Ramblers use late first half surge to power past Red Devils
CHICAGO, Ill. – Eureka College junior forward Parker Gibson(Pontiac, Ill./Pontiac [St. John's NW Military]) opened the contest with a 3-pointer, and the Red Devils held a lead for the first 10 minutes of play, but Division I Loyola of Chicago Ramblers used a 35-3 first-half run in a 84-51 victory, Saturday night at Gentile Arena.
Playing in their second game in as many nights, the Red Devils came out strong, building a 6-point lead (15-9) through the first eight minutes of play, backed by a pair of 3-pointers by Gibson. The 6-point advantage marked Eureka's largest lead of the contest. A made jumper by Ramblers' Devon Turk evened the contest at 15-15 with 11:03 remaining in the first half, and the host tightened up defensively to close out the half with a 44-18 lead.
Loyola (2-0) sustained their lead through the remainder of the contest, reaching as high as 33 (56-23) early in the second half after an EC turnover lead to an easy Rambler basket.
All Eureka players saw action in the contest, highlighted by a layup from sophomore guard Harry Ito (Tokyo, Japan/Setagaya Gakuen) in the final seconds of the game. The basket was Ito's first as a Red Devil after transferring from Upper Iowa University.
Loyola of Chicago outrebounded Eureka 49-30, and the Ramblers forced 21 Eureka turnovers and committed 18 of their own.
Eureka College Statistics, Leaders
Field Goal Percentage -.305 (18-59)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - .345 (10-29)
Free Throw Percentage - .625 (5-8)
Gibson (9 points, 2 rebounds)
Alex Wiegand (9 points, 7 rebounds)
Greg Kent (5 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists)
Loyola of Chicago Statistics, Leaders
Field Goal Percentage - .492 (29-59)
3-Point Field Goal Percentage - .190 (4-21)
Free Throw Percentage - .688 (22-32)
Turk (16 points, 3 rebounds)
Milton Doyle (18 points, 7 rebounds)
Cal Kennedy (10 points, 5 rebounds)
What's Next?
Eureka (0-2) will continue non-conference action Monday with another road contest against Monmouth (Ill.) College. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.