Photo courtesy of gobonnies.com
BY: SEAN WALLACE; SPORTS ASSIGNMENT EDITOR
The No. 9 St. Bonaventure University women’s basketball team faces No. 8 Loyola University Chicago in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament on Thursday at 11 a.m.
Teams that finished between the fifth and 10th seeds automatically advance to the second round of the A-10 tournament.
Bonaventure reaches the tournament’s second round for the first time since the 2015-16 season, when it finished 24-8 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament. No. 10 Saint Louis defeated No. 15 St. Bonaventure 60-50 in the first round of last year’s A-10 Tournament.
Last season, No. 12 George Washington University defeated No. 13 Loyola 56-44 in the first round.
The Ramblers (13-16, 9-9 A-10) swept the season series with the Bonnies (16-14, 7-11 A-10), winning 60-52 at home on Jan. 31 and 58-55 on the road on Feb. 21.
Following a 77-69 win over Fordham University, the Bonnies have won four out of their last seven games.
Bonaventure ranks sixth in the Atlantic 10 in field goal percentage and fourth in opponent field goal percentage, shooting 41.8% from the field and holding opponents to 38.8%.
Graduate guard Laycee Drake leads the Bonnies with 15.3 points, 6.1 and 2.5 assists per game.
Following a 70-57 road loss to La Salle University, the Ramblers have lost five out of their last six games. Their only win came over Bonaventure.
Loyola ranks last in the conference in scoring and 3-point field goals made, averaging 56.2 points and 4.5 3-point field goals per game. It also owns a conference-worst minus-6.4 rebound margin.
Graduate student guard Alexus Mobley leads the Ramblers, averaging 11.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
The game will air on ESPN+.
