Loyola knocks off No. 21 Dayton 77-72 for a key Atlantic 10 win — the Ramblers’ 8th victory in 9 games

Des Watson scored 24 points and Braden Norris made two crucial 3-pointers down the stretch, finishing with 19 points and 11 assists as Loyola defeated No. 21 Dayton 77-72 on Friday night.

Philip Alston made a 3 to give the Ramblers a 69-65 lead with 3 minutes, 3 seconds left, but Koby Brea answered with a 3-pointer for Dayton. With 2:09 remaining, Norris drained a 3 to put Loyola up 72-68. DaRon Holmes II cut it to 72-70 with two free throws, but Norris iced the game with another 3 from the corner with 17 seconds to go.

Alston scored 13 points and Miles Rubin blocked four shots for the Ramblers (21-8, 13-3 Atlantic 10), who have won eight of nine.

Holmes had 20 points and nine rebounds for Dayton (22-6, 12-4), which has dropped two of three. Enoch Cheeks added 16 points.

The teams entered tied for second place in the Atlantic 10 behind Richmond, which is 13-2 in conference play and plays host to VCU on Saturday.

Loyola rebounded after a 79-64 loss at St. Bonaventure on Tuesday.

Trailing by seven with less than six minutes left, Dayton quickly erased the deficit. Cheeks converted a three-point play and Holmes followed with a pair of free throws to tie it at 63.

Brea made a 3 and Nate Santos followed with a four-point play to give the Flyers a 52-47 lead with 13:47 remaining. But the Ramblers went on a run of their own later in the second half. Watson sank two free throws and Norris found Tom Welch for an alley-oop dunk that sent the crowd to its feet. Watson’s layup extended the lead to 59-54 with 7:55 left.

The Flyers led 35-32 at halftime. Holmes scored eight of the first 10 points for Dayton and had a team-high 10 points at the break.

Watson kept the Ramblers in the game with 16 points in the first half. He was 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Santos made a 3-pointer in front of the Loyola Chicago bench with 15 seconds left in the half to get the lead to 35-29, but Norris cut it to three with three free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt.

Photos: Loyola 77, No. 21 Dayton 72

Big picture

Dayton: After losing three of six, the Flyers are just a half-game ahead of VCU for third place in the Atlantic 10.

Loyola: It is March, they have 104-year-old team chaplain Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt on their side — can the Ramblers make another run?

Up next

Dayton: Plays at Saint Louis on Tuesday night before hosting its regular-season finale against VCU.

Loyola: Plays at Davidson on Wednesday before hosting its regular-season finale against La Salle.