What's Up In The Missouri Valley: What's Up In The Missouri Valley 3/26/2021

Bradley Great Stan Albeck ‘55 Passes Away--bradleybraves.com

(8) Loyola Chicago vs. (12) Oregon St.--Three Man Weave
Eight Key Questions for the Sweet Sixteen--Rush The Court

Saturday’s Games

#8 Loyola (Chicago) vs. #12 Oregon State (2:40 PM EST, CBS), If Oregon State can limit its turnovers, do the Beavers have enough firepower to pull off an upset? After a stifling defensive performance against Illinois, Loyola (Chicago) has retaken the top spot on KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency rankings this season. The Ramblers forced 17 turnovers against the Illini, an area of which Oregon State struggled against Oklahoma State, committing 20 turnovers. If the Beavers protect the ball, the three-point line becomes key where Oregon State has shot a robust 42 percent over its last five games.

Loyola's Williamson bridges past, present in '63 team film--Associated Press
Lesser-known stars about to make their mark on the Sweet 16--Associated Press

CAMERON KRUTWIG, CHICAGO LOYOLA

The wispy mustache can't hide the fact that we've seen the Ramblers' fun-loving big man before.

The 6-foot-9 senior from Algonquin, Illinois, was a central figure in Chicago Loyola's Cinderella turn at the 2018 Final Four. Now he's back and there's no looking away when he's on the floor, for reasons far beyond the Krustache.

The 255-pound Krutwig has the heft of a center, but the hands and passing skills of a guard. He's the conductor of the Ramblers' offense from the middle of the lane and the never-give-an-inch anchor of the defense.

Krutwig was the first center in 15 years to be named Missouri Valley Conference player of the year after averaging 15.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.

He also has a personality to match his beefy presence on the court, whether it's playing harmonica or an impromptu karaoke version of Hall and Oates’ “Private Eyes" on the Dan Patrick radio show.

Opinion: Lucas Williamson continues Loyola's fierce fight for social justice--USA Today
Eight unappreciated breakout players in the men's NCAA Tournament Sweet 16--USA Today

Lucas Williamson, Loyola Chicago
A senior, Williamson picked the right time to play his best basketball of the season. He started with a season-high 21 points against Georgia Tech in the opening round and then followed that with 14 points in the surprise upset of No. 1 Illinois. Perhaps his biggest contribution from the upset of the Illini was his role in defending All-American Ayo Dosunmu, who managed just nine points. It was his lowest point total of the season.

Ranking the men's Sweet 16 coaches: Jay Wright, Jim Boeheim, Mark Few lead the March Madness list--USA Today

7. Porter Moser, Loyola-Chicago. Moser is undoubtedly in line to land a power conference coaching job if he wants it, and his success in this year's NCAA Tournament illustrates that Loyola Chicago's Final Four run in 2018 wasn't just a Cinderella story. It's a well-coached program that leads the nation this year in defense (allowing 55.7 points a game to opponents).

Sweet 16 predictions: Picking the winner of every Sweet 16 game of March Madness--Fansided

No. 12 Oregon State vs. No. 8 Loyola-Chicago (Sat., 2:40 p.m. ET)
The Beavers have been white-hot as they ran through the Pac-12 Tournament to get into the field and have since knocked off Tennessee and Oklahoma State. But will that change against a Loyola-Chicago team that, frankly, has looked better than a No. 8 seed for the entire season?
My belief is that it will. Oregon State loves to muddy up the game and make things ugly but that’s going to be extremely difficult with a Ramblers team that is so experienced and well-coached behind Cameron Krutwig and more. Moreover, the Loyola-Chicago defense will wreak havoc on a Beavers offense that can sometimes get stagnant.
Prediction: Loyola-Chicago advances

The beginnings of the Cameron Krutwig legend--Mid-Major Madness
2021 NCAA Tournament: Seth Davis makes his Sweet 16 picks--The Athletic

Saturday

No. 8 Loyola Chicago (-6½) vs. No. 12 Oregon State, 2:40 p.m., CBS. I know the Ramblers beat Georgia Tech and Illinois by 9 and 11 points, respectively, but this strikes me as a pretty big spread. Unlike Loyola’s previous two opponents, Oregon State prefers to play half-court basketball. The Beavers are ranked 303rd nationally in tempo, according to KenPom.com, while the Ramblers are 342nd. The Beavers are also a veteran team led by 6-5 senior guard Ethan Thompson, who has started every game of his college career and put up 26 against Oklahoma State in the second round. As for toughness, the Beavers have held opponents to 30.5 percent shooting (23.6 percent from 3) in the tourney and have shot 38 free throws, the third-highest among the Sweet 16 teams. So I’ll take the points but Loyola to win. Between Sister Jean and the marvelously mustachioed Cameron Krutwig, there’s not a lot of oxygen left for Lucas Williamson, the 6-4 senior point guard, but it’s worth noting he was the MVC’s defensive player of the year, scored 21 points in the first-round win over Georgia Tech and has shot 62.5 percent from the field (50 percent from 3) over his last four games. The pick: Oregon State

Oklahoma basketball coaching candidates: Mark Turgeon, Paul Mills and other names to watch--The Athletic

Call list

(in alphabetical order)
Porter Moser, head coach, Loyola Chicago. Moser is the hottest name in the sport, for good reason, but so far two schools he had been speculated for, Iowa State and Minnesota, opted to hire other coaches. He could presumably be in the mix at Indiana and Marquette, but Castiglione would be committing a serious act of negligence if he didn’t reach out to assess whether Moser would be interested. We know Moser can coach, but this could be an awkward fit for a guy who has spent the last 10 seasons at a private school in a major city. He has worked at Texas A&M and was the coach at Arkansas-Little Rock, but that was a long time ago.

Can Loyola Chicago be the next Gonzaga? This Sweet 16 is a step in that process for the Ramblers, Porter Moser--The Athletic
Cameron Krutwig — ’stache and all — is one of the NCAA Tournament’s most talented players. And he’s having a blast leading Loyola back to the Sweet 16.--Chicago Tribune
Loyola Chicago confident entering matchup with Oregon State--CBS Sports
Schools will be calling, but Moser has reason to be loyal to Loyola--Daily Herald
March Madness: Biggest key to success for every Sweet 16 team--Heat Check CBB

Loyola Chicago Ramblers

Lucas Williamson as legitimate second scoring option. Cameron Krutwig is as reliable as they come, and Loyola knows what they’re going to get on the defensive end every night. But when Williamson is also a force offensively, the Ramblers can hang with anyone as we learned last weekend. The senior had a game-high 21 points against Georgia Tech and was the third-highest scorer in the game against Illinois with 14 points.

Women’s basketball tournament: 16 things you need to know about the Sweet 16--Fansided

12. Missouri State is the last mid-major dancing
And then there was one. The Bears are the one mid-major left standing, with wins over UC Davis and Wright State. They haven’t had to face a major conference foe yet in the tournament and last faced one at all in December when they beat Missouri. They also beat Maryland back in November, holding the country’s best scoring team to 72 points. This team isn’t going to roll over just because Stanford is up next. Don’t write off Missouri State’s well-balanced attack led by Brice Calip and Jasmine Franklin.

Missouri State vs. Stanford in NCAA Tournament Sweet 16: How to watch, stream, listen--Springfield News-Leader
Lady Bears, Stanford Meet Sunday in Sweet 16--missouristatebears.com