Columbia
LOYOLA (MD.)
Men's Basketball Rallies, But Loses Heartbreaker to Loyola
12/2/2014 9:07:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BOX SCORE (.html) | BOX SCORE (.pdf)
NEW YORK – The Columbia men's basketball team erased a nine-point deficit with 1:50 remaining in regulation, but Loyola's Eric Laster knocked down a buzzer-beating shot to give the Greyhounds a 64-62 victory Tuesday night.
Trailing 62-53, Isaac Cohen found Steve Frankoski open in the left corner for a triple to spark the rally. The Lions (4-2) forced a turnover on the next possession and Maodo Lo converted on a traditional three-point play to make it 62-59 with 1:17 on the clock.
Columbia got another big stop with 46 seconds remaining and Cohen evened things up with his first trifecta of the season with 28 seconds showing.
With six seconds to go, Loyola (3-4) inbounded the ball at midcourt and passed to Andre Walker. Walker pulled up from the left elbow for a shot that was blocked by Lo. Laster picked up the loose ball and stepped back from 17-feet at the top of the key to win the game.
Lo finished with a season-best 22 points. First-year Kyle Castlin added 13 points and seven rebounds.
The first half was a back-and-forth battle with eight lead changes and four ties. A 6-0 spurt gave Columbia its largest lead of the half, 20-16, with 9:16 to go in the frame. The Greyhounds answered with a 10-2 run of their own to go ahead by five and led the rest of the way, taking a 35-32 lead into the locker room.
Loyola pushed that advantage to 49-42 with 12:24 left, but the Lions responded with six-straight points, punctuated by a highlight-reel dunk from Cohen after a Kyle Castlin steal and outlet pass. The Greyhounds punched back with a 7-0 spurt to build the margin back up to 56-48 to go and extended the lead to nine with 2:40 before the Lions' comeback bid.
Franz Rassman led Loyola with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting.
Columbia wraps up its home stand this Saturday, December 6, when they welcome Bucknell to Levien Gymnasium. Tickets are still available and can be purchased by clicking here. The game will also be broadcast live on ESPN3 via the Ivy League Digital Network.
Game notes: The 64 points was the most Columbia allowed this season…Cohen had four assists and was held under five assists for the first time this season… Cory Osetkowski pulled down 10 rebounds for the first time this season… The loss was the first at home this season.
