Men’s basketball’s return to Gentile is less than extraordinary

Loyola men’s basketball opened their season with a 72-65 loss in an exhibition match against DePaul University Oct. 18. Blue Demons fifth-year guard Ade Popoola led the game with 25 points while fourth-year guard Guillaume Grotzinger led the Ramblers with 20 points. 

The game started with fifth-year forward Xavier Amos scoring a driving layup off a steal. Second-year guard Nic Anderson profited a steal off a turnover by DePaul third-year guard Noah Meeusen but missed his subsequent 3-pointer. 

Third-year center Fabián Flores sank a three and second-year guard Christian Jeffrey netted one of his own to put the Ramblers ahead 5-3. 

Two minutes of stale play went by before fifth-year guard Ryan Agarwal fouled and turned the ball over to the Blue Demons. Meeusen drove a layup and Grotzinger’s foul gave him an and-one chance, which he made. 

Fourth-year center Jason Schofield shot off a quick jumper before DePaul fourth-year guard Layden Blocker missed his three, only for the ball to be rebounded by Blue Demon second-year guard Kruz McClure for a second-chance layup, giving DePaul a 8-7 lead. 

Grotzinger recorded another foul, giving McClure two free throw chances — the first he missed and the second he made. A minute later, Popoola sunk a three. Blue Demons third-year guard Kahmare Holmes was called on a foul, but a turnover from fifth-year guard Donald Hand Jr. lost the Ramblers their momentum. 

Blocker followed his layup with a foul, leading Schofield to shoot down the court for a dunk. Popoola shot a 3-pointer, which fourth-year forward Elias Rapique tried to respond to with a three of his own, only to miss the net by several inches. Popoola netted another three a minute later to strengthen the 20-9 Blue Demon lead. 

After Popoola missed a layup, there was a scuffle for the ball and Loyola came out victorious. Grotzinger took the momentum into a driving layup, and Meeusen turned over the ball off the return. 

Grotzinger rebounded off Amos’ missed layup, but a fumble at the hoop by Anderson turned the ball over to the Blue Demons. Several missed offensive attempts in the minute were ended by a three from Amos to shorten the 20-17 DePaul lead. 

A layup from Grotzinger was followed by a scrum for the ball and a foul on third-year center Malick Diallo. A fastbreak layup by third-year guard Dayan Nessah put the Ramblers in the lead 21-20. 

Layden responded with a layup of his own before DePaul fourth-year forward Magoon Gwath sunk a three. Layden’s foul in the next minute sent Nessah to the line, where he netted both of his free throws. 

Nessah followed with a foul of his own before Popoola sank a pair of 3-pointers. Amos turned the ball over on a bad pass, leading to another Popoola three. Rapique shot a layup before Amos was called on a foul, sending McClure to the line for three successful free throws. 

A foul on Diallo put Meeusen at the line, where he made the first of two free throws. Grotzinger took his rebound off Blue Demon fourth-year guard Koree Cotton’s missed jumper down the court for a fastbreak dunk. 

Meeusen was called on a foul, and third-year guard Dayton Williams took a trip to the line, making his second of two shots. Hand Jr.’s foul on Holmes resulted in two successful free throws. A minute later, Schofield drove a layup into the net off a Cotton turnover, ending the half 40-30 in favor of DePaul. 

The second half started a minute in, with a 3-pointer from Popoola and a responsive layup from Rapieque. A foul on Christian put Holmes at the line, where he made one of two freethrows. Grotzinger netted two jumpers to Schofield’s one, before a bad pass turnover by Holmes gave Anderson the opportunity for a driving layup, shortening the 44-40 DePaul gap.

Diallo put up a block on Blue Demons third-year center Wilson Jacques, and Grotzinger took the ball home for another layup. A foul on Nessah put Flores at the line for consecutive free throws, and Williams took the same trip a minute later to net one of his two attempts. Holmes’ three put the Blue Demons in the lead 49-43. 

Rapieque and Diallo were both called on fouls before DePaul ran out the shot clock and turned the ball over to the Ramblers. Gwath put up a block on Schofield, but a foul on Holmes brought possession back to Loyola, giving them momentum they failed to capitalize on. 

Holmes netted a 3-pointer before Flores blocked Schofield’s layup attempt a minute later. Popoola hit a layup, and a foul on Rapieque resulted in two points for DePaul. Diallo responded with a layup, and no offensive play was made for the next two minutes. 

With seven minutes left, Agarwal netted a layup before another Rapieque foul put McClure at the line for back-to-back free throws. Popoola’s steal off Jeffrey turned into a driving dunk, and McClure took the next possession to a layup. A foul on Schofield gave McClure the and-one opportunity, which he netted to widen the 63-47 DePaul lead. 

Nessah sank a 3-pointer and Williams fouled Holmes a minute later, resulting in one more point to the Blue Demons. McClure followed with a foul of his own, sending Grotzinger to the line for two made free throws. Diallo recorded another foul, and Blocker added two more points. 

Grotzinger rebounded off Meeusen’s missed 3-pointer and landed a driving layup for the Ramblers. A foul on Blocker gave two more points to Loyola, as did a layup by Nessah. 

In the last two minutes, Rapique fouled to send McClure on a successful trek to the line, as did Gwath to put Nessah at the line for two shots.

Williams fouled Meeusen, which resulted in two points for DePaul. McClure added another foul, which Grotzinger used to net two free throws. 

The final points of the game were netted by Meeusen free throws off a foul on Anderson. Loyola faltered in the last 30 seconds with missed 3-pointers from Agarwal and Rapieque, giving the 72-65 win to DePaul. 

Head Coach Drew Valentine said he was proud of the toughness of the defense throughout the game. 

“We were able to be really physically aggressive and strong, which was in the DNA of some of our best teams here in the past,” Valentine said. 

The Ramblers play again in Gentile for an exhibition match against Calumet College Oct. 26. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.