HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The William Carey Men's Basketball Team picked up a big conference win with an 81-77 victory over Loyola University Saturday afternoon at Clinton Gym.
 
"Both teams had their moments in a hard-fought contest," said Head Coach Steve Knight. "Neither team would give in, and both made big plays down the stretch. It was a good game for the fans to see and I am pleased we came out on top. It was just a tough game and both teams did a lot of good things."
 
Carey opened the game with a layup by Dylan Brumfield and after a Loyola three pointer, Ashton Campbell responded with a three of his own with Cam Brown following with a layup to give Carey an early 7-3 lead.
 
For the next ten minutes both teams traded shots with neither leading by more than three points until a Makeem Roberts layup with seven minutes remaining made it 24-19 Carey. After a pair of free throws by the Wolfpack, the Crusaders went on a 9-3 run with Campbell scoring seven of those points.
 
Over the final minutes of the half, Carey managed to pull away to a 39-27 lead behind a huge defensive effort that held Loyola just three points with those coming from the free throw line.
 
Coming out of the break, WCU held a comfortable lead for over ten minutes of the half. With Carey leading 66-54 with nine minutes to play, the Wolfpack offense found their stride and over the next five minutes fought their way back, retaking the lead 73-72.
 
After a two-minute scoreless drought by both teams, Brown broke the drought with a pair of free throws followed by a jumper to put Carey back in front 76-73. Loyola kept up the attack, cutting the deficit just one at 78-77 but a clutch layup by Brumfield with under a minute to play pushed the Crusader lead back to three. The WCU defense again came through, this time holding the Wolfpack scoreless over the final seconds to seal the win.
 
Ashton Campbell led the offense with 20 points and eight rebounds. Dylan Brumfield finished with 18 points with Cam Brown adding 11 points.
 
Carey is back in action Thursday, January 9, as they head to West Point, Ga. to take on Point University in SSAC action. Play is set to begin at 6:30 pm.