Loyola Chicago beats Drake, returns to NCAA Tournament

Lucas Williamson had 18 factors and 10 rebounds, Aher Uguak added 16 factors and 10 boards and Loyola Chicago defeated Drake 64-58 on Sunday to win the Missouri Valley Convention match and advance to the NCAA Match for the second straight season.

Ryan Schwieger added 13 factors for the fourth-seeded Ramblers (25-7) who got here by way of towards the Bulldogs in a rugged championship recreation after dropping twice within the common season to Drake (24-10).

Loyola, headed to the Atlantic 10 subsequent season, beat Drake in final 12 months’s title recreation 75-65 however this season’s victory got here below first-head head coach Drew Valentine.

Roman Penn scored 18 factors and MVC freshman of the 12 months Tucker DeVries had 15 factors and a career-high 5 blocks for Drake. ShanQuan Hamphill had 10 boards to go together with six factors.

Neither staff attain 40% capturing and each have been 25% or much less from the arc in a recreation through which each groups had a participant foul out and two others with 4 fouls. Loyola made 17 of 24 from the road to 11 of 18 for Drake which made up partially for the Bulldogs’ 23-6 benefit on factors off turnovers.

Trailing all the half, Drake obtained inside two twice within the remaining couple of minutes, the final time with 22 seconds remaining after two Penn free throws. However Drake was pressured to foul and Schwieger and Braden Norris transformed two free throws every.

Drake, which beat Missouri State 79-78 in additional time in Saturday’s semifinals, had a seven-game win streak snapped.

Drake opened the sport outscoring Loyola 18-8 with DeVries capping the run with a 3-pointer, the final of his 10 first-half factors, whereas the Ramblers began 2-of-13 capturing.

Then the sport took a whole flip with Drake lacking its subsequent 5 photographs, going 2 of 14 and committing 4 turnovers as 5 Ramblers mixed for 19 answered factors and a nine-point lead after a Norris 3-pointer.

The Bulldogs recovered within the remaining two minutes to attain the ultimate seven factors to path 27-25 at halftime.

Uguak had a three-point play and a layup throughout a four-minute stretch when the Ramblers edged out to a nine-point lead, their largest of the second half, with 4 1/2 minutes to go. A part of that scoring got here whereas Drake was lacking eight straight photographs over six minutes.

It’s the primary time since 1962-63 that the Ramblers have reached the NCAA Match in consecutive seasons.