Quick Hits About The Hounds
- Loyola University Maryland plays the second of its two games at The Mainland Tournament at Omaha on Tuesday, November 26, when it faces the University of Nebraska Omaha at 7 p.m. (CST)/8 p.m. (EST).
- The Greyhounds had 20 assists on Monday night against IUPUI, the third time in six outings this year they have posted 20 or more.
- Andrew Kostecka scored in double-figures for the 22nd-straight game on Saturday when he scored 15 Monday against the Panthers. Last Tuesday's game at George Mason marked the 23rd time in his career, and third time this year, that he has scored 20 or more. The Nov. 17 game when he had 31 against Fairfield was his fourth career 30-plus point performance. He has finished with 10 or more 51 times since the start of his sophomore year (2017-18). He has averaged 17.0 points during that stretch.
- Tavaras Hardy is in his second season on the Loyola sidelines after he was named the 21st head coach in Loyola men's basketball history on March 28, 2018.
- In Hardy's first season, Loyola improved its field-goal percentage from .438 in 2017-18 to .459 in 2018-19, rising from 218th in NCAA Division I in the category to 85th. The Greyhounds' assists per game jumped from 11.6 to 14.0, moving from 309 to 124.
Series History
- Loyola will meet Omaha for the first time when the teams take the floor on Tuesday.
- The Greyhounds have never faced a team from the Summit League while that opponent has been part of the conference. Loyola played current Summit member University of Denver twice during the 1998-99 season, winning both contests.
About The Mavericks
- Omaha improved to 4-3 this season on Monday night with a 78-51 victory over Southern University in the second game of the tournament.
- J.T. Gibson leads Omaha with 15.6 points per game, while K.J. Robinson and Ayo Akinwole have posted 12.5 and 12.1 this season. Matt Pile is averaging a double-double with 11.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.
- Last year, the Mavericks went 21-11 overall and 13-3 in the Summit League.
Last Time Out
- IUPUI took a 63-62 lead with 7:31 left in regulation on a Marcus Burk runner, but Loyola used an 11-2 run spanning the next three-plus minutes to take control of the game and pull away for an 81-77 victory in the first round of the tournament.
- Burk, who had a game-high 32 points gave the Panthers a one-point lead for their first advantage since the six-minute mark of the first half. Andrew Kostecka was fouled taking a three on Loyola's next possession, but he hit just one of three at the line, tying the game at 63-63. Kostecka then had a steal and fast-break layup with 6:46 to play, giving the Greyhounds the lead for good.
- After the Panthers cut the deficit to just two with under 16 seconds to play, Isaiah Hart hit two free throws to seal the win. Hart had a team-best 16 points.
- Kostecka added 15 points, six steals and six rebounds, while KaVaughn Scott added a season-high 14 points. Cam Spencer finished with 13 points, five assists and zero turnovers.
Playing Tight Games
- During Loyola's last three games – Fairfield, George Mason and IUPUI – the score margin has been under 10 for all but one of the 125 minutes.
- Fairfield pushed a lead to double digits for one minute of the second half before the Greyhounds came back for the overtime win.
- In the game at George Mason, neither the Patriots, nor the Greyhounds led by more than seven, and Loyola's largest advantage against IUPUI was nine, while the Panthers once held an eight-point lead.
Into The Top Four
- Andrew Kostecka's six steals against IUPUI, which are tied for sixth-most in school single-game history, moved him into fourth all-time at Loyola with 181 takeaways, passing Tracy Bergan's 177 from 1989-94.
- Next up on the career swipes chart is Dylon Cormier who had 185 from 2010-14.
- Kostecka is also tied for 16th in Patriot League history for steals. With 14 more, he'll tie his former teammate, Andre Walker (2014-18) for 10th with 195.
Dishing It Out
- Loyola has posted 20 or more assists three times this year through just six games, marking the seventh time since Tavaras Hardy took over as head coach in 2018-19 the Greyhounds have had 20-plus.
- In the eight years prior to Hardy's arrival, the Greyhounds had 20 or more assists just three times and only twice against NCAA Division I teams.
- Last year, Loyola averaged 14.0 assists, up from 11.9 in 2017-2018.
Assists All Around
- Loyola ranks second in the Patriot League and 35th in NCAA Division I in assists per game (17.2), but the Greyhounds do not have any players ranked in the top 240 of the NCAA of assists per game. Isaiah Hart leads Loyola and is tied for seventh in the conference with 3.2 assists per game, pacing six players who have averaged 1.8 assists or more thus far.
