WORCESTER, Mass. – Freshman guard Will Batchelder scored 21 points on eight of 12 shooting from the field, as the Holy Cross men's basketball team posted a 63-55 victory over Loyola (Md.) at the Hart Center at the Luth Athletic Complex. The Crusaders improve to 6-11 overall and 3-1 in the Patriot League with the win, while the Greyhounds fall to 5-12 on the year and 0-4 in the conference.

Holy Cross made 50.0 percent of its field goal attempts and 40.0 percent of its three-pointers on the day, while committing just seven turnovers. The Crusaders also held Loyola to just 39.6 percent shooting from the floor and 31.6 percent shooting from beyond the arc.

The game was close throughout a first half which featured five ties and seven lead changes. The Greyhounds opened the game with an early 9-5 lead, before Holy Cross used a 7-2 spurt to pull in front. The Crusaders would later go up by six (24-18) with 6:48 left until the break, but Loyola came back and would pull in front by one (31-30) heading into the locker room.

The Greyhounds were still up by two (35-33) early in the second half, when Batchelder drained three straight three-pointers to give Holy Cross a 41-36 advantage. The Crusader lead would stay between three and seven points for the majority of the half, and stood at 57-54 with 3:27 left to play. Holy Cross would then hold Loyola to just one more point the rest of the way, with a three-pointer by Batchelder being the only made field goal by either team in the final three minutes. 

Senior forward Gerrale Gates finished the day with 15 points, eight rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks, while junior guard Joe Octave added 11 points and three boards. The Greyhounds were led by Golden Dike with 13 points and 12 rebounds. 

Holy Cross returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 11, when it travels to Lehigh for a 7:00 p.m. game.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
• Batchelder hit the 20-point mark for the third time this season, while scoring in double-digits for the eighth time.
• Gates has now scored in double-figures in 25 straight games dating back to last season. 
• Holy Cross' 3-1 start through four games of Patriot League play is its best since the 2010-2011 season.
• The Crusaders have won 10 straight games when hitting at least 50 percent of their field goal attempts.

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