DePaul University
Loyola
No. 16/15 DePaul Upset by Hot-Shooting Loyola
12/21/2015 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
CHICAGO -No. 16/15 DePaul ran into a torrid-shooting opponent Monday afternoon at McGrath-Phillips Arena.
The Blue Demons fell 88-75 to North Side rival Loyola, which shot 60.7 percent from the floor.
Chanise Jenkins led DePaul with 20 points, five rebounds and four assists while Jessica January had 16 points, five rebounds and six assists. Megan Podkowa finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and four assists while roommate Brooke Schulte had 10 points and seven boards.
Taylor Johnson paced Loyola (3-7) with 24 points and eight assists as the Ramblers had five players in double figures. Sam Lambrigtsen had 21 points while Taylor Manuel came away with 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.
Dakota Vann (13 points) helped stake Loyola to a 70-55 lead early in the fourth quarter. Jenkins' second three-pointer of the quarter ignited a 13-2 Blue Demon run in narrowing the gap to 72-68. That rally was keyed by DePaul coach Doug Bruno switching his team into a zone defense.
The Ramblers responded with a 6-2 burst in moving ahead 78-70 with 1:42 left on the clock. After a Taylor Johnson basket, Schulte buried a three. Loyola responded with two scores for an 84-73 lead.
"Loyola did a good job of taking it to us," Bruno said. "They are one of the best teams with a 3-7 record because they play a tough schedule like we do.
"We were in a position to have a great December, but we kept having games that would cancel that out. We had a great game and beat nationally ranked Texas A&M but canceled that out with a loss at South Dakota State. We beat nationally ranked Northwestern and canceled that out by losing to Loyola."
Trailing by 11 at halftime, the Blue Demons narrowed the deficit to 53-45 midway through the third quarter. When DePaul went cold, Loyola continued adding to its lead. Back-to-back baskets by Nieka Wheeler gave the Ramblers a 63-49 lead. Ashton Millender hit a three-pointer in slicing the deficit to 63-52 heading into the fourth quarter.
DePaul (8-5) wrapped up the nonconference portion of its regular-season schedule with this setback. The Blue Demons opened the game with an 11-2 run as Podkowa and Jenkins buried three-pointers.
The Ramblers rallied from the slow start, outscoring the home team 17-9 in drawing within 20-19. A Jenkins driving layup gave DePaul a 22-19 lead after one quarter. The Blue Demons committed an uncharacteristic eight turnovers in the first 10 minutes.
Led by Lambrigtsen, Loyola opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run in taking a 30-22 lead. Lambrigtsen hit a pair of threes and had 17 points in the first 12 minutes.
Baskets by January, Schulte and Jacqui Grant off a nice baseline feed from Schulte brought the Blue Demons within 30-28. It was tied 30-30 when Loyola took off on an 11-0 burst in building a 41-30 advantage heading into halftime. That was the fewest points DePaul has scored in the first half this season.
Podkowa came into the Loyola game playing her best basketball of the season. Her 20 points and career-high 18 rebounds had led the Blue Demons to an 80-66 victory over then-No. 15/16 Texas A&M on Dec. 12 in College Station, Texas.
Last week, the 6-foot, 2-inch forward totaled 21 points and 11 rebounds in an 88-79 loss at South Dakota State. Two days ago, Podkowa scored a career-high 27 points and grabbed 14 boards in a 77-64 triumph at No. 12/13 Northwestern.
After a Christmas break, DePaul takes on rival Marquette in its BIG EAST Conference opener at 7 p.m. on Dec. 29 at McGrath-Phillips Arena.
