Loyola Chicago defeats No. 21 Dayton 77-72 behind Watson's 24 factors

Des Watson scored 24 factors and Braden Norris made two essential 3-pointers down the stretch, ending with 19 factors and 11 assists as Loyola Chicago defeated No. 21 Dayton 77-72 on Friday evening.

Philip Alston made a 3 to present the Ramblers a 69-65 lead with 3:03 left, however Koby Brea answered with a 3-pointer for Dayton. With 2:09 remaining, Norris drained a 3 to place Loyola Chicago up 72-68. DaRon Holmes II lower it to 72-70 with two free throws, however Norris iced the sport with one other 3 from the nook with 17 seconds to go.

Alston scored 13 factors and Miles Rubin blocked 4 pictures for the Ramblers (21-8, 13-3 Atlantic 10), who’ve gained eight of 9.

Holmes had 20 factors and 9 rebounds for Dayton (22-6, 12-4), which has dropped two of three. Enoch Cheeks added 16 factors.

The groups entered tied for second place within the Atlantic 10 behind Richmond, which is 13-2 in league play and hosts VCU on Saturday.

Loyola Chicago rebounded after a 79-64 loss at St. Bonaventure on Tuesday.

Trailing by seven with underneath six minutes left, Dayton rapidly erased the deficit. Cheeks transformed a three-point play and Holmes adopted with a pair of free throws to tie it at 63.

Brea made a 3 and Nate Santos adopted with a four-point play to present the Flyers a 52-47 lead with 13:47 remaining. However the Ramblers went on a run of their very own later within the second half. Watson sank two free throws and Norris discovered Tom Welch for an alley-oop dunk that despatched the Gentile Middle crowd to its ft. Watson’s layup prolonged the result in 59-54 with 7:55 left.

The Flyers led 35-32 at halftime. Holmes scored eight of the primary 10 factors for Dayton and had a team-high 10 factors on the break.

Watson stored the Ramblers within the sport with 16 factors within the first half. He was 4 of 5 from 3-point vary. Santos made a 3-pointer in entrance of the Loyola Chicago bench with 15 seconds left within the half to get the lead as much as 35-29, however Norris lower it to a few with three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point try.

BIG PICTURE

Dayton: After dropping three of six, the Flyers are only a half-game forward of VCU for third place within the Atlantic 10.

Loyola Chicago: It’s March, they’ve 104-year-old Sister Jean on their aspect — can the Ramblers make one other run?

UP NEXT

Dayton: Performs at Saint Louis on Wednesday evening earlier than internet hosting its regular-season finale towards La Salle.

Loyola Chicago: Performs at Davidson on Wednesday evening earlier than internet hosting its regular-season finale towards VCU.

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AP faculty basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball