Good find! Obviously, we are slipping.
Quote:
This program is ambitiously resourced, but after losing three starters from the NIT semifinalists of last season, fifth-year coach Drew Valentine made several miscalculations in the transfer portal, falling into the familiar trap of being tantalized by raw talent instead of cultural fit. Without the flow of developing players a program like Loyola might have been able to rely upon in the past, there was nothing to fall back upon.
Quote:
“This year’s class, I leaned more into offense and what I thought talent level would help us win, rather than going out and getting guys like Braden Norris,” Valentine said, gesturing across the court to the former Loyola point guard, visiting with the team that morning. “He wasn’t the most talented dude, but he was tough.”
Steve Part 1:
Quote:
For the time being, the school’s athletic director, Steve Watson, who promoted Valentine to the top job in 2021 after Porter Moser left for Oklahoma following a run to the Sweet 16, is standing firmly by his man. “Unwavering,” Watson told Hoops HQ. “He’s fantastic. He’s what Loyola basketball is all about. He’s the kind of guy you want coaching your kids.”
Steve Part 2:
Quote:
“We are where we need to be,” Watson said. “The financial commitment to our basketball program has been outstanding. That hasn’t changed and we don’t anticipate that changing. We’re funding it to be at the top of the league.”
Drew 1 Minute:
Quote:
“I think I feel less pressure,” he told Hoops HQ. “I’ve proven not only that we can win and get a team to the tournament but respond to a tough year and come back and win. I got my job at the craziest time ever. My first year was the first year of immediate eligibility and transfers, and then NIL starts, and then it goes from collectives to rev-share. We change leagues. It’s kind of crazy. I think I’ve done a good job with the help of our administration at putting our program in a position where, sure, we may not have made the NCAA tournament run like before, but we’ve been consistent. Everybody still looks at us.”
Drew the next:
Quote:
“This is our second time in our four years in the A-10 when it hasn’t been consistent. I think this year is different from previous years because our talent level is enough, and injuries have gotten in the way of that.”
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