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Feb. 21, 2006
Loyola (15-10, 6-8) vs. Wright State (13-12, 8-6)
February 22, 2006 - Gentile Center
7:00 pm CST - WAUR (AM 930)
Tonight's Game: Loyola plays its final regular-season home game of the 2005-06 season as Wright State visits the Gentile Center. The Ramblers are looking to avenge a 77-63 loss to the Raiders at the Nutter Center in Dayton last month. Seeding for the Horizon League Championship is still up for grabs heading into the final week of the season as only two losses separate the third and seventh-place teams. Loyola is looking to win back-to-back games for the first time since Jan. 15-19, when it defeated UIC and Butler. The Ramblers have won six of their last seven home games against teams from the state of Ohio.
Loyola - Wright State - The Series: Tonight's game is the 25th meeting in the series with Wright State, with Loyola owning a slight 13-11 advantage. At home however, the Ramblers have been tough to beat, posting an 8-3 record. Last month at the Nutter Center, freshman J.R. Blount scored a team-high 20 points, but Loyola dropped a 77-63 decision as DaShaun Wood scored 22 points and hauled in seven rebounds. Eight of the last nine games between the teams have been decided by 12 or more points. Loyola captured a 65-51 victory at the Gentile Center last January behind 16 points from Blake Schilb.
Head Coach Jim Whitesell: Jim Whitesell is in his second year at Loyola after guiding the Ramblers to a 13-17 ledger in his first season in Rogers Park. Under Whitesell's tutelage, the Ramblers won nine of their final 13 contests and tied for fourth place in the Horizon League after being picked eighth in a preseason poll. Whitesell has displayed an uncanny ability to revitalize programs and lead them to the NCAA Tournament as he previously has led a pair of area teams, Elmhurst College and Lewis University, to the postseason. The Iowa Falls, Iowa native owns a 306-221 (.581) career coaching record and is currently in his 19th season overall and second as a Division I front man. He picked up his 300th career victory in the Ramblers' 77-60 decision at Cleveland State on Dec. 29. Whitesell steered Loyola to eight victories in Horizon League action a year ago, tying the school record for most conference wins by a first-year coach. Gene Sullivan led the Ramblers to an 8-4 league mark in 1980-81, his first season on the job. Whitesell is 28-27 (.509) at Loyola and 2-1 versus Wright State.
On This Date: Loyola is 12-10 all-time, including 6-2 at home, in games played on Feb. 22.
Thousand Island: With 21 points at Detroit on Jan. 5, junior guard Blake Schilb became the 35th member of the Loyola 1,000-Point Club. The Preseason First Team All-Horizon League selection is the first Rambler to score 1,000 points since David Bailey accomplished the feat in 2001-02. He currently ranks 19th on the LU all-time list with 1,241 points and needs only 231 points to move into the top 10. Up next on the list is Gerald Hayward (1985-89), who tallied 1,264 points in his career.
Select Company: Schilb needs 100 rebounds to become only the 18th player in Loyola history to record 1,000 points and 500 caroms during his career.
Senior Shoutout: Prior to tonight's game, the Ramblers will recognize the senior members of the men's basketball program - manager Kelin Althoff and guard Chris Logan - who are making their final regular-season appearance at the Gentile Center.
Shake and Blake: Junior guard Blake Schilb has posted some impressive all-around numbers so far this season and is a candidate for Horizon League Player of the Year. The 6-foot-7 guard is springing for team highs of 18.6 ppg and 3.8 apg and is also corralling 4.7 rpg. A Preseason First Team All-Horizon League selection, Schilb has scored in double figures in 48 of the last 49 games and has scored 20 or more points on 13 occasions this season. He has hit two or more treys in 16 of the last 20 outings and has scored in double figures in 30 straight regular-season Horizon League games. He needs five more assists to reach 400 points, 100 rebounds and 100 assists for the second consecutive season. In his last seven outings, the junior owns a 2.14 assist-to-turnover ratio. He has shot .518 (72 for 139) from the field in the last nine games after knocking down .427 (85 for 199) of his tries from the field in the first 15 games. Schilb has scored 20 or more points eight times in the last nine home games and is tallying 23.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 4.0 apg and is shooting .562 (59 for 105) from the field and .489 (22 for 45) from downtown in his last seven contests at the Gentile Center.
