PEORIA, Ill. (January 24, 2021)
 
In Short
Loyola University Chicago (12-3, 7-1 MVC) scored 22 of the game's first 24 points, then held off a late rally to knock off Bradley (9-6, 3-3 MVC), 69-56, this afternoon at Carver Arena for its fifth straight win and ninth in the last 10 outings. The Ramblers' 7-1 Missouri Valley Conference start is their best in league play through eight games since opening the 1984-85 campaign with a 7-1 ledger in Midwestern Collegiate Conference action.
 
Coach Moser's Thoughts
"We knew how physical Bradley was going to be. We are excited we got the win but now we have to put it in the bank and come back tomorrow. Our defense was at a high level in the first half. I'm not surprised at how Bradley came back in the second half. They are a championship club that is not going to quit. We've got to learn from our second half and have got to shoot the ball better. You've got to have a physical presence to play Bradley and I thought Aher (Uguak) had the most physical presence of anyone on our team tonight."
 
How It Happened
Loyola came out of the blocks on fire, hitting 9 of its first 13 shots from the field, which included a pair of three-point field goals from Keith Clemons and a thunderous dunk from Marquise Kennedy, while the defense frustrated Bradley into hitting just 1 of its first 10 shots, as the Ramblers jumped out to a 22-2 lead just nine minutes into the contest. 
 
The Ramblers, who entered the game ranked second in the nation in scoring defense at 57.3 points per game, would lead by as many as 26 points (43-17) in the opening half and they would hold the Braves to just 34.6 percent (9-for-26) accuracy from the field, including a paltry 1-for-6 (.167) from beyond the arc, in the opening half, while forcing 11 turnovers.
 
Eight players scored for Loyola in the opening 20 minutes and the Maroon and Gold, which was led by nine first-half points from Cameron Krutwig, connected on 58.6 percent (17-for-29) of its shots from the field.
 
Loyola increased its lead to 27 on an Aher Uguak three ball early in the second half for a 48-21 advantage but a 22-6 Bradley run chopped the lead to 54-43 with 10:04 remaining. The Ramblers responded with six unanswered points on a pair of free throws from Uguak, and buckets from Tate Hall and Tom Welch, to get some breathing room as the lead was pushed to 60-43 with 8:14 left to play.
 
An 8-3 Braves spurt cut the Loyola advantage to 63-51 but the Ramblers weathered that storm and back-to-back layups from Krutwig and Marquise Kennedy nudged the edge to 67-51 to cement the outcome.
 
 
A Look At The Numbers

• Krutwig totaled 19 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals for the Ramblers. He now is just five points away from moving into a tie for the 10^thspot on Loyola's career scoring chart. Krutwig has 1,598 points in his career and needs five to tie JR Blount (2005-09) for 10^thon the school's all-time chart.
• Uguak had another impressive performance against Bradley at Carver Arena, putting up 13 points, eight boards and two steals, one year after notching his first career double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds) in Loyola's win in Peoria.
• Hall pitched in 11 points off the bench, marking the fourth straight contest he has scored in double figures in a reserve role, and Kennedy and Clemons pitched in eight points each.
• Loyola shot 56 percent (28-for-50) from the field.
• Elijah Childs led Bradley with 18 points and eight rebounds.

 
Up Next
Loyola and Bradley close out the two-game series tomorrow night with a 6 p.m. contest that will be televised live on CBS Sports Network.