Men's Basketball Final Shot: Jan. 11 - The Reggie Arceneaux Show

Men’s Basketball Scoreboard (Jan. 11)
Wright State 62, Loyola 61

Reggie Arceneaux is listed – generously – at 5-foot-9. The shortest starter in the Horizon League, Areceneaux took over down the stretch, carrying Wright State to a 62-61 win at Loyola before a national television audience on ESPNU.

The win extended Wright State's (13-4, 4-0 Horizon) best start to season since the 1989-90 campaign; at 4-0 in the Horizon League, the Raiders are off to their best start since the 2005-06 season.

Wright State trailed throughout the second half, taking its only lead of the half on Arceneaux’s 25-foot three with 1:35 to play put the Raiders ahead, 62-61. The three capped a career night for the sophomore, who finished with 29 points on 6-of-10 shooting from three-point range and 9-of-14 overall.

Still, Loyola (10-6, 1-3 Horizon) had three golden looks at a go-ahead bucket in the final minute, as Devon Turk’s three-point attempt spun out of the cylinder with 55 seconds to play, only to be rebounded by Jordan Hicks. Hicks’ putback, however, was blocked by Cole Darling and wound up in his hands.

A defensive stop gave Loyola one last look at the win, but Ben Averkamp’s runner in the lane caught the rim and backboard before falling off. Matt Vest collected the board for Wright State and tossed it to the opposite end of the court as time expired.

It was Loyola’s second straight agonizing loss at home, and second consecutive home loss in which the Ramblers squandered a double-digit lead. After losing a 14-point lead to Youngstown State in 68-66 defeat, Loyola led, 36-25, with 17:42 to go before Arceneaux put the Raiders on his back.

Arceneaux’s first three of the second half came immediately after Loyola went up 11, and following a Christian Thomas layup, Darling answered with a three to draw Wright State within seven.

Loyola would hold the advantage throughout the half, as Joe Crisman’s three-point play restored the Ramblers’ eight-point advantage, 53-45, with 7:21 to go.

Still, Arceneaux kept Wright State in the game, hitting a three to make it a 55-50 game with 6:34 remaining; the sophomore’s three-point play drew the Raiders within two before back-to-back jumpers from Darling brought the game even, 59-59, at the 2:22 mark.

Out of a timeout, Thomas hit a jumper from the elbow to put Loyola back in front, but it would be the final points of the game for the Ramblers.

Arceneaux scored 19 of his 29 in the second half; the total was the highest by a player in Horizon League competition this season. Darling, limited to zero points and five rebounds in the first half, scored 12 in the second, finishing with a double-double after totaling 11 rebounds.

Averkamp led Loyola with 15, controlling the low block. Thomas notched his second double-double of the season for the Ramblers with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Turk came off the bench to score 14 points, going 4-of-6 from three-point range.

Loyola will take on intra-city rival UIC on Wednesday, Jan. 16, at 8 p.m. EST, while Wright State will be off until Saturday, Jan. 19, when the Raiders travel to Valparaiso for an 8:05 p.m. EST tip.