The Loyola Ramblers men's basketball team represents

Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Chicago (Loyola or LUC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1870 by the Society of Jesus, Loyola is one of the largest Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Cathol ...

in Chicago, Illinois. The Ramblers participate as members of the

Atlantic 10 Conference The Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. The A-10's member schools are located in states mostly on the United States Eastern ...

. The Ramblers joined the Missouri Valley Conference from 2013 to 2022, ending a 34-season tenure as charter members of the

Horizon League The Horizon League is an 11-school collegiate athletic conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, whose members are located in and near the Great Lakes region. The Horizon League founded in 1979 as the Midw ...

. In 1963, Loyola won the

1963 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1963 NCAA University Division basketball tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball in the United States. It began on March 9, 1963, and en ...

(then the "NCAA University Division") men's basketball national championship under the leadership of All-American

Jerry Harkness Jerald B. Harkness (May 7, 1940 – August 24, 2021) was an American professional basketball player. He played for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association (ABA ...

, defeating two-time defending champion

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

60–58 in overtime in the title game. All five starters for the Ramblers played the entire championship game without substitution. Surviving team members were honored on July 11, 2013, at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

to commemorate the 50th anniversary of their victory. The entire team was inducted in November of that year in the College Basketball Hall of Fame. As of 2021, Loyola remains the only school from the state of Illinois to win a men's Division I basketball NCAA tournament. Loyola's first-round regional victory over Tennessee Tech on March 11, 1963, remains a record for margin of victory (69 points) for any NCAA men's basketball tournament game. The team gained national publicity again in 2018, as a result of both their

Cinderella Story In sports, the terms Cinderella, "Cinderella story", and Cinderella team are used to refer to situations in which competitors achieve far greater success than would reasonably have been best expected. Cinderella stories tend to gain much media and ...

-esque performance in the tournament, in which they upset numerous teams to reach the Final Four as an 11-seed, tying for the lowest seed ever to do so, and the cultural popularity of their team chaplain, the then-98-year-old nun

Sister Jean Sister Jean, BVM (born Jean Dolores Schmidt, August 21, 1919), is an American religious sister of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and chaplain for the Loyola Ramblers men's basketball team of Loyola University Chicago. Earl ...

. As of February 17, 2021, the team had achieved its highest

Kenpom Ken Pomeroy is the creator of the college basketball website and statistical archive KenPom. His website includes his College Basketball Ratings, statistics for every NCAA men's Division I basketball team, with archives dating back to the 2002 s ...

ranking ever, at number nine in the country, with the number one ranked defense.

History

Racial integration

The Loyola University Chicago teams of the early 1960s, coached by

George Ireland George Ireland (June 15, 1913 – September 14, 2001) was an American basketball coach who led the Loyola Ramblers to the 1963 NCAA championship. Background Born in Madison, Wisconsin, Ireland was an All-American basketball player at the Univer ...

, are thought to be responsible for ushering in a new era of racial equality in the sport by shattering all remaining color barriers in NCAA men's basketball. Beginning in 1961, Loyola broke the longstanding

gentlemen's agreement A gentlemen's agreement, or gentleman's agreement, is an informal and legally non-binding agreement between two or more parties. It is typically oral, but it may be written or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or th ...

(not to play more than three black players at any given time), putting as many as four black players on the court at every game. For the 1962–63 season, Ireland played four black Loyola starters in every game. That season, Loyola also became the first team in NCAA Division I history to play an all-black lineup, doing so in a game against

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

on December 29, 1962. In that season's NCAA tournament, Loyola defeated the all-

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

team of then-segregated Mississippi State by a score of 61–51, a game especially notable because the Bulldogs defied a state court order prohibiting them from playing against a school with black players. The game has since been dubbed the " Game of Change" in popular culture. In 1963, Loyola shocked the nation and changed college basketball forever by starting four black players in the NCAA championship game. Loyola's stunning upset of two-time defending NCAA champion

, in overtime by a score of 60–58, was the crowning achievement in the school's nearly decade long struggle with racial inequality in men's college basketball, highlighted by the tumultuous events of that year's NCAA Tournament. Loyola's 1963 NCAA title was historic not only for the racial makeup of Loyola's team, but also due to the fact that Cincinnati had started three black players, making seven of the 10 starters in the 1963 NCAA Championship game black.

