From the West Side to Florida International to Kansas, Milton Doyle’s road from Marshall to Rogers Park was a strange one.
A hidden gem in high school, Doyle was headed to FIU before Isiah Thomas was fired as head coach before Doyle arrived.
Then Bill Self came calling, and Doyle could not resist the opportunity. But his time as a Jayhawk lasted all of one summer.
No longer an unknown, expectations were high when the lean, 6-foot-4 guard arrived at Loyola, and he fulfilled them with averages of 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists and the Missouri Valley Conference freshman and newcomer of the year awards.
Three years later, those remain the best numbers of his career.
A foot injury interrupted his sophomore season, and last season, as coach Porter Moser put it, “He did not have a great year.”
Finally up 10 pounds to 190 after trying to gain weight ever since his college basketball journey began, Doyle is the key to Loyola’s success this season.
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A preseason second-team All-MVC selection, Doyle is expected to pick up his scoring after averaging 11.4 and 11.2 points the last two seasons. And his quick feet, high motor, long arms and added strength should help the Ramblers on both ends of the floor.
“With your best players, your shot selection has to be more lenient,” Moser said. “You can’t expect your leading scorer to take a good shot every time. With that comes trust. You can’t abuse it.
“I told him, ‘You will have more leeway if you give me 110 percent every time on defense.’ He’s long and really smart. He can be a great defender if he grinded it out on every possession. That is what we are working toward with him.”
The Ramblers have had some moments since moving into the MVC, including a sweep of Northern Iowa last season. Moser likes the pieces he has surrounded Doyle with, but both know a big season from Doyle is likely the only way they contend in the competitive conference.
“It hasn’t been quite what I wanted it to be here so far,” Doyle said. “I could have done much better, but this is my last year and I feel like we’re all ready to go.”
Loyola Ramblers
Coach: Porter Moser (71-91 in five seasons; 176-192 overall in 12 seasons).
2015-16: 15-17, 7-11 Missouri Valley (eighth).
Key losses: Montel James, Devon Turk, Earl Peterson.
Key additions: Clayton Custer (Iowa State transfer), Aundre Jackson (junior college), Bruno Skokna, Matt Chastain.
Best early game: at North Carolina State, Nov. 26.
Mike Helfgot is a freelance reporter for the baiduhai.