High Post Hoops
Fansided

2019-2020 Patriot League preview: Can Bucknell hold onto the top spot?

By Todd Goclowski

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 16: Head coach Sue Troyan of the Lehigh Mountain Hawks looks on during a women's college basketball game against the American University Eagles at Bender Arena on February 16, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 16: Head coach Sue Troyan of the Lehigh Mountain Hawks looks on during a women's college basketball game against the American University Eagles at Bender Arena on February 16, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
8 of 11
Next
LOYOLA Player is Jennifer TALEAH DIXON. Photo credit to Larry French/Loyola Athletic Communications
LOYOLA Player is Jennifer TALEAH DIXON. Photo credit to Larry French/Loyola Athletic Communications /

Loyola Greyhounds
Last season: 7-24 (5-13, 8th)
Predicted finish this season: 7th

Key returners (last season’s stats)
F- Isabella Therien, 6’0, JR: 14.3 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 29.3 MPG, 14 starts, the former Patriot League Rookie of the Year missed final nine games of the season due to injury
G- Stephanie Karcz, 5’11, SR: 6.6 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 3.6 APG, 41.0% FG, team-highs for steals (123) and assists (103), 31.3 MPG, 27 starts, Third Team All-Patriot League, Patriot League All-Defensive Team

G-Hannah Niles, 5’9, SR: 5.2 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 24.0 MPG, 24 starts

F-Delaney Connolly, 6’0, JR: 9.1 PPG, 4.7 RPG, team-high 40 made 3PT FGs, 26.3 MPG, 23 starts

G-Taleah Dixon, 5’10, SO: 9.7 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 1.5 APG, 26.0 MPG, 16 starts, Patriot League All-Rookie Team

F-Ashley Hunter, 6’0, GR: (started first four games and then missed season due to injury) 5.6 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 17 starts, 19.3 MPG (stats from the 2017-2018 season)

Biggest losses (last season’s stats)
G- Bri Betz-White, 5’3: 8.8 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 1,373 career points, 35.6 MPG, 31 starts (graduated)
F- Courtney Vannoy, 6’1: 1.0 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 13.5 MPG, 1 start (graduated)

Newcomers
F- Emma Glezen, 6’1, (Wantagh, NY), FR:  Forward capable off attacking off the dribble, three-point shooting range, played three seasons for nationally-ranked Long Island Lutheran
F- Emily McAteer, 6’0, (Thornton, PA), FR:  Class 6 A First Team All-State for Garnet Valley High School, 15.5 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 2.1 APG for senior season, finished as all-time leading scorer with 1,773 points, three-time All-Delco
G- Mackenzie Wagner, 5’10, (Collier Township, PA), FR: Class 5A First Team All-State, led team to state title at Chartiers Valley High School, 16.6 PPG, 5.7 RPG her senior campaign, 1,000-point scorer

G-Bri Rozzi, 5’7, (Highland, NY), FR: Do-it-all point guard, Second Team All-State as junior and senior, all-time leading scorer for Highland High School with 1,920 points, averaged 28.0 PPG, 11.8 RPG, 5.3 APG, and 2.4 steals per contest as a senior

G-Ava Therien, 5’10, (Marlton, NJ), FR: Three-time First-Team All-South Jersey honoree for Cherokee High School, joins sister Isabelle who is a junior with the team

Head Coach: Joe Logan, 15th season

Record at Loyola: 176-252

Career NCAA record: 176-252

Logan, a 1996 Loyola graduate, is the all-time winningest coach in program history. Logan and his team look for a bounce-back season with some optimism. The team finished the regular season with two key road wins to earn a home playoff game against Navy. After a win over the Mids, the Greyhounds fell to eventual conference champion, Bucknell.

That end-of-season experience will be a plus for a coach and team that will integrate five new faces. They’re four years removed from the program’s only appearance in the conference championship game. Loyola joined the league in 2013-2014, coming over from the MAAC. Can Logan get his team back into the top half of the league? It’s a crowded group vying for the top tier but Loyola has a history of unexpected wins.

Key non-conference games:
Nov. 8- at Notre Dame
Nov. 10- at Northwestern
Dec. 8- at Maryland
Dec.31- v. Dartmouth

Outlook: Can the pieces fall into place this year? There are some positive signs: Patriot League All-Rookie team member Taleah Dixon showed great improvement from start to finish of last season—and that’s good news for the Greyhounds. She’ll be joined this year by graduate senior Ashley Hunter who makes her return from an ACL injury after missing last season. And Isabelle Therien should also return to the line-up after missing the last nine games due to injury. Add third-team All-Patriot league guard Stephanie Karcz to the mix and this might turn out to be the team that was good enough to receive first-place votes in last year’s pre-season poll of the league’s coaches. That projection was never realized and their fourth-place pick turned into an eighth-place finish.

In a conference with a ton of competitive teams, it will be difficult for Loyola to find a way to get into the mix—but they’ve done it before, riding a seventh-place early-season projection to a third-place finish and spot in the conference championship game four years ago. The reality is they’re not likely to finish in the top half of the conference. But if this unit can stay healthy and develop, Coach Logan has an intriguing team on his hands.

Best Case Scenario: The Greyhounds grab three or four confidence-building wins in their non-conference slate and hit conference play with an edge it didn’t have last season. They get a couple of upset wins against top-four teams and give themselves a chance at a finish in the top half of the league, aiming for 5th.

Worst Case Scenario:  Loyola mirrors its season from a year ago, dropping its first 10 games and not finding their second win in the conference until February. They struggle to score and the defense again finds itself as one of the worst in the league. An early-round exit for playoffs finishes a tough season for the Greyhounds. They battle to avoid finishing ninth or 10th.

Home/NCAA