Postseason

NCAA tournament results

The Ramblers have appeared in eight NCAA tournaments. Their combined record is 15–7. They were National Champions in 1963. On March 24, 2018, the Ramblers defeated Kansas State 78–62 to advance to play in their second Final Four in school history.

NIT results

The Ramblers have appeared in five

National Invitation Tournament The National Invitational Tournament (NIT) is a men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Played at regional sites and traditionally at Madison Square Garden (Final Four) in New York City ...

s. They reached the championship game twice, and won the third place consolation game once. Their combined record is 6–5.

CBI results

The Ramblers have appeared in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) once, winning it in 2015. Their record is 5–0.

Retired numbers

, eight players have had their jerseys retired by the school.

Awards

All-Americans *1929, 1930 – Charlie “Feed” Murphy *1937 –

Marv Colen Marvin Wilmer Colen (March 8, 1915 – May 14, 1989) was an American professional basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, ...

*1938, 1939 –

Mike Novak Michael Donald Novak (April 23, 1915 – August 15, 1978) was an American professional basketball player. He played in the NBL, BAA, and NBA from 1939 to 1954. A 6'9" center from Loyola University Chicago, he was one of the first prominent "big ...

*1938, 1939 – Wibs Kautz *1948 – Jack Kerris *1952 – Nick Kladis *1962, 1963 –

*1967 – Jim Tillman *1970, 1972 –

LaRue Martin LaRue Martin (born March 30, 1950) is an American former professional basketball player. Martin was drafted first overall by the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Portland Trail Blazers in the controversy riddled 1972 NBA draft out of Loyola ...

*1982 –

Wayne Sappleton Wayne B. Sappleton (born November 17, 1960) is a retired Jamaican professional basketball player, formerly of the NBA's New Jersey Nets. A 6'9 forward, Sappleton was a star at Loyola University Chicago from 1978-82. Collegiate career Sappleton ...

*1985 –

Alfredrick Hughes Alfredrick Hughes (born July 19, 1962) is a retired American professional basketball player who was selected by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round (14th pick overall) in the 1985 NBA draft. Loyola career After graduating from Chicago's Rob ...

*2006 – Blake Schilb ''(Honorable Mention)'' *2018 – Clayton Custer ''(Honorable Mention)'' *2021 –

Cameron Krutwig Cameron Krutwig (born December 21, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Ibaraki Robots of the Japanese B.League . He played college basketball for the Loyola Ramblers. Krutwig drew national attention after helping the 2017 ...

''(Third Team)'' Academic All-Americans *2013 – Ben Averkamp ''(Second Team)'' *2019 – Clayton Custer ''(Third Team)'' MCC/Missouri Valley Coach of the Year *1985 – Gene Sullivan *2018 – Porter Moser MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley Player of the Year *1981 – Darius Clemons *1982 – Wayne Sappleton *1983, 1984, 1985 – Alfredrick Hughes *1987 – Andre Moore *2018 – Clayton Custer *2019 – Marques Townes *2021 – Cameron Krutwig MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley First Team *1981 – Darius Clemons *1981, 1982 – Wayne Sappleton *1983, 1984, 1985 – Alfredrick Hughes *1984, 1986 – Carl Golston *1985 – Andre Battle *1986, 1987 – Andre Moore *1987 – Bernard Jackson *1988 – Gerald Hayward *1990, 1991 – Keith Gailes *1992 – Keir Rogers *1998, 1999 – Javan Goodman *2001, 2002 – *2004 – Paul McMillan *2005, 2006, 2007 – Blake Schilb *2017 –

Milton Doyle Milton Doyle (born October 31, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Tasmania JackJumpers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Loyola Ramblers. College career A graduate of Chicago's ...

