Loyola won the defense-dominated game despite foul trouble and poor shooting.
Loyola's Shane Walker celebrates in the crowd after the Greyhounds defeated Fairfield University in the MAAC men's final at the MassMutual Center on Monday. SPRINGFIELD – Some unsuspecting team from a major conference is going to get all they can handle from a determined Loyola (Md.) team that punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament here Monday night.
Despite foul trouble to two of their best players and a poor shooting performance, the Greyhounds won their second Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference championship, beating Fairfield 48-44 at the MassMutual Center.
It was the first MAAC championship – and first trip to the NCAA Tournament with the conference automatic bid – since the late Skip Prosser led Loyola to an upset of Manhattan in 1994.
With the top two defensive teams in the MAAC on the court, it’s no surprise it was a low-scoring affair. The 48 points were a season low for the Greyhounds, as were the 44 for the Stags.
Junior forward Erik Etherly was named the tournament Most Valuable Player while teammates Robert Olson and Justin Drummond made the all-tournament team. Fairfield’s Rakim Sanders and Desmond Wade also made the team.
Etherley finished with 10 points and seven rebounds, but he had a big presence under the defensive basket, blocking three shots and altering more. Eight of the nine Greyhounds who played scored.
The Stags were led by Sanders with 12, Olander with 11 and Maurince Barrow with 10.
Battling foul trouble and the No. 1 defense in the MAAC, the Greyhounds were fortunate to get to halftime with just a four-point deficit, 30-26.
Starters Etherly and Shane Walker were both in foul trouble. Etherly, a All-MAAC first-teamer and the Greyhounds' leading scorer, picked up two fouls in the first minute, 16 seconds but managed to get through the rest of the half without getting his third.
Walker wasn’t as fortunate, picking up his third ticket with 7:55 left in the half, which sent him to the bench until the second half.
Early on the Greyhounds were dictating play, taking a 16-9 lead thanks to some strong perimeter shooting. But the Stags ramped up the man-to-man defense and staged a comeback that turned the momentum in their direction.
Offensively it was an inside attack for Fairfield, the only perimeter points in the half coming on a 3-pointer by center Olander. Barrow and Sanders did the work inside and as a team the Stags were 11 for 14 at the foul line.
It was a different Loyola team in the second half, holding the Greyhounds scoreless for the first 7:48, applying fullcourt pressure after made baskets and playing an aggressive switching man defense in the halfcourt that produced steals, blocks and bad shot attempts.
The Stags missed their first 13 shots of the second half, but despite all that their largest deficit was just seven points. Colin Nickerson’s steal and driving layup ended the field goal drought for the Stags and seemed to get their offense going to a degree that any offense could go in this game.
Loyola was enjoying a six-point lead with a little under three minutes to play when Wade buried a 3-pointer, just the second of game for the Stags, to cut the lead to 47-44 and give Fairfield hope that it could make a comeback.
The Stags got a defensive stop and set up a play to tie the game but Olander’s 3-pointer missed the mark. Barrow grabbed the offensive rebound, one of his six offensive boards among his game-high 13 rebounds, and went for the putback but Etherly blocked his shot and Loyola grabbed the rebound.
Dylon Cormier had a one-and-one for Loyola but missed it, giving Fairfield one more chance. Sanders took the shot, a 3-pointer, but it was off the mark and Walker grabbed the rebound with 2.8 seconds left.
Walker made one of two to make it a two-possession game and allowed the Greyhounds to celebrate a championship.