Majak of All Trades: One of the top defensive players in the Horizon League, Majak Kou ranks first in the Horizon League in blocks (1.60 bpg) and third in steals (1.74 spg). The slender 6-foot-5 guard has already turned away more shots this season (40) than he did in his first two years at Loyola combined (20). In the last three outings, he is springing for 16.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 2.0 apg and 2.7 bpg, and hitting at a .568 (21 for 37) clip from the fields. He is coming off of an 18-point, six-rebound, seven-block, three-assist effort versus Fairfield, Feb. 18. Kou has scored in double digits in nine of the last 10 contests and is contributing 16.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.9 apg, 2.1 bpg and 1.8 spg at home this season. Kou has scored in double figures in 12 of Loyola's 14 home games this year and has poured in 20 or more points in five of the last 10 contests. The Ramblers are 13-5 this season when he scores in double figures.
Young Gun: Freshman Leon Young has given the Ramblers a physical presence in the post, averaging 10.3 ppg and 7.5 rpg, while shooting .485 (83 for 171) from the field. The 6-foot-6 forward has posted five double-doubles this season and is contributing 10.8 ppg and 6.0 rpg, while shooting .537 (22 for 41) from the field, in the last six outings. In his previous seven contests, Young had tallied only 6.0 ppg and 6.1 rpg on .395 shooting. He has hit 13 straight free throws and ranks first in the Horizon League in free throw percentage (.844). Young is tallying 13.7 ppg and 8.0 rpg, while shooting .593 (16 for 27) from the field, in the last three home games. A workhorse in the post, Young led the state of California with 15.5 rpg, while also contributing 21.4 ppg, a year ago at Lakewood High School. The first Loyola freshman since Kenny Miller (1987-88) to open his career with consecutive double-doubles, Young also owns the California high school record for rebounds in a game with an astounding 30 caroms. Young is looking to become the first Loyola freshman since Javan Goodman in 1995-96 to lead the team in rebounding.
Everyone May Hate Chris, But We Love Logan: Senior guard Chris Logan has scored in double figures on 14 occasions this season. Logan, who is dishing out 3.1 apg in the last 10 games, scored only 56 points in 21 appearances last season, but has more than quadrupled that total with 229 points through 25 contests this year. Loyola is 20-10 in the last 30 games he has started. Over the last 10 contests, Logan has doled out 31 assists, while committing only 14 turnovers. He is averaging 7.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 1.8 apg in four games coming off the bench.
Maybe it is How You Start: Loyola is 13-1 this season when leading at the half.
Milwaukee's Best: Winning and J.R. Blount go hand-in-hand as the freshman guard has posted a 66-13 (.835) record in his last three seasons of competition, including the first 25 games of his collegiate career. The 6-foot-1 guard helped lead Dominican High School in Whitefish Bay, Wis., to back-to-back Division III state titles in 2004 and 2005. Blount was notching 12.7 ppg and 2.7 rpg, on .632 (12 for 19) shooting from the field, in his last three outings before missing six games from Jan. 19 - Feb. 8, due to a stress fracture in his left foot. A starter in the first 16 games this season, Blount returned to action at UIC on Feb. 11 and is posting 5.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 3.0 apg in three games since his return. In three games versus Ohio foes this season, he is chipping in 13.0 ppg and 3.0 rpg, while shooting .565 (13 for 23) from the field. He scored 20 points at Wright State, Jan. 7.
That Under-70s Show: Under Whitesell, Loyola has compiled a 19-8 (.704) ledger when holding its opponents to fewer than 70 points. The Ramblers are 9-3 in such instances this season.
Rookie Records: Leon Young's five double-doubles are the most by a Loyola freshman since Javan Goodman recorded six during the 1995-96 season. The Loyola record for double-doubles by a rookie is 20, set by Kenny Miller in 1987-88. Young and J.R. Blount are each averaging over 10.0 ppg this season. Only four freshmen in Loyola basketball history have ever finished a season by averaging double figures in points - Alfredrick Hughes (17.3 ppg in 1981-82), Tony Parker (17.1 ppg in 1973-74), Kenny Miller (14.7 ppg in 1987-88) and Chris Williams (10.6 ppg in 1998-99).
