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CHICAGO – Loyola Chicago used a late 11-0 run to defeat Saint Louis 78-69 on Friday in Atlantic 10 Conference men’s basketball at Gentile Arena in Chicago.
The Billikens fall to 14-12 overall and 7-6 in league play with their third straight loss. Loyola Chicago improves to 16-9 and 7-5 in conference play.
Gibson Jimerson led the Billikens with 20 points 5-of-10 shooting from 3-point range. Robbie Avila contributed 19 points, a season-high 13 rebounds and seven assists. Kobe Johnson (14 points on 6-8 FG) and Isaiah Swope (12 points) also scored in double digits for the Bills.
The exciting, back-and-forth game featured eight ties and 17 lead changes. SLU led for the majority game and went up by three at 65-62 on an Avila 3-pointer with a little more than four minutes left. But the Ramblers would score the next 11 points, and SLU wasn’t able to get it to within a possession late in the game as Loyola Chicago held on for the win.
SLU led 37-35 in a back-and-forth first half. The Billikens held Loyola Chicago without a basket for more than seven minutes at one point in the first frame as SLU erased an early seven-point deficit with a 12-0 run.
Johnson scored SLU’s last eight points in the final two-plus minutes of the first half as part of his game-leading 12 points (5-5 FG) at the break.
The Billikens shot 42.1 percent from the field, 37.9 percent from 3-point range and 83.3 percent from the line. SLU had 19 assists on its 24 field goals.
The Billikens have a midweek bye and return to A-10 action on Saturday, Feb. 22, hosting Rhode Island at Chaifetz Arena. Game time on USA Network is 1:30 p.m.
