Jan. 12, 2012

Box Score

Highlights

Youngstown, Ohio - Simone Law racked up her fourth double-double of the season and Monica Albano hit some key shots in the second half as Loyola built an 18-point second half lead and held on for an 82-77 win over Youngstown State tonight at the Beeghly Center. The Ramblers move to 7-9 (2-3 Horizon) while dropping the Penguins to 8-7 (2-2).

"I thought we really played hard for the full 40 minutes tonight," said head coach Eric Simpson. "Simone had another big game and Monica really stepped up, particularly in the second half. In addition to those two though, I really was impressed with Ayrealle (Beavers) and Abby (Skube). They came in off the bench and really helped us get going."

Youngstown State knocked down three early three-pointers to grab an early 9-4 lead but Loyola responded immediately. Law scored inside to kickstart an 11-2 run to give the Ramblers a 15-11 lead with just over eight minutes gone and Loyola was able to play from the lead, eventually extending to a 24-17 lead on a Skube three-pointer. The lead was still at six at the 5:00 mark before Beavers capped a 7-0 run with a bucket to give Loyola its largest lead of the half (33-20) before the Ramblers settled for a 35-24 advantage at halftime.

Brandi Brown scored twice early in the second half to get the Penguins within 10 but five straight points from Law and an Albano trey bumped the lead to 18 (46-28) less than three minutes into the period. The home team slowly chipped away, getting as close as 10 once more but Albano swished a transition three-ball to restore the Ramblers' 15-point edge with 9:50 on the clock. The lead was still at 13 with 3:10 left before Youngstown State made a final push. Four consecutive three-pointers, the first two of which were answered by Rambler baskets, made it a five-point game with 29 seconds left. However, Albano knocked down a pair of clutch free throws and Beavers made another in the final seconds to seal the win.

The tandem of Law (21 points) and Albano (17) scored 33 of their 38 combined points in the second half, with Law adding 10 boards for her fourth double-double of the season. They were joined in double figures by Troy Hambric (12 points, five rebounds, four assists) and Beavers, who finished with season-highs of 10 points and five rebounds in 23 minutes. Skube was also a factor, pitching in with eight points and 10 rebounds as LU enjoyed a 48-32 edge on the glass.

Loyola wraps up its swing through Northeast Ohio with a Saturday matinee at Cleveland State.