Pilots down Wolfpack 83-69 in front of capacity crowd at The Dock
February 23, 2006
Shreveport, LA---The upset minded Loyola University Wolfpack looked as though they were ready to dethrone the newest NAIA No. 1 ranked LSUS Pilots Thursday night as they bolted out to a 46-39 halftime lead after connecting on 16-of-26 (62%) field goal attempts which included 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. The depth of the Pilots however proved to be too much in the second half as they went on to outscore the Wolfpack 44-23 the second half en route to an 83-69 victory.
The Wolfpack led by as many as 13 points in the first half and silenced a capacity crowd at The Dock. An 18-8 run to begin the second half by the Pilots however had the Pilots ahead 58-54 with 12:00 remaining and they never looked back.
Josh Porter finished with a team high 16 points while Jeremy Johnston added 15 points and six rebounds. Fredericko Payne added 14 points while the Pilots junior point guard Freddy Hughes added 11. Derrick Sowell collected a game high 12 rebounds and added five points; Kyle Blankenship improved his NAIA No. 1 assist/turnover ratio of 3.25 by collecting six assists with no turnovers and added five points; and Shadrach Roome rounded off the Pilots offense with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting and pulled down five rebounds.
James Bunn collected a team high 18 points for the Wolfpack while teammate Mario Faranda fell one rebound shy of a double-double as he finished with 16 points and nine rebounds.
With the win the Pilots improve to 24-3 overall on the year and are currently tied for top spot in the GCAC at 11-2 with the Spring Hill College Badgers who defeated the William Carey College Crusaders 81-70 Thursday night. The Pilots will travel to Hattiesburg, MS Saturday night to take on the Crusaders in their GCAC regular season finale. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm.