- The Greyhounds had 23 assists November 17 against Fairfield, good for a tie for eighth in school single-game history. It was the first time the Greyhounds have had that many assists against an NCAA Division I opponent since the 2013 season (they had 24 versus Division III Goucher in 2017).
Assist:Turnover Leader
- Cam Spencer is tops in the Patriot League in assist-to-turnover ratio at 7.5:1. He has 15 assists and just two turnovers, aided by posting five assists without a turnover against IUPUI to go with six and one against Fairfield.
Doubled Up
- Brent Holcombe saw his longest playing time of the season – 30 minutes – at George Mason, and the junior post player responded with his first double-double of the year. He scored 13 points to go with 11 rebounds and logged his fourth career double-double.
- Holcombe knocked down 6 of 12 shots and nine of his boards came on the defensive glass. He also matched his career-high with three blocked shots.
Conference, National Honors
- Loyola players swept the Patriot League weekly awards on Nov. 18 after the Greyhounds posted their win over Fairfield in overtime. Andrew Kostecka was named the conference's Player of the Week and Golden Dike took home Rookie honors.
- Kostecka scored 31 against the Stags and averaged 22.5 as he also led Loyola with 14 points at Old Dominion. Dike scored 18 points to go with eight rebounds, three assists and two steals versus Fairfield.
- The award was the fifth of Kostecka's career after he was a four-time Player of the Week last season. Dike's award is the sixth for Loyola since the Greyhounds joined the Patriot League in 2013-14.
- Kostecka was also named the Jesuit Basketball Spotlight National Player of the Week for the second time in his career.
From Downtown
- Kenneth Jones knocked down all five of his 3-point attempts against Fairfield en route to scoring a to-date career-high 19 points in the overtime win against the Stags.
- His 5 of 5 performance is tied for the third-best 3-point percentage in school history, matching what Anthony Walker did in a 2000 game against Canisius. Marquis Sullivan (2007 vs. Rider) and Andre Walker (2016 at American) share the school record for six 3-pointers without a miss.
Big Man Making Contributions
- At 6-foot-10, 250 points, Golden Dike has brought an immediate physical presence to the post for the Greyhounds. He scored 18 and grabbed eight rebounds against Fairfield, and he then grabbed seven boards, scored six and had five assists at George Mason. Dike is shooting 65.0 percent from the field, going 13 of 20.
30 This Decade
- Andrew Kostecka's 31-point performance against Fairfield marked the 13th time since 2010 that a Loyola player has scored 30 or more in a game. Kostecka has done it five times, more than any other player. Andre Walker scored 30 or more four times, Dylon Cormier did it three times and Erik Etherly accomplished it once.
Kostecka In The Last 34
- Andrew Kostecka has logged career-high scoring numbers four times in the Greyhounds' last 34 games, dating back to last season. During that stretch, he has recorded 20 games with 20 or more points, 14 with 26 or better and five with 30 or higher. He scored 13 or more in all but one of those games and had 18 or more in all but six.
BL Boys
- Jaylin Andrews and Cam Spencer were teammates at Boys' Latin School, less than three miles from Loyola's campus where they finished second in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) A Conference in 2017-18, Andrews' senior year. The Lakers were then semifinalists in 2018-19 when Spencer was the MIAA Player of the Year.
- Now, they share the court at Loyola and each scored 14 points as they combine to shoot 9 of 19 from the field at Chicago State.
- In the Greyhounds' win over Fairfield, Spencer had six assists with just one turnover, and Andrews finished with seven points. Spencer tallied 11 points at George Mason in the next outing and then had 13 with five assists versus IUPUI.
Preseason Prognostications
- Loyola was picked to finish fourth in the Patriot League Preseason Poll, the highest the Greyhounds have been tabbed before the year since joining the conference in 2013-14.
- Colgate was picked first, followed by Bucknell, American, the Greyhounds and Boston University in the top-five. Army West Point, Lehigh, Lafayette, Navy and Holy Cross rounded out the poll.
- Andrew Kostecka was selected to the Preseason All-Patriot League First Team by the coaches. He was also named the top small forward in Mid-Major basketball by College Basketball Central. He was also named to the Lou Henson Award Watch List.
Season For The Books
- Andrew Kostecka had one of the most statistically prolific seasons in Loyola men's basketball history last year when he averaged 21.3 points, scoring 682 in 32 contests. His 682 points were second in program history behind only Andre Collins' 2005-06 total of 731 which is the school record.
