ATLANTA _ Even Sister Jean's bracket originally had Loyola bowing out in the Sweet 16.
The Ramblers continue to prove every doubter wrong. Their 69-68 victory Thursday night over Nevada propelled them to their first Elite Eight appearance since the team won the national championship 55 years ago.
Several of those history makers from 1963 had a front row seat to the current team's chronicling one of the best stories in sports as Jerry Harkness and three of his teammates cheered the upset.
This Loyola team will go down in its history for its big shots. Marques Townes hit a dagger 3-pointer with 6.2 seconds left that stood up as the game winner after Caleb Martin's 3 left Nevada one point short with less than 2 seconds remaining.
In the previous two NCAA Tournament games it was Donte Ingram at the buzzer against Miami and then Clayton Custer with a huge jump shot with 3.6 seconds left to topple Tennessee.
Townes stuck both fists in the air under the basket and received hugs from teammates.
While jubilant in victory, there wasn't a wild chase around the court this time. Aundre Jackson found Townes near center court and embraced him. Players hugged and smiled and shook their heads. Yep, they did it again.
Loyola needed to be almost perfect to hold off Nevada.
The Ramblers shot 75 percent (18 of 24) in the second half. They made their first 13 shots of the half, going nearly 11 minutes without a miss.
Townes finished with a team-high 18 points, while Custer and Jackson each had 15 points.
Nevada _ brandishing their athleticism as promised _ scored 20 points in the opening seven minutes to take a 12-point lead with a variety of easy layups.
Loyola tightened its defense in the lane and turned Nevada into a different opponent. The Ramblers ended the first half on 12-0 scoring run, suffocating the Wolf Pack's offense that didn't score a point and coughed up five turnovers in the final 7:55 before halftime.
The Ramblers took their first lead 25-24 with 2:16 left on a pair of free throws from Townes, who took them into halftime with a 28-24 lead on a 3-pointer at the shot clock buzzer.
The Wolf Pack had erased a 22-point deficit in 11 minutes in the second round against the Bearcats. They chomped away at Loyola's 12-point lead in the final minutes, tying the game at 59 with 4:06 left.
But they couldn't complete a comeback against the improbable Ramblers.
