MONTGOMERY, Ala. – A memorable night Tuesday ended with an unfavorable outcome as Faulkner suffered a rare home loss, falling 82-79 to Loyola in overtime. The decisive moment came with 1.6 seconds left in the extra period when Jalen Galloway buried a three to seal the Wolfpack win.
C.J. Hines knotted the game at 79 with 21 seconds left when he made a pair of free throws. The Eagles got all six over their overtime points at the charity stripe while Loyola got two field goals from Zach Muller and one from Alex Hammond.
Including the overtime period, Faulkner went the final 9:15 without making a shot from the floor. The final field goal for the Eagles, which came with 4:15 left in regulation, saw Hines assist an
Isaiah Brooks bucket to stake the home team to an 11-point lead.
The Wolfpack responded with a 12-0 run that left Faulkner down 72-71 with 53 seconds left in regulation. Michael Harden's three from the left wing swung the Wolf pack into the lead. A loose ball foul with 9.9 showing on the clock sent Brooks to the line with a chance to flip the game back to Faulkner. The senior made both, giving Faulkner the 73-72 advantage. Two seconds later, Harden tied it at the line and missed the second shot.
A Hines drive with two seconds on the clock resulted in a charge call, giving Loyola one more look at it in regulation. Milan Mejia's heave hung on the rim for a moment before dropping off to send the game to overtime.
Faulkner, which played only seven players in the contest, led for the majority of the game before sputtering down the stretch. The Eagles won the rebounding battle 36-29 and won most of the ancillary categories including points in the paint, points off turnovers and second chance points. However, Loyola got 26 points off its bench while Faulkner mustered only five. The Wolfpack also shot it well from deep all night, hitting 12 of 25 attempts from the beyond the arc while Faulkner managed only five such makes on 24 attempts.
Four Wolfpack players scored in double figures with Galloway's 16 pacing the field. Hines topped the Eagles with 22.
Trace Hill had 16 while
Derek Murphy scored 13. Brooks notched 13 points highlighted by an absurd one-handed dunk off a deflected pass that ranked No. 7 on ESPN Sportscenter's Top 10 plays.
The game marked the first overtime contest for Faulkner since Oct. 31, 2020 and the first in Tine Davis since Jan. 21, 2019. The loss ends an 18-game win streak for the Eagles in Tine Davis Gymnasium, a streak that dates back to Dec. 4, 2021. The Eagles are now 47-3 in their last 50 games in Tine Davis with the other two losses coming against Talladega.
Faulkner (12-3, 4-3 SSAC) returns to action Saturday at 2 p.m. when it travels to Mobile.
