Game Information
Opponent	Bucknell Bison
Game Notes	Loyola
Date	Sunday, January 30, 2022
Time	6:00 p.m.
Location	Lewisburg, Pa. | Sojka Pavilion
Directions	Click Here | Spectator Information
Television	CBS Sports Network | Channel Finder
Online Media	Live Stats

Quick Hits About The Hounds

• Loyola University Maryland men's basketball gets back to action after a six-day break on Sunday, January 30, when it plays at Bucknell University in a 7 p.m. contest.
• CBS Sports Network will broadcast the game nationally from Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.
• At 6-3, Loyola has its best record in the Patriot League through eight games since joining the conference in 2013-14.
• Cam Spencer leads the Patriot League in both points (19.4) and steals (2.2) per game as of January 27. He also tops the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.2:1), a stat that ranks him No. 6 in NCAA Division I.
• Spencer is 27th nationally in steals per game, while Jaylin Andrews ranks 88th with 1.8. They are one-three in the conference in steals.
• Kenneth Jones tops the conference in assists per game (5.1) and is No. 36 nationally in that category..
• As a team, the Greyhounds rank 34th nationally in assists per game (16.2).
• The Greyhounds have the top scoring duo in the Patriot League with Spencer and Jaylin Andrews (14.4). Together, they average 33.8 points per game.
• Tavaras Hardy is in his fourth season on the Loyola sidelines after he was named the 21st head coach in Loyola men's basketball history on March 28, 2018.

Series History Versus Bucknell    

• Loyola and Bucknell will meet for the 25th time in series history with the Bison holding a 19-5 record in the previous 24 games.
• The Greyhounds won the first meeting between the teams this year, defeating Bucknell, 71-67 in Baltimore on January 10, 2022. Loyola has won back-to-back games against the Bison for the first time in series history. The Greyhounds last won in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, on December 28, 2011, when they snapped an 18-game home court winning streak for the Bison.

Last Time Out    

• Loyola held a one-point halftime lead and was up 34-31 four-plus minutes into the second on Monday night, but Colgate went on a 15-2 run over more than six minutes and pulled away for a 65-52 victory.
• The Greyhounds were 0 of 8 from the field during the stretch and shot 32.1 percent from the field overall, 30.4 percent in the second half. Colgate took a 17-13 lead with 8:48 to go in the first half on a traditional 3-point play by Sam Thomson, but an Alonso Faure steal started a fast break that say Jaylin Andrews sink a tricky runner in the lane, get fouled and make the free throw to begin a 9-0 run for Loyola.
• Kenneth Jones made a driving layup on the left side, and Andrews added two more free throws before Faure scored on the baseline with 6:11 to play, giving Loyola a 22-17 lead, the largest for either team in the first half.
• Ryan Moffatt gave the Raiders a one-point edge, 27-26, with less than two minutes left in the half, but Veljko Ilic was fouled after grabbing an offensive rebound, and he made both at the line to put Loyola up, 28-27, at the break. After Colgate scored the second half's first two points to take a lead, Cam Spencer scored baskets on back-to-back possessions, and the Greyhounds were up three, 32-29, at 17:18.  Another Spencer basket at 15:47 made it 34-31 Loyola, but that was the last field goal the Greyhounds would connect on until one by Andrews with 8:32 left in regulation. That bucket made it a 46-40 Colgate lead, but the Raiders scored the next five point to put the margin in double figures for the first time in the game.
• Spencer scored 16 of his game-high 19 points in the second half, and Veljko Ilic added 10 points off the bench, making the first two 3-point attempts of his collegiate career. Andrews added seven points and a team-best nine rebounds.

Fast Start    

• Loyola's game at Colgate on Monday wrapped up the first half of Patriot League play for the Greyhounds in less than four weeks. They played nine games over the course of 24 days, faster than any other team in the conference this year.

Dialed In    

• Loyola shot 63.3 percent from the field on January 22 against American, the third-best field-goal percentage in school history. The Greyhounds took a season-low tying 49 shots and made a season-high 31 in the game.

