Baltimore, MD – A late 14-1 run by Morgan State proved to be the difference as the Bears scored a home win over visiting Loyola, 59-50, on Thursday evening.
Lex Therien led the Greyhounds with 20 points and 13 rebounds.
Taleah Dixon had 13 points on the night, and Koi Sims had 15 rebounds. Meliah Van-Otoo led the team with 4 assists.
A defensive-minded first quarter saw
Lex Therien break the scoring drought with a nice move that led to a layup, and Van-Otoo added a layup with her own with just under two minutes remaining in the quarter to give the Greyhounds an 8-2 lead. Morgan State managed to score on back-to-back possessions with under a minute remaining to cut the Greyhounds lead to 8-6 after one quarter of play.
Both teams started the second quarter with baskets on their first possession, as the offenses started to find their rhythm. The teams would trade baskets once again, as another Therien layup tied teams up at 14-14 with 6:16 remaining in the first half. Freshman guard Kelly Ratigan caught fire, knocking down back-to-back 3-pointers to jump Loyola out to a 20-14 lead.
Taleah Dixon followed that up with a 3-pointer of her own three minutes later to extend the Greyhounds lead to 23-16.
Both defenses once again stepped up in the last three minutes of the first half, but the Bears hit a jump shot with 13 seconds remaining in the half to get within four, but
Taleah Dixon responded with a jumper of her own with just four seconds remaining, and Loyola took a 25-19 halftime lead.
Dixon started the half strong for the Greyhounds by scoring on their first possession, and Koi Sims came up big for the Greyhounds as she grabbed a rebound on three straight defensive possessions, eclipsing ten rebounds for the first time in her collegiate career. After a Morgan State basket, Caramina Tanedo responded with her first 3-pointer of the game to extend Loyola's lead to 34-25 with 6:15 remaining in the third.
Sims continued her strong night, as she followed up the Tanedo three-pointer with a nice move for a layup. After a pair of Morgan State baskets,
Ava Therien found her sister, Lex, on a fast break to extend their lead. On the next possession,
Lex Therien scored on another layup, this time finishing through contact to give the Greyhounds a 40-31 lead with 2:58 remaining in the third quarter.
The Bears responded, however, as they scored on back-to-back possessions, one of them a 3-pointer, to cut their deficit to 40-36. After both teams once again traded baskets,
Lex Therien added another bucket, this time a reverse layup from a great pass from Sims, to give the Greyhounds a 45-38 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Dixon once again started the quarter off for the Greyhounds as she converted a pair of free throws to give them a 47-38 lead. After a Bears basket cut into the Greyhounds lead,
Lex Therien hit a jumper from the foul line to extend the Greyhounds lead back to nine points. The Bears responded once again, this time by hitting a three-pointer, followed by a fast-break layup to cut their deficit to 49-45.
Both defenses anchored in, as neither team could score over the next two minutes. The Bears however, ended the scoring drought by sinking a pair of free throws to get them to within two points.
Morgan State took their second lead of the game, as they hit a three-pointer from the corner to take a 50-49 lead. The Bears hit another three-pointer on the ensuing possession, to give themselves a 53-49 lead with 43.8 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. The Greyhounds had two shots on the following possession, but could not convert on either attempt, as the Bears managed to ice the game from the foul line. Morgan State used a 14-1 run down the stretch to win the matchup, 59-50.
The Greyhounds will be back in action on Sunday November 13, as they host UMBC at 12:00 PM in Reitz Arena.
