Mocs Beat Loyola Chicago to Advance to NIT Championship Game
(gomocs.com) The incredible and dramatic postseason run continues. The Chattanooga Mocs men’s basketball team punched its ticket to the 2025 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) Championship after rallying for a thrilling 80-73 victory over Loyola Chicago in the semifinals on Tuesday night inside historic Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Chattanooga (28-9) moves on to face UC Irvine (32-6) in the NIT Championship Game on Thursday, April 3 inside Hinkle Fieldhouse. Tip-off is set for 9 p.m. ET while the game will be televised nationally on ESPN.
Quick Recap
The Chattanooga Mocs kept the postseason train steaming ahead with an 80-73 win over Loyola Chicago Tuesday night in the NIT semifinals at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Trey Bonham led four double figure scorers for the good guys with 23 points.
The Mocs trailed by as many as nine in the first half, 36-27 at 3:04. That got flipped with an extended run. It turned into an 8-point advantage after the 28-11 spurt over 11-plus minutes was capped by Honor Huff’s three at 11:51.
The lead reached eight twice and 10 once on a Collin Mulholland follow, but the Ramblers would not fold. It closed to within two on Des Watson’s three and again at 4:16 on a Miles Rubin jumper, 72-70. But the Mocs kept finding answers whether it was Sean Cusano free throws or a Makai Richards layup. The drama just increased.
Watson came up big again with another three at 2:37 to cut it to 74-73. On the ensuing possession, the Ramblers were called for goaltending but after official review, it was overturned. The teams traded stops as the clock ticked inside the final minute.
Huff came up big in the clutch. He drilled a trey as the clock bypassed 35 seconds, his fourth of the game to give his crew some breathing room. The Mocs got yet another stop with Garrison Keeslar grabbing a huge board before getting fouled with 15.7 to go. He made one of two for a 78-73 advantage.
Keeslar came up with a smart play with 11.3 on the clock. With a foul to give, he let the Ramblers up court but stopped momentum into a play call. A missed three was again rebounded by Keeslar who kicked it up the floor to Bonham who put the exclamation point on the 7-point triumph.
Chattanooga moves onto the NIT Championship game Thursday night in Hinkle Fieldhouse. The matchup is UC Irvine on ESPN at 9 p.m.
RECORDS – Chattanooga: 28-9 | Loyola Chicago: 26-11