*2018 – Clayton Custer *2019 – Marques Townes *2019, 2020, 2021 – Cameron Krutwig * MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley Second Team *1980, 1982 – Darius Clemons *1983 – Andre Battle *1985 – Carl Golston *1985 – Andre Moore *1988 – Kenny Miller *1989 – Keith Gailes *1994 – Vernell Brent *1996, 1997 – Derek Molis *2000 – Earl Brown *2003 –

David Bailey David Royston Bailey (born 2 January 1938) is an English photographer and director, most widely known for his fashion photography and portraiture, and role in shaping the image of the Swinging Sixties. Early life David Bailey was born at Wh ...

*2012, 2013 – Ben Averkamp *2018 –

Donte Ingram Donte Ingram (born August 15, 1996) is an American basketball player for Donar of the BNXT League. He played college basketball for the Loyola Ramblers. Before Loyola, he attended Simeon Career Academy and was teammates with NBA player Jabari Par ...

*2021 – Lucas Williamson Missouri Valley Conference Third Team *2017 – Donte Ingram *2018 –

*2019 – Clayton Custer *2020 – Tate Hall *2021 – Aher Uguak MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley All-Defensive Team *1998, 2000 – Earl Brown *2004 – Demetrius Williams *2006, 2007 – Majak Kou *2018 – Ben Richardson *2020 – Lucas Williamson *2021 – Aher Uguak *2021 – Lucas Williamson MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley Newcomer of the Year *1984 – Carl Golston *1986 – Bernard Jackson *1988 – Kenny Miller *1989 – Keith Gailes *2003 – Paul McMillan *2014 – Milton Doyle MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley All-Newcomer Team *1988 – Kenny Miller *1993 – Vernell Brent *1996 – Derek Molis *1999 – Chris Williams *2003 – Paul McMillan *2003 – Demetrius Williams *2006 – Leon Young *2014 – Milton Doyle *2017 – Aundre Jackson *2018 – Cameron Krutwig *2020 – Tate Hall *2021 – Braden Norris Missouri Valley Freshman of the Year *2014 – Milton Doyle *2018 – Cameron Krutwig Missouri Valley All-Freshman Team *2014 – Milton Doyle *2018 – Cameron Krutwig *2018 – Lucas Williamson *2019 – Cooper Kaifes *2020 – Marquise Kennedy Missouri Valley Sixth Man of the Year *2017 – Aundre Jackson Missouri Valley Defensive MVP *2018 – Ben Richardson *2021 – Lucas Williamson MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley Tournament MVP *1983, 1985 – Alfredrick Hughes * 2018 – Donte Ingram *2021 – Cameron Krutwig MCC/Horizon League/Missouri Valley All-Tournament Team *1980, 1982 – Darius Clemons *1982 – Wayne Sappleton *1983, 1985 – Alfredrick Hughes *1984, 1985 – Carl Golston *1985 – Andre Battle *1986 – Carl Golston *1987 – Bernard Jackson *1987 – Andre Moore *1989, 1990, 1991 – Keith Gailes *1992 – Keir Rogers *2002 –

*2002 – Ryan Blankson *2005, 2007 – Blake Schilb * 2018 – Donte Ingram, Ben Richardson,

Marques Townes Marques Townes (born September 3, 1995) is a Dominican-American basketball player for Kecskeméti TE of the Nemzeti Bajnokság I/A, the top division in Hungary. He played college basketball for the Loyola Ramblers, after beginning his career wi ...

*2021 – Cameron Krutwig, Braden Norris

Ramblers in the NBA draft

Ramblers players in the NBA/ABA

* Wilbert Kautz (1947) * Mickey Rottner (1947–1948) * Jack Dwan (1949) * Mike Novak (1949–1950) * Jerry Nagel (1950) * Jack Kerris (1950–1953) * Don Hanrahan (1953) * Ed Earle (1954) *

(1964–1969) * Les Hunter (1965–1973) *

(1973–1976) *

Andre Wakefield Andre Wakefield (born January 1, 1955) is a retired American professional basketball player. He was a 6'2½" (189 cm) 175 lb (79 kg) guard. Born in Chicago, Illinois, he played high school basketball at Crane High School and col ...

(1979–1980) * Wayne Sappleton (1985) *

(1986) * Andre Moore (1988) *

(2017–2018)

References

External links

* {{Atlantic 10 Conference men's basketball navbox