CHICAGO - Loyola Chicago opens the 2025-26 season at Gentile Arena on Monday night with the Cleveland State Vikings at 7 p.m. CT. The Ramblers are coming off a NIT semifinal run, while the Vikings went 23-13 last season but do not return a single letterwinner.

Monday's game can be watched on Marquee Sports Network and ESPN+ with Jordan Bernfield (PXP) and Nick DiNardi (Analyst). The game can also be listened to Rambler Sports Network with Scott Sudikoff (PXP) and Christian Thomas (Analyst).

RAMBLINGS
• Loyola played two exhibitions before the regular season this year. The Ramblers dropped a close overtime battle to DePaul, 92-90, before rebounding with a 93-44 win over St. Francis (Ill.).
• At DePaul, Justin Moore led Loyola with 26 points on 9-15 from the field with two threes. He went 6-9 at the line, while tallying three rebounds, six assists, and one steal.
• At home vs. the Saints, Kayde Dotson scored a game-high 17 points on 5-10 from the field with four threes. He added three boards, three assists, and a block.
• The Ramblers were tabbed fifth in the Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll and received two first-place votes. VCU was tabbed the preseason favorite, racking up 11 votes and 342 points. Saint Louis trailed in second with 11 votes, while Dayton and George Washington placed third and fourth respectively. Dayton had the remaining three first-place votes.
• Junior center Miles Rubin was tabbed to the Preseason First Team and All-Defensive Team. The preseason accolades come after two consecutive All-Defensive nods for Rubin. He started all 37 games last season, averaging 9.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game. His 71.4 field goal percentage set a single-season program record.
• Rubin enters his junior season as one of the nation's top shot blockers. He finished his sophomore campaign ranked 12th in the country with an 11.4 shot blocking percentage. Rubin also set Loyola's single-season block record back-to-back seasons.
• Also returning for the Ramblers is starting guard Kymany Houinsou. He made 28 appearances for Loyola, averaging 5.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.1 apg, 0.7 spg, and 0.2 bpg. He shot nearly 53 percent from the field and posted four double-figure scoring performances.
• Moore is back from a season-ending knee injury. He made nine starts, averaging 7.7 ppg on 41.9 percent from the field. He was second in the A-10 at the time of injury with 5.3 assists per game.
• Loyola added eight newcomers to this year's roster, including five transfers, two freshman, and one international athlete.
• Deywilk Tavarez joins the Ramblers after playing her sophomore season at Charleston. He averaged 12.9 ppg and 3.6 rpg while there. He dropped double-figures 20 times, including a career-high 32 points against Northeastern.
• Joshua Ola-Joseph, Dotson, Dominick Harris, and Xavier Amos join him as transfers.
• Nic Anderson and Chuck Love III look to make their collegiate debuts in their rookie seasons, while Alexander Richardson came from oversees where he played in Germany.
• Loyola is coming off a 25-12 campaign last season that saw a trip to the NIT semifinals in Indianapolis. The Ramblers finished 12-6 in A-10 play and beat No. 5 Saint Louis to advance in the A-10 Tournament where No. 1 VCU bested Loyola. The Ramblers beat San Jose State, San Francisco, and Kent State to reach Hinkle Fieldhouse in the NIT.
• Head coach Drew Valentine is in his fifth season at the helm. He has compiled a 83-51 overall record as head coach.

SCOUTING CLEVELAND STATE
Cleveland State went 23-13 overall last season and a 14-6 finish in the Horizon League to place second in the regular season. The Vikings wrapped up the season with a semifinal loss to Youngstown State in the league tournament. Cleveland State was tabbed eighth in the preseason poll after turning over their roster and tabbing a new head coach in the off-season.

Rob Summers enters his first season at the helm. He coached the last three seasons at Urbana and holds a 20-66 head coaching record.

SERIES HISTORY
Loyola leads the all-time series, 24-20. The last time the teams met was in the 2015-16 season. The Vikings won, 60-54.