- The All-Patriot League First Team and All-Defensive Team honoree's 152 free throws made were eighth in single-season history, and Kostecka's 85 steals were good for third and are the most since Jason Rowe set the school record with 95 in 1998-99.
- Andrew Kostecka scored the game's first point February 9, 2019, at Colgate, and in the process became the 38th player in Loyola history to reach 1,000 career points.
- Against Chicago State on November 11, he became the 26th player to reach 1,200 career points, and versus Fairfield he moved into the top-20 of the school's all-time scoring list and is not 18th with 1,297.
- He had four steals against both Old Dominion and the Stags, and one at George Mason, to give him 175 for his career to move into fifth all-time at Loyola; with three more points, he will become one of six Loyola players to amass 1,300 points and 150 steals.
Think Globally, Not Just Locally
- Not only did Andrew Kostecka's statistics and play resonate at Loyola, but his 2018-19 campaign stacked up against some of the best in nation.
- He was the only player in NCAA Division I to average 21 points or more and 2.5 steals or more per game last year, and he was also one of only four players – Duke's Zion Williamson, St. John's Shamorie Ponds and Louisiana Monroe's Daishon Smith – to average 20 or more points and two or more steals. Throw in blocked shots, and he was the only player to average 21 or more points, 2.5 steals and 0.9 blocks per game.
- Four players – Kostecka, Hofstra's Justin Wright-Foreman, Charleston's Grant Riller and Austin Peay's Terry Taylor – took 450 or more shots from the field while shooting 52.1 percent of better. In the history of the Patriot League, only one player had accomplished that, Colgate's Adonal Foyle (1996-97). Research via sports-reference.com.
- Overall, he finished eighth nationally in steals per game, 11th in total steals, 27th in points per game, 30th in field goals made and 36th in total points.
In The Patriot League, Too
- In the history of the Patriot League, only two players have averaged 20+ points, 4.5+ rebounds, 2.0+ steals and 2.0+ assists. NBA All-Star C.J. McCollum did it for Lehigh University in both 2010-11 and 2011-12, and Andrew Kostecka did so in 2018-19.
Cementing His Status
- Jaylin Andrews joined the Greyhounds' starting lineup on January 12, 2019, and was a fixture there ever since, en route to earning Patriot League All-Rookie Honors
- Andrews set a new career-high with a 21-point outing, making 5 of 6 threes and 8 of 11 overall field goals ,in the regular-season finale against Lehigh.
- In Patriot League games, Andrews averaged 8.8 points and 3.0 rebounds in 29.3 minutes of action in 2018-19. Prior to the conference starting, Andrews was averaging 3.2 points in 14.8 minutes per game.
Leading In The Post And On Campus
- KaVaughn Scott stepped into a starting role as a post player last season and turned in career-highs of 7.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 54.3 percent from the field.
- Off the court, Scott has stepped into a leadership role in several areas. He serves as the co-president of Loyola's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and he is also a member of the school's Green & Grey Society, a group of 14 seniors selected to represent their peers with the university president and administration.
Two Over Ten
- Chuck Champion is one of three players returning for the Greyhounds who have averaged 10 or more points over each of the last two seasons (Andrew Kostecka and Isaiah Hart).
- Champion has averaged 8.8 points over his 91 career games, scoring 10 or more 40 times while tallying 805 points in a Greyhounds uniform.
Closing On A High Note
- Kenneth Jones finished his freshman season with a flourish, posting four of his seven games with 10 or more points in the Greyhounds' final seven games. The guard averaged 10 points per over that span, capped by a 14-point effort at American and a 15-point game against Lehigh, both Loyola victories.
- During his freshman campaign, Jones played in all 32 games, seeing 20.3 minutes of action while averaging 6.4 points. He also finished third on the team with 70 assists.
- Currently, he's the team's second-leading scorer this year with 8.0 points in just 20.3 minutes per game.
Graduation Success
- Loyola University Maryland tied for the fourth-highest overall Graduate Success Rate (GSR) in the NCAA report released in October, highlighting the Greyhounds success in the classroom. Loyola had a 97 percent GSR marking the sixth time the Greyhounds have had a GSR of 97 or better. Loyola has ranked in the top-25 of the GSR in all 15 years since the report's inception.
- Loyola's basketball program was one of two in the State of Maryland that had a NCAA Graduation Success Rate of 100 percent for the most-recent report.
Patriot League Network
- All of Loyola University Maryland non-televised home men's basketball games will air live on the Patriot League Network for the seventh season.
