Lowery Gets 34, but Loyola Loses, 120-116

RENO —  It was the University of Nevada 67, Loyola Marymount University 61.

And that was merely the first-half score.

The Wolfpack, getting 31 points from Bryan Thomasson and shooting 57 free throws, beat the Lions, 120-116, in a nonconference game Friday night.

Nevada shot only 54.4% from the foul line, making 31. The 57 free throws is the most by a Loyola opponent. The old mark was 52, set by Gonzaga during the 1983-84 season. Loyola made 31 of 38 from the free-throw line.

Loyola’s Terrell Lowery was the game’s top scorer with 34 points. He also had eight assists and seven rebounds, both team highs.

Tony Walker, who made seven of seven field-goal attempts, had a career-high 21 points, and Brian McCloskey added 19 for the Lions (2-2).

Nevada (1-2) led for good after taking a 26-25 lead with 15:10 left in the first half.

The Wolfpack led, 73-61, early in the second half, but Loyola closed to within 115-112 on a jump shot by McCloskey with 1:51 left. However, a three-pointer by Nevada’s Ric Herrin made it 118-112 with 1:29 left.

“We played hard the whole game,” Loyola Coach Jay Hillock said. “Their free-throw shooting slowed out game down and changed the tempo to their favor.”