Ramblers take crosstown victory over Chicago State: 3 Observations

Ramblers take crosstown victory over Chicago State: 3 Observations originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

The Loyola Ramblers defeated crosstown rivals Chicago State Cougars by a score of 62-53 in a nerve-wracking competition.

Despite a slow start, the Ramblers maintained their cool and rallied, rising to a 4-3 record. Here are three observations from the win:

A less-than desirable start…

Chicago State came out firing early, taking as much as a ten-point lead early in the second half. The Ramblers, on the other hand, took a bit longer to warm up, shooting 35 percent from the field, including a 33.3 percent clip from beyond the arc to go along with 7 turnovers.

The Cougars utilized their perimeter shooting at a 50 percent clip to keep the Ramblers at bay for the first half before eventually wearing down.

Ramblers come right back

It was beginning to look bleak for the Ramblers, with the Cougars continuing to hold the Ramblers off. That all changed when the Ramblers went on a 16-0 run to take a commanding lead in the game’s late stages.

Leading the team was Des Watson, who scored 12 of his 13 points in the second half, along with Jalen Quinn who contributed with 11 in the second half. Also making an impact was graduate student Tom Welch, who only put up 3 points but had the second highest +/- rating with 14 in 16 minutes.

Defense wins games

As soon as the Ramblers got going, the Cougars went ice cold. Their once-hot shooting took a strong turn for the worse, putting forward a 22.7 percent total from the field along with a 1-5 range from three.

The Ramblers continued to put the clamps on them as the second half went on, holding them without a field goal for the final 11 minutes of the game, with the Cougars’ only points in that stretch coming from free throws.

The Ramblers now turn their attention to a rematch against Harvard, hosting a 3 p.m. tipoff on Saturday, which can be seen on NBC Sports Chicago+.