Loyola-Chicago continues its run as this year's March Madness "Cinderella" with tonight's 69-68 nail-biter win over 7-seed Nevada.
This victory is the 11-seed Ramblers' third win in three games that has come down to the wire. This time around, the go-ahead bucket was a corner three-pointer from Marques Townes, who finished the game with 18 points, to put Loyola-Chicago up 69-65 with less than 10 seconds remaining. The assist was dished off by Clayton Custer, the hero behind the team's miraculous Round of 32 victory. Even with the four-point cushion, the lead was not safe. Nevada came down the floor and drilled a three of its own to cut the lead to one. Unfortunately, the clock had already ticked down to one second leaving Nevada's hopes at a buzzer-beater win all but moot.
Loyola-Chicago's Sweet 16 victory clinches the team's first Elite 8 appearance in the past 55 years. The squad's opponent will be the winner of the Kansas St.-Kentucky matchup. One thing is for sure, the Ramblers' superfan Sister Jean cannot wait to cheer on her favorite team in the next round of the tournament when it takes the court this Saturday.
