Christian Thomas and Joe Crisman both scored 17 points to pace Loyola over Illinois State 79-69 on Sunday.Loyola (9-15, 4-8 Missouri Valley) raced out to a 15-5 lead, hitting six of its first seven shots, including four treys – two by Thomas. The Ramblers cruised to a 37-20 halftime lead.A 7-0 run by Illinois State (13-11, 6-6), including a trey by Nick Zeisloft, cut its deficit to nine at the 14-minute mark of the second. But Loyola responded with a 7-0 run of its own and its lead never dipped into single digits again.Loyola shot 55 percent from the floor and made 8 of 16 from beyond the arc. Nick Osborne and Milton Doyle both added 14 points.Paris Lee led Illinois State with 14 points and Daishon Knight added 10.