CHICAGO - Loyola Chicago closed the regular season with back-to-back wins, clinching the No. 4 seed and double-bye into the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals this week. The Ramblers are set for a 1 p.m. CT tip-off against No. 5 Saint Louis. A full schedule and bracket can be found on the Atlantic 10 championship central page.
Quarterfinals will be aired on USA Network, semifinals on CBSSN, and championship on CBS. Games can also be listened to Rambler Sports Network with
Scott Sudikoff (PXP) and Christian Thomas (Analyst).
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, March 14, 2025 • Quarterfinals • 1:00 p.m. CT • Washington D.C. - Capital One Arena
Stats: atlantic10.com • TV: USA Network • Radio: Rambler Sports Network
Saturday, March 15, 2025 • Semifinals • 12:00 p.m. CT • Washington D.C. - Capital One Arena
Stats: atlantic10.com • TV: CBSSN • Radio: Rambler Sports Network
Sunday, March 16, 2025 • Championship • 12:00 p.m. CT • Washington D.C. - Capital One Arena
Stats: atlantic10.com • TV: CBS • Radio: Rambler Sports Network
RAMBLINGS
• Dawson scored a team-best 17 points, while Watson and Edwards Jr. added 14 and 12, respectively. Houinsou recorded career-highs with 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his first career double-double.
• Last week's play opened against Davidson with an 82-72 win on senior night.
• Loyola finished with a 16-1 home record. The 16 home wins is the most the program has seen since 1965-66. The Ramblers are 31-3 over the last two seasons on their home court.
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Sheldon Edwards Jr. made history in the win vs. the Wildcats. He opened the game going 4-4 from three-point range and set the new single-season record three makes in with 86. Edwards Jr. has 90 made threes following the game. He went 7-12 behind the arc, which is the second most on the single-game list and second time he's made seven in a game this season.
• Edwards Jr. finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds for his second career double-double and first in the Maroon & Gold. It tied his season-high in points and set a new season-best in rebounds. Edwards Jr. added four assists.
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Kymany Houinsou scored a career-high 19 points. Twelve came in the second half alone. Houinsou was 7-8 from the field and 5-6 at the line. He filled the box score with six boards and four assists.
• Dawson and Rubin earned All-Atlantic 10 honors earlier this week. Dawson was tabbed to the second team, while Rubin collected All-Defensive honors for the second straight season.
• Rubin moved up in national rankings. He sits eighth in total blocks (74) and block percentage (12.3) and 11th in blocks per game (2.4).
• Loyola is looking for its first A-10 Tournament win since joining the league in 2022-23.
• Head coach
Drew Valentine is in his fourth season at the helm. He has compiled a 79-49 overall record as head coach.
SCOUTING SAINT LOUIS
Loyola learned it would take on Saint Louis after the No. 5 seed handed No. 12 Davidson an 83-75 loss in the second round. SLU finished the regular season at 18-13 overall with an 11-7 record in A-10 play. The Billikens are the top shooting team in the conference, averaging 47.5 percent from the field, which ranks 45th in the NCAA. They're top-20 in effective field goal percentage (.563). SLU shot over 42 percent on Feb. 14 in a loss at Gentile and over 58 percent on March 1 in their home win over Loyola.
Three Billikens were tabbed All-Conference. Gibson Jimerson was a first team selection, Robbie Avila second team, and Isaiah Swope third team. All three game big games for SLU in the second round to advance to the quarterfinals. Swope and Jimerson dropped 26 and 25 points, respectively. Avila neared a triple-double with 13 points, 11 boards, and seven assists.
SLU is led by head coach Josh Schertz in his first season with the Billikens. Over his 17-year career, he's compiled a 422-122 record.
