Loyola extends Moser’s basketball contract
Porter Moser, Loyola University Chicago men’s basketball coach, has received a contract extension that will keep him on the Ramblers’ bench through the 2017-18 season, school officials announced Friday.
Moser, a Naperville native, is entering his third season at Loyola. He guided a team that was ranked as the sixth-youngest in NCAA Division I last season to an eight-game improvement in the win column.
The Ramblers are 22-39 overall in two seasons under Moser. They were 15-16 and 5-11 in the Horizon League last year after going 7-23 and 1-17 in league play.
Loyola has 10 players returning, including junior forward Christian Thomas (12.1 points per game, 6.5 rebounds), heading into its first season in the Missouri Valley Conference.
“Under the direction of Coach Moser, our men’s basketball program has come a long way in a short period of time,” said Dr. M. Grace Calhoun, Loyola assistant vice president and director of athletics. “Both on and off the court, Coach Moser is a leader in every sense of the word and extending his contract affirms our faith in his ability to help the Rambler men’s basketball program reach new heights.”
Last season, despite fielding one of the youngest squads in the country, the Ramblers recorded 15 victories and seven of their losses came by three points or less. Under Moser’s direction, forward Ben Averkamp blossomed into a two-time Second Team All-Horizon League selection and last year, he became the program’s first Academic all-American.
A highly regarded freshman class was able to gain valuable experience and began to blossom during the final three weeks of last season, with rookie guard Devon Turk bursting onto the scene by averaging 8.7 points per game, while knocking down 65 three-point field goals, a Loyola single-season record for a freshman.
“I couldn’t be happier or more committed to lead the Loyola basketball program into a new era as we enter the Missouri Valley Conference,” Moser said. “I am grateful to the administration for its support and confidence and will continue to work to restore the proud tradition of Loyola basketball.”