Loyola nearly upsets No. 5 K-State

In search of its first win over a Top 5 team since 1984, Loyola almost enjoyed the perfect storm Saturday afternoon against Kansas State.

Emphasis on the almost.

“I thought defensively, we played good enough to win,” said Ramblers coach Jim Whitesell. “We certainly rebounded well enough to win. They missed enough free throws for us to win.”

But Loyola missed plenty of every kind of shot against the fifth-ranked Wildcats and fell 68-60 before 4,821 at Gentile Center the third-largest crowd in the building's 15-year history.

“We're lucky to get out of here,” said Kansas State coach Frank Martin.

The Ramblers trailed by 14 points with 8:33 to go, but finally hit their first three 3-pointers to pull within 3 with 3:34 to go.

Kansas State (9-1) never allowed Loyola to regain the ball with a chance to get closer.

Senior point guard Jacob Pullen, the Proviso East High School graduate whose presence inspired Kansas State to schedule the game, shrugged off a off-day shooting (5 of 17) to finish with a game-high 19 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists.

“This whole week he was overburdened with friends and family,” Martin said. “Whether it be (arranging) tickets or they want to see him and to play well and to do this and to do that ...”

Loyola (8-3) settled for doing a lot of everything except shooting.

The Ramblers shot just 31 percent from the field, 21 percent on 3-pointers and 59 percent at the line as senior guards Geoff McCammon (5 of 20) and Terrance Hill (2 of 9) couldn't find the range.

McCammon missed his first seven 3-point attempts before drilling back-to-back 3-pointers to ignite Loyola's rally with 7:33 to go.

The Ramblers stayed close to that point because they forced 14 turnovers and became the first team to outrebound Kansas State.

The Wildcats entered the game as one of the nation's best rebounding teams with a plus-10.3 margin, but Loyola grabbed 23 of its 49 missed shots.

McCammon contributed a career-high 8 rebounds, while sophomore power forward Ben Averkamp piled up a career-high-tying 17 points with 7 rebounds and 4 blocks.

“They did a heck of a job defensively and obviously just kicked our tails on the offensive glass,” Martin said. “They're fun to watch. Watching them on tape, I knew this game was hard.”