CHICAGO - Loyola Chicago continues opening week action at home against Mercyhurst Thursday night. Tip-off is anticipated at 8 p.m. in Gentile Arena after the women's game vs. Green Bay wraps up. The Ramblers look to pick up their second win against a winless Lakers squad.

Thursday'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 opened 2025-26 action earlier this week with a thrilling win over Cleveland State, 91-88. Deywilk Tavarez drained two clutch threes in the final 20 seconds to win the game for the Ramblers.
• Tavarez finished with a team-high 16 points, matching Miles Rubin and Kayde Dotson who also scored 16 each. Dotson set a new career-high.
• Chuck Love III made his career debut, scoring 14 points. He drained three threes for the Ramblers to start the second half.
• Justin Moore dished out a team-best six assists, while Rubin tallied team-bests in rebounds (6) and blocks (4).
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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 84-51 overall record as head coach.

SCOUTING MERCYHURST
Mercyhurst dropped its season opener Northwestern earlier this week, 70-47. The Lakers were tabbed to finish fourth in the preseason poll after a 15-16 overall record and 9-7 finish in the NEC last season. 

Bernie Blunt III was named to the league's preseason first team. He stated 27 games and averaged 12.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg, and 1.5 apg. At Northwestern, he recorded eight points, three rebounds, and assist, and steal. Teammate Jake Lemelman led the Lakers with 14 points in the opener.

Head coach Gary Manchel is in his 23rd season leading the Lakers. He holds a 388-236 record at Mercyhurst.

SERIES HISTORY
This is the first meeting in program history.