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: Tom Pennington/Getty Images /

2. The Numbers

A closer look at data shows Loyola-Chicago’s run to the Final Four should not really be that surprising in what has been a wide-open NCAA Tournament. They are top-20 in the country in Defensive Efficiency (via KenPom.com), with a top-30 RPI highlighted by a road win over then-No. 5 Florida and a 7-1 record against the RPI Top-50. Take away the name of the school and the conference affiliation, and you’d see a good team that probably shouldn’t have needed to win their conference tournament to lock in a tournament bid.

By a more traditional defensive measures, Loyola-Chicago is fifth in the country in scoring defense (62.4 points per game). Their opponent’s overall shooting percentage, three-point percentage and effective field goal percentage all rank in the top 40 in the country.

As a deep team that plays stoutly on the defensive end of the floor, the Ramblers simply have to be solid on the offensive end. They’ve done so virtually all season, especially lately with just one loss since Jan. 7, with the stats to back up what has become a Cinderella run to the Final Four as a perceived underdog double-digit seed.

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