BALTIMORE – Loyola University Maryland held visiting Boston University scoreless for six minutes, 22 seconds late in the second half, going on a 15-0 run to turn a one-point lead into a 74-57 Patriot League victory in Reitz Arena.
Emmett Adair led Loyola with 17 points,
Braeden Speed had 14 and
Jonas Sirtautas added 12 in the win for the Greyhounds.
Loyola (6-13 overall, 2-4 Patriot League) shot 51.9 percent int he second half while holding the Terriers (7-12, 2-4) to 26.9 percent overall and 21.4 percent from 3-point range.
Ben Defty had a traditional 3-point play with 8:10 left in regulation, trimming Loyola lead to a point, 56-55. It was the last basket the Terriers would have for over six minutes, however.
Adair scored the next four points,
Carter Berg-McLean converted two free throws at 6:20 and Sirtautas grabbed a steal under the Boston University basket and dribbled the length of the floor for a fast-break layup that forced a Terriers' timeout at 5:56.
Loyola got a stop with a missed Boston University three on the next possession, and Speed stepped behind a screen to hit one of his three 3-pointers at 5:15, extending the gap to 12, 67-55.
Berg-McLean baskets in the paint on two of the next three Loyola possessions with a bucket at 2:48 the 15th-straight point for the Greyhounds.
Michael McNair would score in the paint for the Terriers at 1:48, snapping the run, but it was the last Boston University basket of the game. Loyola held the Terriers' leading scorer to only six points after McNair entered averaging 17.0; he was 3 of 16 from the field and missed all 10 of the 3-poitners he attempted.
Boston University started the game by building a double-digit lead in the first 12 minutes, going ahead 26-15 with 8:32 to play before halftime.
A McNair basket at 1:07 had the Terriers' advantage at six, 36-30, with 1:07 before the break, but Adair converted a hook shot in the paint, and Berg-McLean hit two free throws with 21 seconds left to make it a 36-34 game at halftime.
Sirtautas tied the game at 36-36 with two free throws 22 seconds into the second half, and Loyola took its first head when he scored on a tip-in at 19:02.
Boston University would tie it on the next possession, but a
Tyson Commander three from the right side at 15:53 gave Loyola the lead it would not relinquish.
Defty scored 18 and had a game-high 10 rebounds for Boston University.
In addition to the three who scored in double-figures for Loyola, Berg-McLean had a career-best eight points to go with six rebounds. Emenalo scored seven and matched that number with seven rebounds, and he had a career-high three steals.
Loyola finished with a 37-34 advantage in rebounds and committed only eight turnovers in the game.
The Greyhounds will rest quickly before playing at Lehigh University on Monday, January 19, in a 7 o'clock game that will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.
