The Southern Miss men’s basketball team built on an offensive surge midway through the first half and defeated Loyola 104-65 on Tuesday night.
Golden Eagle guard Cobie Montgomery knocked down his first three-point basket of the night at the 9:54 mark and broke the 20-20 tie. From there Southern Miss (2-1) never relinquished its lead, cruising to victory in Reed Green Coliseum.
Southern Miss went on a 32-12 run to end the first half with a 52-32 lead. Jay Ladner’s crew was connected on nine of 14 shots from behind the arc and had 22 points in the paint in the first 20 minutes of action.
Coming out of the intermission, the Golden Eagles took a 26-point lead when Andre Curbelo connected on a layup. Going on a 9-2 run with 12:46 left, Southern Miss began substituting secondary players off the bench to finish out the contest against the NAIA opponent out of New Orleans.
Athleticism and physical strength played to the Golden Eagles’ advantage in the midweek outing. Ladner’s team amassed more rebounds and points in the paint than its counterpart. Southern Miss also boasted a higher scoring percentage and got more from its bench than the Lions.
What the coach said
Even though the team was not a Division I opponent, Ladner expressed tremendous respect for the Loyola Wolfpack. He also praised his team’s discipline in not overlooking its opponent.
“Overall, I am pleased with our guys and we have a great group of young guys, but I thank Loyola for their performance and have a ton of respect for them,” Ladner said. “You don’t have to raise your voice at our guys, they know what is needed and understand our philosophy.”
The numbers never lie
Montgomery led the team in scoring with 17 points. Four other Golden Eagles eclipsed double-digits on the scoreboard.
The Golden Eagles shot 57% from the floor, had 25 second-chance points, and outscored Loyola in the paint 56-22. Defensively, Southern Miss forced 14 turnovers, had 7 blocks, and 11 steals while only one Wolfpack player scored in double digits.
Next up
Southern Miss plays their next game on the road on November 20 at the Frost Arena in South Dakota. The Golden Eagles will play in the Midco Sports Plus against South Dakota State at 7 p.m. CT.