CHICAGO – Saturday's game between Loyola Chicago and Richmond came down to second-half free throw shooting with the Ramblers and Spiders combining for 26 makes in the final eight minutes of the game. With nine straight makes at the line, Richmond was able to cut Loyola's lead down to one with 3:47 to go, but the Ramblers held on to win, 69-66.
 
With the win, Loyola improves to 7-22 overall and 3-13 in A-10 play.
 
"I think we had our best three days of practice we've had all year coming into today. We were very consistent this week, and it paid off today," said head coach Drew Valentine. "Miles did a great job leading us today both on the court and from a mentality standpoint. Reese also stepped up big for us, too. We're without our starting point guard and Kayde got into foul trouble. Reese came in and was so steady. He knocked down free throws at the end. What an amazing career and amazing story that that he's having."
 
How It Happened
Richmond got on the board first Saturday, but the Ramblers answered with a 10-0 run to get ahead early. Miles Rubin sparked the stretch, while Alexander Richardson capped it with a drive inside. Loyola hung on to the lead despite Mike Walz draining a three from the top of the arc to cut it down to three.
 
Rubin scored the next six straight points, including a fast break dunk fed by Daniil Glazkov. The Ramblers went up by 10 points on a layup from Xavier Amos, while Joshua Ola-Joseph's snuck back door for a slam dunk for a 13-point edge and forced a Richmond timeout. The Spiders scored the last six points of the half, but the Ramblers remained in control, 36-29.
 
Deywilk Tavarez had a three-point play for Loyola in the opening minute to put the Ramblers up by double-digits again at the start of the second. Nic Anderson would keep it there after a near three-minute scoreless stretch by both teams. He sank a three for an 11-point edge. Loyola's lead grew to it largest of the game on a 6-0 run. Glazkov's three with 11:36 to play put the Ramblers up by 14, 50-36.
 
With under nine to go, the Spiders began to chip away at the lead the Ramblers built, using a 12-2 run over a five-minute period to get within one. They scored nine straight points from the free throw line to make it 56-55 with 3:47 on the clock. The Ramblers got to the line before Rubin and Ola-Joseph scored in the paint for four-point leads. Rubin converted at the line for a six-point edge, but the Spiders cut it back down to two twice in the final 34 seconds. Loyola held on to win, 69-66.
 
Inside the Box Score
- Rubin led Loyola with 19 points on 7-10 from the field. He was 5-7 at the line. Rubin also tallied five rebounds, two assists, one steal, and one block.
- Ola-Joseph had nine points off the bench, while Anderson added eight. Both had four boards and one assist.
- Amos scored eight, and Dotson and Glazkov had seven each. Dotson and Glazkov led Loyola with three assists each.
- Richardson led the team with six rebounds.
- The Ramblers shot 50 percent from the field and held the Spiders to 29.8 percent.
- Loyola won the battle in the paint, 32-16. Richmond scored 20 points on 16 Loyola turnovers.
 
Up Next
Loyola's last regular season road battle is up next with a return trip to Saint Louis. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday.