Joseph J. Gentile Arena, Chicago, IL
Wednesday, March 1, 2023
9:00PM
Media
TV: CBSSN
Online: CBSSN
Radio: Tune In Radio
App: Varsity Network
Previews
Loyola Chicago Fan Forum
All right ramblers, let’s get ramblin’. The University of Rhode Island Rams head out on the road for one last time this regular season to take on the Atlantic 10’s newest team, the Loyola Chicago Ramblers. Come tipoff of this game it will be 410 days since last the Rams last road win. If they can’t get the win Wednesday night, it will be roughly another 8.5 months until they get their next chance. Please, please, please get the road victory.
My guess is when Loyola got the invitation to join the A10, how this season has progressed for the Ramblers is not how Sister Jean envisioned. Hopefully she stays clear of Gentile Arena because watching this game has the potential to harm the 103-year-old. I know this season has taken some years off of my life & she is quite older than I am. With just two games left in the season, this game is potentially a battle for who finishes in last place in the conference. Rhody comes in with a 4-12 record while Loyola is 3-13. Rhody has now lost 7 in a row while Loyola has lost 5 of 6. That one win during that span is a road win at UMass. See, even they are getting road wins.
Leading the Ramblers is junior forward Philip Alston. The former DII player from California University of Pennsylvania is leading the team in both points (14.6) & rebounds (5.4). The only other double-digit scorer on this team is guard Braden Norris, who is also leading the team in assists (3.9). Norris is their best three-point shooter & has about 30% of the team’s makes from behind the arc. Freshman guard Ben Schwieger is just shy of double-digits with 9.6 points per game. Butler transfer Bryce Golden (former Richmond player Grant Golden’s brother) starts at center, but most of his minutes go to forward Tom Welch.
Will Rhody have enough to pull out their first road win of the season? No better shot than now. They will need another impressive Malik performance like he has been doing over the last couple games. One thing that shouldn’t happen is Bassy taking the most shots. Never a good recipe for a win. Carey struggled to get his shot going as well. Loyola shoots the ball 6.5% better from the field while Rhody shoots it almost 6% from the line. Being at home, Loyola should be favored by a few points since both of these teams are quite comparable. My prediction Loyola 66 – URI 64. Go Rhody!!
Opponent
Record:
9-19, 3-13 in the A10
25-8, 13-5 in the MVC (Last Season)
Rankings (URI):
NCAA NET: 270 (254)
RPI: 272 (270)
KenPom: 257 (242)
BPI: 248 (232)
Sagarin: 211 (215)
Barttovik: 232 (228)
Leaders:
Points – Philip Alston 14.6 (Jr., F)
Rebounds – Philip Alston 5.4 (Jr., F)
Assists – Braden Norris 3.9 (Jr., G) (2.4 TO per game)
Historical
Series: 0-0
H: 0-0, A: 0-0, N: 0-0
Most Recent Matchup: N/A
Most Recent Win Streak: N/A
Match-up Predictor: 34.5% Chance of URI Winning