Stats On The Start    

• Loyola is off to its best start in Patriot League play at 6-3 since joining the conference in 2013-14. The Greyhounds twice started 3-2 through five games, doing so in 2013-14 and 2015-16, but each time they lost their sixth game.
• Overall, at 12-8, Loyola is off to its best start through 20 games since it went 14-6 during the 2012-2013 season.

Spencer Named To Lou Henson Award Watch List    

• Two weeks ago, Cam Spencer became the first player in Loyola history to earn a spot on the Lou Henson Award Midseason Watch List. The junior guard was one of 40 players – one of two in the Patriot League (John Carter, Navy) – to be listed as midseason candidates for the mid-major player of the year honor.
• He was also named the Patriot League Player of the Week on January 17 after averaging 22 points in three wins the week prior.

Spencer To The Top    

• Cam Spencer has asserted himself this season as one of the top players in the Patriot League, leading the conference, as of games of January 27, in points (19.4)and steals (2.2) per game. In 20 games this season, the junior guard has scored 187 points and has scored in double figures in all 20.
• He is also fifth in the conference in assists per game (3.6), and he ranks sixth in all of NCAA Division I with a 3.3:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
• This year's start has come after Spencer played just 28 of 49 games over his first two seasons at Loyola due to injury, and the Greyhounds were only 4-17 in games he did not play during that stretch. In his 48 career games, Loyola is 29-19 in games he has played, as he averages 13.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He has a career 3.0:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
• Spencer has scored 20 or more points eight times this year, logging 25 or higher six times. He set a to-date career-high with 32 points at College of Charleston and came back the next day to score 23 against Lipscomb on November 14.
• He went for 26, making 12 of 12 free throws, versus Mount St. Mary's on December 4, a point total he would equal on January 1 in the Patriot League opener at Army West Point, again on January 10 versus Bucknell and once more on January 17 at Lehigh.
• Spencer missed the 2020-2021 season's first 12 games recovering from off-season surgery, but he made his presence felt in the Greyhounds last five games. He came off the bench in each of the last two regular-season games, scoring 10 while logging three rebounds, two assists and two steals on February 27 in 17 minutes. Spencer then had 11 points and five rebounds in 25 minutes the following day. He made his first start of the year in the Patriot League Quarterfinal, playing 33 minutes while scoring 10 to go with seven assists, five rebounds and two steals.
• Spencer raised his minutes played to 35 in the semifinal against Army West Point, posting to-date season-highs with 16 points and seven rebounds. In the five games, Spencer averaged 11.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists.
• During his freshman campaign of 2019-2020, Spencer averaged 10.0 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 23 games. He had a 3.8:1 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Dishing    

• Kenneth Jones leads the Patriot League with 5.1 assists per game and has averaged 5.7 in the last 15 Loyola contests. This season, Jones has seven games with seven or more assists, the first seven of his career. Loyola is third in the conference lead with 16.4 assists per game.
• Jones' 5.1 assists per game mark is the highest by a Loyola player since Jason Rowe averaged 5.75 in 28 games during the 1998-99 season.
• As a team, the Greyhounds have recorded 20 or more assists five times this season (24 versus Elizabethtown, 22 against Chicago State, 21 at St. Bonaventure, 20 at Army West Point and 21 versus Holy Cross). Loyola is 31st nationally in assists per game.
• Per KenPom.com, the Greyhounds dish out assists on 62.2 percent of their made baskets, the 15th-highest percentage in NCAA Division I this year.
• In Tavaras Hardy's three-plus years as Loyola's head coach, the Greyhounds have 16 games with 20 or more assists. In the prior eight years, they had just three such games.
• Cam Spencer and Jones both had seven assists December 1 in the Greyhounds' win over Chicago State, the first time two Loyola players have reached that total in the same game in at least a decade.
• Jones tallied a career-best nine assists in the Patriot League opener at Army West Point, finishing one away from his first career double-double. He then had the same assist total on January 13 against Lafayette.

Kuzemka Debuts    

• Chris Kuzemka became the last of Loyola's six freshmen to debut when he stepped onto the court in the second half against Boston University on January 19. He came back from a preseason injury to make his first appearance and immediately had an impact. He had an assist on a Golden Dike layup and then drew a charge defensively in his first two minutes of action.

