CHICAGO - Loyola Chicago is set to play No. 18 Saint Louis on Friday in Gentile Arena. It marks the first of two meetings this season between the Ramblers and Billikens. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. CT.

Friday's game will be on ESPN 2 with Mike Corey (PXP) and John Giannini (Analyst) and can be listened to Rambler Sports Network with Scott Sudikoff (PXP) and Christian Thomas (Senior Analyst).

RAMBLINGS
• Loyola snapped a nine-game losing streak vs. La Salle at home last week, 71-61. All nine Ramblers scored, while four of them hit double-figures.
• Joshua Ola-Joseph led with 16 points on 5-8 from the field and 5-7 at the line. Justin Moore added 12, Kayde Dotson had 11, and Xavier Amos scored 10.
• Miles Rubin led Loyola at Davidson to close the week's action. He had 17 on 8-11 from the field. He added seven rebounds and three blocks.
• Prior to the Davidson trip, Rubin was on a five-game double-figure rebounding streak. He grabbed a season-high 12 at St. Bonaventure to spark the streak, followed up with 10 in the next three games, and tallied 11 more vs. La Salle.
• Rubin ranks among some of the A-10's top players in rebounding and blocks. His 190 rebounds ranks third, while his 7.6 rebounds per game sits fourth. Rubin's 59 total blocks leads the league and ranks 11th, and his 2.4 bpg ranks second in the league and 15th in the NCAA.
• January's action wrapped up with Rubin, Amos, Ola-Joseph, and Nic Anderson averaging at least 10 points per game each. Rubin neared a double-double over the nine games, leading Loyola with 11.1 ppg and 9.1 rpg.
• Amos averaged 11.0 over five appearances. Ola-Joseph and Anderson averaged 10.7 and 10.1 ppg, respectively.
• During this stretch, Ola-Joseph has two 20-point outings. He went 7-14 with four threes at George Washington to record a season-high 20 points. He had 20 again at St. Bonaventure on 6-12 from the field with five threes.
• Head coach Drew Valentine is in his fifth season at the helm. He has compiled an 89-70 overall record as head coach.

SCOUTING SAINT LOUIS
Saint Louis enters Saturday's game at 23-1 overall and 11-0 in A-10 play as the Billikens ride a 17-game win streak into Friday. SLU has one of the country's top defenses, holding their opponents to 36.4 percent from the field and 27 percent from three-point range, ranking first and second in the country respectively. The Billikens also rank in the nation's top-five in effective field goal percentage, fast break points, defensive rebounds per game, scoring margin, three-point percentage, and three pointers per game.

Robbie Avila is SLU's top scorer, averaging 12.8 points per game. He has 14 games with at least 10 points scored, including a season-high 22 vs. George Washington. Trey Green adds 12.0 ppg and leads the A-10 with 3.13 three-pointers made per game. His three-point field goal percentage (47.1) ranks third in the country.

Head coach Josh Schertz is in his second season with the Billikens and holds a 42-16 record at the helm.

SERIES HISTORY
Loyola leads the all-time series, 28-25. The ramblers downed the Billikens last season in the A-10 tournament, 72-64.