Loyola Ramblers clinch first NCAA tournament birth since 1985

"The Loyola University Chicago Ramblers defeated Illinois State in the Missouri Valley Conference Championship, clinching their first NCAA tournament berth in over thirty years."

Last year it was Northwestern. This year it’s Loyola.

The Ramblers are going dancing for the first time in 33 years, thanks to a 65-49 victory over Illinois State in the Missouri Valley Conference Championship game.

Picked to finish third in the MVC in the preseason poll, the Ramblers crushed expectations with a 28-5 record.

Loyola garnered national attention after upsetting then-ranked #5 Florida on the road in December, but flew under the radar ever since. A 10-game win streak to finish the season helped the Ramblers reach 28 wins, their most since the 1963 National Championship team.

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Loyola’s success this season starts with seventh-year head coach Porter Moser. The 2017-18 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year is headed to his first NCAA tournament as a head coach. Moser attended Benet Academy in Lisle, Illinois and is from Naperville, a suburb of Chicago.

The Ramblers have enjoyed a breakout season from junior guard Clayton Custer, who was named the Larry Bird Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year. Custer averaged a team-leading 14.2 points per game, and is the first player in Loyola history to win the award.

Due in part to the Florida win, Loyola is looked at as a potential cinderella team in the upcoming tournament.

Given the team’s strong record, well-balanced roster and ability to defeat a power conference team, Loyola certainly could make a March Madness run.

Like former Missouri Valley Conference Cinderellas Wichita State, the Ramblers could find themselves in a great position for the basketball program with a win or two in the upcoming tournament.

Star power will be key for the Ramblers, as Clayton Custer will need to show up in order for Loyola to have a chance. As the only likely representative from the state of Illinois in the upcoming tournament, many college hoops fans throughout Chicago will be cheering on the Ramblers late next week.

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ESPN’s Joe Lunardi currently projects the Ramblers as a 12-seed in the NCAA tournament, facing 5-seed Clemson in the first round. Region and opponent almost certainly will change, but the Ramblers would be in a good position as a 12-seed, the seed notorious for upsets every march.

The 2018 NCAA tournament tips off with the first four on March 13th, and the Round of 64 on March 15th.