Following a win over Montebello to advance to the semifinals, the Cubs played the Dominguez Dons for a chance to be among the last two standing in the El Rancho Tournament.

Starting Lineup

PG: Jalen Cox, #3 (6’3”, Sr., G)

SG: Jonas de Krassel, #20 (6’4”, So., G/F)

SF: Vincent Sampson, #30 (6’3”, Sr., F/C)

PF: Hugh Vandeweghe, #24 (6’6”, So., F/C)

C: Parker Jones, #13 (6’6”, Sr., F/C)

First Quarter

The Dons jump out to a 6-2 lead, but Jones gets a steal and the Cubs miss an opportunity to score.  The Dons are still in control throughout the first, building a 13-4 lead when Jacoby Kelly gets a steal.  However, the Cubs are still unable to take advantage.  Following a series of misses from both teams, Cox gets a steal and finds de Krassel open for a corner three.  He buries it, making it a 13-7 ball game.  On the next Cubs possession, de Krassel drives and finds Jones open in the corner for a three and he drains it.  Later on, Jones hits another three to tie it at 13.  Both teams fail to score and the quarter ends.

Score: Tied at 13

Second Quarter

The game sits at 13-13. Cox passes the ball to Toliver who then throws it, but misses. Luckily, Cox catches the ball and scores it instead. The ball gets passed around from Sampson to Cox to Stern to Pentz who then throws the ball only to miss. Both Cox and Sampson eventually score a point. Dons get a free throw and score the first round while missing the second one. They get another round of free throws and score both times. The score currently sits at 22-19 Dons. After a few minutes of playing, Krassel gets a free throw and scores two points. Cox catches the ball from the Dons and tosses it to Krassel, who throws the ball but misses the shot. Sampson gets two free throws and scores both of them.  It is now 23-22 Cubs. Later on, Vandeweghe catches a missed shot and passes the ball to Cox who then passes it to Krassel who makes a three. The Dons catch up with a three to make it a one-point game at halftime.

Score: 26-25 Loyola

Third Quarter

Jones passes the ball to Vandeweghe who then passes it to Cox. Cox throws the ball at the hoop, but misses the shot only for the Dons to score a point instead. The players go through rounds of passing the ball to each other and missing the shot. The score currently stands at 30-26 Dons. Cox runs towards the hoop and the ball in his hands and throws it, only to miss the shot. The Dons afterwards make two free throws for a 33-26 lead. Sampson passes the ball to Jones who then passes it to Krassel, only for him to end the passing streak. After some passing and missing, the Dons score and get a 26-35 lead. Krassel eventually earns some free throws and scores twice, making it a 28-35 game. Later on, Cox earns a free throw and makes it. The Dons then scored 29-40. Both teams then score 31-40 and Cox makes a three, as the score stands 34-40 Dons. The Cubs earn a free throw and make it, ending the quarter with five points behind the Dons.

Score: 35-40 Domiguez

Fourth Quarter

Jones runs and scores two points. He then goes up against a Dons player and attempts to block. The Cubs eventually earned three points to tie the game at 40. After a quick timeout, the players go back and the game resumes. Cox and Toliver attempt to score until Cox succeeds to give the Cubs the lead. The Dons then get free throws and score.  It is now tied at 42. Cox maneuvers around and scores a two pointer. Dons catch up with another set of free throws, earning them two more points. The Cubs then earn an additional two points with, but the Dons once again catch up and are now only a point behind thanks to free throws.  The score is now 46-45 Cubs. After more missed shots, Dons take the lead 48-46. Pentz helps the team catch up with a free throw. The Cubs continuously pass the ball around each other until Toliver goes and makes a three. The Cubs now lead 50-48. The Dons make a three to regain the lead and earn an additional point with a free throw. Luckily as the quarter nears its end, Cox gains two points from free throws, making it a 52-52 stalemate. Both teams miss shots and we head into overtime.

Score: Tied at 52

Overtime

The Cubs pass the ball around until Cox attempts a shot but misses. Jones tries as well but also misses a shot. Vandeweghe earns the team more points from free throws with the score now 54-52. Then Krassel passes the ball to Jones who then scores with a two pointer, giving the Cubs a 56-52 lead. After some missed free throws and a round of passing the ball, Pentz scores two more, and it’s a 58-52 Cubs lead. Jones goes to block a shot from the Dons. The Cubs earn more free throws with 60-52. While the Dons score two more points with 62-54, the Cubs would go on to win the game with a 62-54 lead.

FINAL: 62-54 Loyola

Postgame

After the game, coach Powell said, “We knew this was going to be the toughest game we played all year. Their style of play gives us problems with the pressure and trapping, and it bothered us, but we found a way to win the game.”  As for the team morale during overtime, he remarked, “I was just happy to have life, cause we were losing, and we had life to continue. It was looking dark for a little bit. Once we got to overtime, I felt our depth would pay some dividends, cause we had a much deeper team and that proved to be the point.”

Coach Powell also spoke to the keys to winning the game, one of which was the play of senior guard and San Diego State football commit Jacoby Kelly, who recently joined the team after Loyola football wrapped up their season. Powell said, “He’s one of the best football players on the team, and I just thought he played great defense, he made a couple of key plays, he took a charge in overtime.” He continued, “I really thought his energy changed the course the whole second half and overtime.”

The Next Game

The Cubs face Bell Gardens today at 2:30 PM.