Rockin' Robinson: Sophomore forward Tracy Robinson has provided some valuable minutes off the bench in the last 11 games, averaging 4.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg and 1.6 apg, while hitting 11 of 20 shots (.550) from three-point distance. He has played 181 minutes in the last 11 contests after logging only 66 minutes in his first 11 appearances. The 6-foot-7 forward is shooting a robust .519 (14 for 27) from three-point range this season, but only .346 (9 for 26) from inside the arc. He has averaged 5.2 ppg in the last six home League games and has hit a three-pointer in eight of the last nine contests. He sank both ends of a one-and-one opportunity with 9.7 seconds left to seal Loyola's 71-68 victory at UIC, Feb. 11.
Training Days: Head athletic trainer Dr. Tom Hitcho is working his 827th consecutive Loyola men's basketball contest tonight. Since joining the staff for the 1977-78 campaign, "Hitch" has not missed a single contest and has witnessed 380 Rambler victories. In his 29th year at Loyola, Hitcho was inducted into the Loyola Athletics Hall of Fame, Feb. 4.
Parker Leaves Team: Sophomore guard Pierre Parker left the team Jan. 10 with the intent to transfer to another school. In 10 games this season, Parker averaged 1.2 ppg and 0.8 rpg.
Winning Ways: Regardless of how it closes out the season, Loyola will finish the 2005-06 campaign with a winning record. Although the Ramblers have accomplished that feat twice in the last five seasons, those are the only times they have done so since the 1986-87 season. The 2001-02 squad posted a 17-13 ledger and advanced to the title game of the Horizon League Championship. With two regular season games, plus at least one conference tournament contest, remaining, Loyola has a chance to post its most victories since the 1984-85 campaign when it went 27-6.
Good Woods: Since moving into the starting lineup five games ago, junior Brandon Woods has contributed 6.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg and 1.6 apg, while shooting .519 (14 of 27) from the field. The 6-foot-8 forward missed the first seven games of the year after suffering a knee injury in the first week of practice back in October. In his last two home contests, the California native is accounting for 7.5 ppg and 3.0 rpg.
Schilb's Shooting: The Ramblers are 7-2 this season when Schilb hits at least 50 percent of his shots from the field.
Points Pacesetter: Through games of Feb. 18, Schilb is tied with Youngstown State's Quin Humphrey for the Horizon League lead with 18.6 ppg, and is looking to become the first Rambler since David Bailey in 2001-02 (21.7 ppg) to pace the conference in scoring. Seven different players from Loyola have captured the Horizon League scoring crown a grand total of 10 times in 26 years of conference play.
Whitesell's Wins: In two seasons in Rogers Park, Jim Whitesell has racked up 28 wins, which is the most by a Rambler coach in his first two years since Gene Sullivan recorded 30 victories in 1980-81 and 1981-82. In fact, Whitesell's 28 victories through two seasons are the third-most by the nine coaches that have roamed the Loyola sidelines in the Post-World-War-II Era. Tom Haggerty rolled up 43 wins during the 1945-46 and 1946-47 seasons.
Getting Defensive: Loyola has turned up its defense in the last 10 contests, holding opponents to 67.2 ppg and .435 (246 for 565) shooting from the field. In the first 15 games of the year, the Ramblers yielded 72.0 ppg, while their foes connected at a .466 clip from the field. Loyola has held six of its last 10 opponents to 43 percent shooting or less. The Ramblers have held their last two opponents to .414 (48 for 116) shooting from the field, while surrendering only 66.0 ppg.
Sultan of Swat: Majak Kou swatted away a career-best seven shots in Loyola's 73-70 victory over Fairfield, Feb. 18. His seven blocks are the most by a Rambler since Jan. 26, 1995 when Bernie Salthe turned back a school-record eight shots. Andre Moore also blocked eight shots against Toledo in 1984. The seven rejections also fell one shy of a Horizon League single-game record. Kou, the League leader in blocks, is looking to become the third straight Rambler to lead the League in blocks.
Sure Shots: In its last two games at the Gentile Center, Loyola is averaging 77.0 and is shooting at a sizzling .543 (57 for 105) clip from the field.
