Chris Knight had a game-high 16 points off the bench, and Loyola came out on top in a defensive struggle against Southern Illinois 44-39 on Thursday night at Banterra Center in Carbondale. The Ramblers are 5-0 in true road games this season.
Trailing 29-24 in the second half, Loyola (16-3, 7-1 MVC) scored seven consecutive points, five coming from Lucas Williamson, for a 36-33 lead with 3:53 remaining.
Aher Uguak hit two free throws to push the lead to 38-33, but the Salukis rallied to within one point before Knight scored with 1:17 left to extend the Ramblers’ lead to 40-37. Loyola held on from there.
The Ramblers limited Southern Illinois (10-11, 3-6) to 29.6% shooting (16-for-54) for the game, including 1-for-14 from three-point range.
