The Matchup
- Loyola continues South division play with a weekend series against American, as the Greyhounds travel to Washington, D.C. on Saturday and host the Eagles at 1 p.m. Sunday (2/19 Update: Sunday's game has been moved to 12 p.m., and it will be broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network).
- Loyola is currently three games behind both American and Navy in the division standings with four games left in the regular season. The top two teams in the three-team division will automatically advance to the Patriot League tournament.
Last Weekend
- Facing off against Navy for the first time this season, Loyola dropped a 69-60 decision at Reitz Arena on Saturday and saw a late rally come up short in a 50-46 setback in Annapolis the following afternoon.
- Isabella Therien totaled a season-high 21 points on Saturday while hitting 4 of 6 attempts from 3-point range. She added another 17 points on Sunday, and is now tied for ninth in the Patriot League at 13.0 points per game on the year.
- Charia Roberts set season-highs in points (7), rebounds (8) and minutes played (20) for the Greyhounds on Sunday.
- Loyola forced 33 Navy turnovers and limited the Mids to 17.9% shooting (7 for 39) from 3-point range over the weekend.
- Trailing by 14 points with less than five minutes remaining on Sunday, Loyola used a 14-2 run to get within 48-46, but a defensive stop and two late free throws allowed Navy to seal the win.
Senior Day
- Loyola seniors Delaney Connolly and Isabella Therien will be recognized in a pregame ceremony on Sunday for their many contributions to the program.
- The pair has combined for over 100 starts and 1,300 points during their collegiate careers.
- Academically, Connolly became the program's first Patriot League Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year last winter, and she maintains a 3.96 GPA while majoring in chemistry. A business administration major, Therien has posted 4.0 GPA's in each of the last two semesters and has a cumulative 3.73 average.
Series History
- American leads 24-7 in a series which dates back to 1977.
- The Eagles swept the first two meetings this year, outscoring Loyola 20-8 in the fourth quarter of a 64-45 victory at Reitz on Jan.23, and winning the rematch in DC by a 67-58 final the following afternoon.
- Emily McAteer and Taleah Dixon averaged a team-high 10.5 ppg in the first two contests. The Greyhounds were limited to 20.5% shooting (8 for 39) from 3-point range.
- Loyola's last win at Bender Arena was a 55-50 triumph on Feb. 27, 2016.
Scouting American
- American will be playing its first two games since its victories over Loyola on Jan. 23-24. The Eagles and Navy are currently tied atop the Patriot League South standings with identical 3-1 division records.
- Jade Edwards, a Second Team All-Patriot League honoree last season, was named PL Player of the Week on Jan. 12 after setting career-highs in points (31), rebounds (13) and steals (5) during a defeat at Lehigh. She leads the Patriot League with 3.5 steals per game on the year.
- Karla Vres totaled 26 points, seven rebounds and six blocks across the first two games against the Greyhounds in January.
Quick Notes
- Loyola's team FT percentage of 78.1 ranks third in the Patriot League and 17th overall in Division I. Taleah Dixon leads the team in FT attempts, and she is shooting 78.3% (18-23) through the season's first eight games.
- The Greyhounds struggled in the third quarter last weekend, as they were outscored 36-18 by the Mids across the two contests. Loyola outscored Navy by a combined 88-83 margin in the other three quarters.
- Loyola's 10-point lead over Navy during the first half last Saturday (22-12 with 6:37 left in the 2Q) was its largest of the season.
- Laryn Edwards made her first start of the season on Saturday, totaling a season-high eight points while hitting 5 of 6 free throw attempts.
- Caramina Tañedo scored a season-high six points off the bench at Lafayette, hitting 2 of 3 attempts from 3-point range. She has shot 50.0% (4 for 8) from long distance in the past three games.
- In the first six weekends of the 2021 season, the Greyhounds only played their scheduled opponent once (American on Jan. 23-24) due to COVID-19 issues in opposing teams' TIer 1 groups.
Therien Continues Offensive Surge
- Isabella Therien's offensive numbers have steadily risen since she made her season debut against American on Jan. 23. She has reached double figures in each of the past four games, highlighted by her 21-point effort vs. Navy last Saturday.
- Therien has now totaled 20+ points on nine occasions in her collegiate career.
- In addition to her scoring, Therien is tied for the team lead in steals (9) and she is second in rebounding (5.5 rpg). She is also shooting 76.5% (13 for 17) from the free throw line.
- The 2018 Patriot League Rookie of the Year, Therien averaged 14.9 points per game across her first two seasons at Loyola.
McAteer Continues to Fill Stat Sheet
- Emily McAteer has now reached double figures in six of Loyola's eight games on the year after her 12-point effort at Navy on Sunday.
- McAteer has started all eight games for the Greyhounds while averaging 30.3 minutes per contest. She ranks second on the team in scoring (11.1 ppg), and leads the way in rebounding (6.1 rpg), 3-pointers made (13), 3-point FG% (38.2, 13-34) and blocks (9).
- McAteer's 1.1 blocks per game are tied for fourth among Patriot League defenders. She has totaled four blocks in the past three games.
- McAteer was a Patriot League All-Rookie Team selection last winter after averaging 7.6 points and 5.5 rebounds in Loyola's 18 conference games.
Cutting Down on Giveaways
- Loyola has committed 14 or fewer turnovers in each of the past four games, including a season-low of eight in a Jan. 30 matchup with Lafayette.
- For the season, Loyola now has a positive turnover margin of +0.5, which ranks fifth among Patriot League schools.
- Defense played a key role in Loyola's late comeback attempt at Navy on Sunday, as the Greyhounds forced 16 giveaways and had a 22-13 advantage in points off turnovers.
Patriot League Announces Format Changes for 2020-21 Season
- In response to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, the Patriot League has instituted several changes to the basketball schedule for this season, including the separation of schools into three divisions to limit team travel. Loyola is grouped with American and Navy in the newly-created South division.
- Loyola's first four matchups against both American and Navy will count in the divisional standings, which will be used to determine seeding in this year's conference tournament.
- Eight teams will qualify for the conference tournament, rather than the usual 10. Winners of each division will be seeded 1-3, while second-place teams will be seeded 4-6. The final two spots will be awarded based on overall win percentage against PL opponents.
Patriot League Begins Partnership with ESPN+
- The Patriot League announced in September a multi-year agreement which makes ESPN+ the exclusive digital home for the conference's sporting events, beginning with the 2020-21 academic year.
- All Loyola women's basketball games this season will be available on ESPN+, which can be purchased for either $5.99 a month or $49.99 annually. Fans can also subscribe to ESPN+ as part of the Disney Bundle, which includes Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu (ad-supported) for just $12.99/month.
- More information regarding how to watch the Greyhounds on ESPN+ is available HERE.
Looking Ahead
- Loyola concludes the regular season with two more games against Navy, traveling to Annapolis on Saturday and hosting the Mids at 5 p.m. on Sunday.
