Men's basketball comes up short versus Loyola, 66-60

Sunday, November 20

1 pm

University of New Hampshire

1-1

Loyola (Md.)

2-1

Loyola (Md.)

New Hampshire

11/20/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

DURHAM, N.H. - Chandler Rhoads (Berryville, Va.) led four players in double figures with 14 points, but the University of New Hampshire men's basketball team was defeated by Loyola University (Md.), 66-60, at Lundholm Gymnasium in non-conference action Sunday afternoon.

The Wildcats fell to 1-2 on the season, while the visiting Greyhounds upped their record to 3-1, earning their third straight victory.

Rhoads, who was named the America East Player of the Game, rounded out his afternoon with a season-best five assists and two rebounds. He shot 5-for-10 from the floor, including 4-for-6 from the charity stripe.

Patrick Konan (Gainesville, Fla.; 12), Alvin Abreu (Lynn, Mass.; 11), and Ferg Myrick (Philadelphia, Pa.; 10) also scored in double-digits for the Wildcats. Brian Benson (Rochester, N.Y.) chipped in with six points, nine boards and two blocks.

Ferg Myrick

After exchanging baskets in the early going, New Hampshire pulled ahead, 12-9, when Myrick drained a 3-pointer at 12:18. The Greyhounds bounced back with an 8-0 run, capped off with a Dylon Cormier layup, giving the visitors their largest lead to that point with a 17-12 edge with 9:54 remaining in the first frame.

Rhoads snapped the run when he sank a midrange jumper, igniting a streak of eight unanswered points by UNH, taking back the lead with a 20-17 advantage with 7:30 on the clock. Both teams traded baskets for the next 6:05, until a pair of Jeron Trotman (Huntsville, Ala.) free throws and a Konan trey at the halftime buzzer gave the home team a 35-31 edge going into the break.

UNH was able to preserve its advantage for the first 8:19 of the second frame, a stretch that featured three ties, as the 'Cats finally surrendered the lead with 11:41 remaining in regulation. The Wildcats posted their largest lead of the stretch after Myrick notched a 3-pointer and a layup in a span of 1:54, putting New Hampshire up 49-46 at 12:39.

The Greyhounds reclaimed the lead after scoring on two straight trips up the floor, kicking off an 11-4 run that extended their advantage to its highest margin of the contest, 60-53, with 6:00 remaining in regulation.

UNH responded when Konan knocked down one-of-two free throw attempts from the stripe and Benson sank a layup on back-to-back possessions, cutting the deficit down to four at 4:09. R.J. Williams interrupted the run with a jumper, but Konan drained a midrange jumper of his own on the ensuing possession, setting the score at 62-58 with 3:29 remaining.

Despite the brief offensive spark, that would be as close as UNH would come to reclaiming the lead the rest of the way, as the Wildcats got outscored 4-2 down the stretch and Loyola was able to hold onto the victory.

Following a Thanksgiving break, the Wildcats resume their schedule with a home game against intrastate rival Dartmouth College on Wednesday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. For tickets and more information, visit www.unhwildcats.com or call (603) 862-4000, extension 5.