WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Erik Etherly tied the game at 48-48 on a 3-pointer with 10-minutes, 38-seconds to play, but Wake Forest University went on a 7-0 run from which Loyola University Maryland would draw no closer than four, and the Demon Deacons defeated the Greyhounds, 75-63, in the season-opener on Friday night at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Coliseum.
Etherly’s three from the top left of the perimeter marked the first tie of the game, and after a pair of missed Nikita Mescheriakov free throws on the Wake Forest end, Loyola had the ball with the chance to take the lead.
The Demon Deacons, however, forced a turnover, and Travis McKie hit a pair from the charity stripe to start the Wake Forest run.
A Mescheriakov basket in the paint pushed the Demon Deacons’ lead to seven, 55-48, with 8:01 remaining, and Wake Forest would continue to hold Loyola scoreless until an Etherly free throw with 6:45 on the clock.
“I thought we took a few bad shots, and they capitalized on it,” Loyola Head Coach Jimmy Patsos said. “I have to watch the tape, but I thought the game was right there for the taking. They made a couple, and wemissed a couple.”
J’hared Hall cut it to four, 55-51, with a Loyola fast-break layup following an R.J. Williams steal, but McKie would push it back to six, 57-51, with a layup of his own at 5:37.
Daniel Green made one-of-two from the line more than aminute later, and Wake Forest’s lead was eight, 61-53.
Loyola closed within six twice, but the Greyhounds would not slice into the margin further than that for the remainder of the game.
C.J. Harris led Wake Forest with 20 points, and McKie added 19. Carson Desrosiers had a game-high 10 rebounds.
Four Loyola players scored in double-figures, led by Dylon Cormier’s 13, all of which came in the first half. Shane Walker and Justin Drummond each tallied 12, and Etherly added 11 for the Greyhounds.
Etherly, Walker and Drummond each had nine rebounds for Loyola, as the Greyhounds had a 45-39 advantage on the glass.
Loyola opens the home portion of its schedule on Monday night when it hosts Coppin State at 7:30 p.m.
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