5 reasons Loyola-Chicago can and will win the national title

5 reasons Loyola-Chicago can and will win it all

ATLANTA, GA - MARCH 24: Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt celebrates with the Loyola Ramblers after defeating the Kansas State Wildcats during the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament South Regional at Philips Arena on March 24, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. Loyola defeated Kansas State 78-62. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

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Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images /

3. Experience

Guard play and experience often stand out during the NCAA Tournament, regardless of the school name on the front of the jersey and the status that may carry. Of Loyola-Chicago’s top six scorers this season, only one (freshman center Cameron Krutwig-10.3 points per game) is not a junior or a senior.

Going a little deeper, of the aforementioned nine players who average double-digit minutes per game for the Ramblers, the top four (Clayton Custer, Ben Richardson, Donte Ingram, Marques Townes) and five of the seven who average at least 19 minutes per game (add senior forward Aundre Jackson) are juniors or seniors.

Loyola-Chicago has had multiple players rise up on their road to the Final Four, during clutch moments in the tournament. Not shrinking in those moments, and learning to relying on each other in those moments when it’s warranted, is a mark of an experienced team that has played together a lot and learned to function as a cohesive unit.

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