Penguins lose on last-second shot

Tracy Robinson’s 3-pointer at the buzzer gave Loyola a 69-68 win.

VINDICATOR/WIRE REPORT

CHICAGO — Tracy Robinson hit a 3-point goal as the final buzzer sounded to give Loyola a 69-68 win over the Youngstown State men Thursday night in an Horizon League contest at the Gentile Center.

The defeat overshadowed a tremendous second half effort by the Penguins, who shot over 60 percent from the field in the half, but couldn’t come away with the victory.

“Just when you think things can’t get any lower, they do,” said YSU head coach Jerry Slocum. “I thought we play very hard tonight, but we needed one more free throw.”

The Penguins (7-14, 3-8 Horizon) and the Ramblers (8-13, 4-7) put on a battle from start to finish as there were 22 lead changes and four ties over the 40 minutes of basketball.

YSU trailed 31-27 at halftime after leading for most of the first half.

The Penguins’ biggest lead was 13-5 early in the half, but they still lead 25-20 with 7:30 remaining before the Ramblers finished the half with an 11-2 run.

YSU caught the Ramblers early in the second half and then the lead went back and forth for the next 10 minutes until the Penguins took a 54-53 lead with nine minutes remaining.

The Penguins held onto that lead until the 2:32 mark when Aric Van Weelden made two free throws to put Loyola ahead 64-63.

YSU’s John Barber, who had a double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds, scored to put the Penguins back on top, before J.R. Blount responded for Loyola with 50 seconds remaining.

The Penguins took their final lead 67-66 on another Barber basket and then senior Byron Davis had a chance to put the team up by three, but missed the back end of a one-on-one for a 68-66 lead with 10.9 seconds left.

The Ramblers, without any timeouts, came down the floor and Robinson let the shot fly just before the buzzer sounded for the game winner.

Senior Dwight Holmes had a career-high 19 points for the Penguins, while Davis added 14 and freshman Vance Cooksey finished with 10. Robinson led Loyola with 16 points.

The Penguins will continue on the road Saturday night when they take on Illinois-Chicago in an 8 p.m. tip off and the UIC Pavilion.