecka scored 20 of his career-high points in the first half as the Greyhounds built a five-point lead at the break, but Towson University's defense held Loyola to just 30.4 percent from the field in the second as the Tigers pulled away for an 85-69 victory Sunday night at SECU Arena.
 
Kostecka's 30, which also came with a team-high six rebounds and three assists, topped his previous high of 23 set just six days ago when he had 23 on Monday night at the University of Detroit Mercy.
 
He made 4 of 8 first-half 3-point attempts, and the Greyhounds had seven from behind he arc in the opening 20 minutes, but they were just 3 of 10 from deep after the break.
 
The Tigers (2-4 overall) took a 19-10 lead less than 10 minutes into the game on a Nakye Sanders jumper, but Kostecka scored 12 points during a 17-5 Loyola run. He hit a three with 6:44 to play in the first half to put Loyola in front 25-24, and he then came up with a steal that lead to a fast-break dunk at 6:27, pushing the lead to three.
 
Towson's Brian Fobbs scored on the other end, but Kostecka came back with two more, and after a Brent Holcombe steal, Kostecka fed Jaylin Andrews in transition for two, giving Loyola a 31-26 lead at 5:20.
 
A Kostecka three with just over two minutes to go, and a Chuck Champion layup with 44 seconds left in the first half, gave Loyola a pair of seven-point advantages, and it would take a 41-36 lead into the locker room at halftime.
 
Loyola maintained its lead early in the second half, and Andrews' second 3-pointer of the game pushed the advantage back to seven, 51-44, with 14:32 left in regulation.
 
Towson, however, reeled off 10 in a row with Fobbs scoring the final eight of the run. His three off a Nicholas Timberlake assist gave the Tigers a three-point lead it would not relinquish for the remainder of the contest. Fobbs scored a team-high 25 points, while Tobias Howard added 23, and Sanders scored 14 to go with nine rebounds.
 
In addition to Kostecka's 30, Champion scored 16 points and had three assists. Andrews and Kenneth Jones both scored eight points, and Jones had four assists for the Greyhounds.
 
Loyola will be back in action on Saturday, December 1, at 1 p.m. when it hosts Mount St. Mary's University in the 174^th edition of the State of Maryland's most-played rivalry. Fans can purchase tickets for the game via Ticketmaster; the Greyhounds will also host Alumni Day on Saturday with former players able to sign up for the event online.