Replacing Kevin Green, the No. 2 scorer in Loyola history, and savvy swingman Kevin Anderson was going to be enough of a challenge.
The Greyhounds had reason to be optimistic last March, however, even after losing in the first round of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament for the third straight year. A 14-14 record was the first time in five years Loyola had reached the .500 level, and there was enough talent returning to continue the improvement the Greyhounds had made under coach Tom Schneider.
Plans began to unravel three weeks after the end of last season.
On April 2, record-setting point guard Tracy Bergan, behind in his studies, withdrew from school.
On Oct. 31, the day before practice started, Michael Reese, the Greyhounds' second-leading scorer and top rebounder last season, was charged in an assault case.
On Nov. 20, Loyola announced that Reese and sophomore reserve guard/forward Chad Anderson, who withdrew after an unrelated violation of the school's conduct code, were suspended for the season.
Add Reese's absence to the other three veterans and Loyola will be without 73.3 percent of last season's points, 70.8 percent of its assists, and 47.7 percent of its rebounds.
Schneider knew seven months ago he wouldn't have Green, Anderson and Bergan this season. Reese, however, was the first player mentioned at Loyola in the off-season. A second-team preseason MAAC all-star, his scoring average of 16.1 points figured to rise with his move to shooting guard.
"You can't condone the type of behavior some of our players have been accused of," Schneider said. "I'm worried about him [Reese], but when it comes to coaching the team, I've got to look at it as if he [Reese] broke an ankle, and move on.
"We knew we were going to be a different team last April, and we've been planning along those lines. This is a good opportunity for others to prove that they can play."
Despite the unexpected losses, Schneider says that Loyola, which opens at Towson State Dec. 1, will rebound and play defense better, a high order considering that opponents shot 43.5 percent a year ago. The Greyhounds have a big, rugged front line and some untested potential on the perimeter.
The leading returning scorer is 6-6 sophomore forward B.J. Pendleton, who averaged 8.6 points on 48.0 percent shooting and 5.0 rebounds last season, when he made the MAAC all-rookie team.
