NEW ORLEANS, La. – UT Southern closed out the regular season Saturday afternoon with a 95–78 setback at Loyola, battling back in the second half after a challenging opening 20 minutes.
Loyola struck first, but the Firehawks answered quickly. Eric Robinson got UT Southern on the board with a jumper at the 18:16 mark, and Antonio Cochran followed with a mid-range bucket to trim the deficit to 5–4. Mike Bell, Jr. then gave the Firehawks their only lead of the afternoon at 8–7 with back-to-back jumpers, including a tough finish at the 16:44 mark.
From there, Loyola caught fire from beyond the arc. A string of three-pointers sparked a decisive run that pushed the margin into double digits. Daniel Reyes converted inside and Robinson knocked down a three at the 11:15 mark to make it 21–14, but the Wolf Pack continued to stretch the lead with perimeter shooting.
Jack Harper drilled a three at the 9:09 mark to keep UT Southern within eight, and JaMil Wilson added a pair of free throws and a jumper late in the half. Cochran closed the period with a three-pointer in the final seconds, but the Firehawks trailed 54–28 at the break.
UT Southern showed resilience coming out of halftime. Cochran opened the second-half scoring with a jumper and later converted a three-point play to spark momentum. Luke Lentz provided a major lift off the bench, scoring 21 second-half points, including four three-pointers in a five-minute stretch. His triple at the 7:06 mark cut the deficit to 80–51, and he stayed aggressive attacking the rim and drawing contact.
Kiah Key also delivered a strong second-half performance, knocking down two threes and finishing through traffic in transition. Key's three at the 3:21 mark trimmed the margin to 17, and he continued to pressure defensively while adding free throws late. Harper added a mid-range jumper and a pair of free throws in the closing minutes, while Cochran connected on another three with 1:25 remaining.
The Firehawks outscored Loyola 50–41 in the second half, shooting 44.4 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from three after the break.
Lentz led UT Southern with 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting and 4-of-8 from three-point range. Cochran added 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds while also recording three steals. Key finished with 10 points, four assists, and three rebounds. Robinson contributed 10 points and five assists, while Wilson added eight points. Harper chipped in seven points, and Bell, Jr. finished with six.
The seeds are set for the 2026 SSAC Men's Basketball Championship Feb. 25–28 in Montgomery, Ala.
All games will be streamed for free on the Urban Edge Network and tickets are being sold online only. Both men's and women's championships will take place at the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl, with 18 games over four days culminating in two teams cutting down the nets on Saturday, Feb. 28.
For spectators, outside food and drinks are not allowed in the facility and there is a clear bag policy.
UT Southern enters the tournament as the West No. 5 seed and will face East No. 4 seed Point on Wednesday, February 25 at 2:15 p.m. in the SSAC Championship Opening Round.
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