Shooting The Difference    

• Shooting success has played a pivotal role in Loyola's wins and losses this season, bared out by statistics.
• The Greyhounds have shot 49.0 percent from the field in their 12 victories, 36.9 percent from 3-point range. Meanwhile, they are shooting 39.3 percent, overall, in eight losses, while their 3-point average dips to 26.9 percent.
• Individually, Loyola has had better balance in its scoring during the wins where Cam Spencer and Jaylin Andrews are averaging 19.0 and 16.8 points per game, respectively, in the victories, while Kenneth Jones is at 9.0 points. In the six losses, Spencer has averaged 19.9 points, Andrews 10.3 and no other player more than 7.3 per game.

Don't Forget The Defense    

• The Greyhounds' defense has been putting in the work, too, during the wins. Loyola has limited opponents to 41.2 percent from the field in its 12 wins, 32.4 percent from 3-point range. Meanwhile, teams have shot 46.3 percent in the eighth Loyola losses, 35.6 percent from behind the arc.

Sticky Fingers    

• Thanks to Cam Spencer and Jaylin Andrews ranking first and third in the Patriot League in steals per game at 2.2 and 1.9, respectively, Loyola is second in the Patriot League with 7.7 steals per game.

On The Right Track    

• Kenneth Jones has been a consistent member of the Greyhounds' rotation throughout his career, averaging 20.8 minutes over 76 games heading into his senior season. This year, however, Jones has stepped into the role of a full-time starter and seen his minutes, and production, soar.
• Through 20 games, he has averaged 33.2 minutes per game, while producing 8.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 5.1 assists per contest, all career-highs. He has a 2.5:1 assist-to-turnover ratio that ranks third in the Patriot League and is a career-high, as well. His 5.1 assists are 36th in NCAA Division I.
• Jones is averaging 5.7 assists in seven Patriot League games this year, and his total of 51 dimes are 15 more than any other player in conference play.
• Over his career, Jones has played in 96 games, starting 30, and averages 6.4 points and 2.7 assists per game. His 259 career assists are 17th in school history.

Stepping Into A Leading Role    

• Jaylin Andrews was the Greyhounds' top returning scorer this year, after averaging 11.6 points per game as a junior in the shortened 2020-2021 season, and he showed his ability to step into a leading role during Loyola's 2021-2022 opener at North Carolina. Andrews started his senior year with a team-high 17 points, knocking down 4 of 8 shots from 3-point range.
• Andrews then blew up for a career-high 30 points on November 12 against South Carolina State, going 11 of 15 from the field and 5 of 7 from 3-point range. The 30 points exceeded his previous career-best of 25 points from January 2020 against American.
• During Andrews' 12 most-recent games, he has scored 11 or more in all but two contests, averaging 16.1 points per outing.
• Andrews continued his climb as a consistent scorer and rebounder for the Greyhounds during the 2020-2021 season. He went for 13 points twice during the first two games of the year before breaking out for 22 on January 24 against American.
• He averaged 14.3 points during the Patriot League Championships, scoring 17 in the quarterfinal at Navy and 20 in the title game at Colgate. Overall, Andrews wrapped up his junior campaign by averaging 11.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game in the 17 contests.
• Through 98 career games, of which he has started 75, Andrews is averaging 9.4 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.

First In The First    

• The offseason news out of Loyola basketball was monumental as the Greyhounds had their first-ever NBA First Round Draft Pick when Santi Aldama was selected No. 30 by the Memphis Grizzlies after spending two seasons with the Greyhounds.
• Aldama was just the second Loyola player to be selected in the modern NBA Draft after Mike Morrison was a second-round pick in 1988. He also became the fourth Patriot League player drafted and third in the first round.
• Aldama's contributions will be missed by the Greyhounds as he was the only player in the NBA to average more than 18 points, eight rebounds, two assists and 1.5 blocked shots per game last year (per SportsReference.com).
• The sophomore from the Canary Islands of Spain was 12th in the NCAA in scoring (21.2 ppg) and 14th in rebounds (10.1).

Up Next    

• The Greyhounds return to Reitz Arena for a two-game homestand, starting on Wednesday, February 2, against the U.S. Military Academy. They then host the U.S. Naval Academy on Saturday, February 5.