Five Takeaways: McDonogh vs Loyola

<p>In the opening round of the MIAA A Conference Playoffs last night, McDonogh hosted Loyola. This was the first time Loyola has made the playoffs since 2009. It was a great atmosphere, much because of the student sections from both schools. In a back-and-forth affair, McDonogh edged the Dons by a final score of 53-51.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Here are five takeaways from the match up:</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>The freshman comes up big for the Eagles</strong></span></p> <p>Freshman point guard <strong>Everett Cooper</strong> has been playing well as of late for McDonogh in big games. Last night was his biggest performance, leading his team with 17 points. Cooper was an assassin from beyond the arc as he buried five three's. The two teams kept exchanging the lead throughout the fourth quarter. As Loyola would hit a big shot, Cooper would convert on a three to swing the momentum back to McDonogh.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Fischer carries the Dons</strong></span></p> <p>A night after being named First Team All-BCL and the league's Most Improved Player, <strong>Mitchell Fischer</strong> put up a 20-point performance for Loyola. The Dons struggled mightily to score throughout the first quarter and much of the second, but Fischer was the one keeping his team's head above water. The 6-foot-6 forward scored 10 of his 20 points in the third quarter alone. He did a nice job of getting to the line and converting from the free-throw line, going 10-for-12 for the game. Fischer also finished with nine rebounds.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Jacobs puts on a gutsy, clutch performance</strong></span></p> <p>Junior wing <strong>Curtis Jacobs</strong> has been nursing a badly sprained ankle for the past week or so. You can tell his explosion isn't anywhere that it usually is indicated by the layers upon layers of tape wrapped around his ankle. He came off the bench in this game and played 20 minutes, but none were bigger than the time he played in the fourth quarter. The Penn State football commit scored eight of the team's 18 points. Both Jacobs and Cooper combined for 16 of the 18 scored in the final frame.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Fox finds his mark from deep</strong></span></p> <p>Senior guard <strong>Brendan Fox</strong> put on a solid performance for Loyola, finishing with 11 points. The 6-foot-4 guard hit two big three's in the third quarter to help give his team the lead and ignited the Loyola student section. Fox was an efficient 3-for-4 beyond the arc.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Looking forward</strong></span></p> <p>With the win, McDonogh advances to the MIAA Semifinals where they'll travel to the No. 1 seed in Mt. St. Joe. McDonogh lost by two the last time these teams met. Loyola is eliminated from MIAA playoff play, but will prepare for BCL bracket play beginning next week as they host Calvert Hall in a quarterfinal match-up.</p>