CHICAGO (October 23, 2019) – Keith Clemons, who was projected to be a key contributor in the backcourt for the Loyola University Chicago men's basketball team this season, will be sidelined for four to six weeks following surgery yesterday to repair a knee injury. Head coach Porter Moser's squad will already be without the services of sophomore guard Cooper Kaifes, who shot 46.5 (53-for-114) percent from three-point range a year ago and earned MVC All-Freshman Team recognition, after he underwent offseason hip surgery that will cause him to miss the entire 2019-20 campaign.
 
At Vincennes last year, the 6-foot-1 Clemons put up 15.1 points, 2.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game to help the Trailblazers to a 34-2 overall record and the NJCAA Division I national championship. Clemons sported a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio in 2018-19 and scored in double figures 30 times, pouring in 20 or more points on 10 occasions.
 
Sophomore Franklin Agunanne will also miss the start of the season after suffering a thumb injury. The 6-foot-9 center showed flashes of his enormous potential in a reserve role last season, averaging 1.9 points and 1.8 rebounds per contest, scoring a season-best 13 points and adding four boards in only eight minutes at Evansville.
 
Loyola hosts Indianapolis in its lone exhibition game of the preseason October 29 and officially raises the curtain on 2019-20 on November 5 when it welcomes UC Davis to Gentile Arena. 
 
Moser welcomes back three starters, including Preseason Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year selection Cameron Krutwig, from last year's squad that captured a second straight MVC regular-season crown and reached the postseason for a second consecutive season.