All-Time vs. Loyola: 20-24

Last Meeting: 12/16/15 60-54 W

Tickets: loyolaramblers.com

Radio: WTAM 1100 AM

Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski

TV: ESPN+

Play-By-Play: Jordan Bernfield

SETTING THE SCENE

The Cleveland State Men's Basketball team kicks off the 2025-26 season with the first of two trips to the Chicagoland area as the Vikings tip off against Loyola. Cleveland State will return next Monday for a matchup against Northwestern. The new-look Vikings will look to build upon the success from previous seasons as Cleveland State will look to win 20 or more games for a fifth consecutive season. Loyola finished 25-12 last season and advanced to the semifinals of the NIT before falling to Chattanooga. The Ramblers won 17 of 18 games on their home floor last season. 

THE CLEVELAND STATE/LOYOLA SERIES

Loyola is a familiar foe for Cleveland State as the two teams competed against each other in the Horizon League for many years. Loyola was a charter member of the league and competed in the conference for 34 years before joining the Missouri Valley Conference in 2013 and subsequently joining their current conference, the Atlantic 10, in 2022. The Vikings and Ramblers will meet for the 45th time on Monday night with Loyola holding a 24-20 edge in the all-time series. This is just the second time the two teams have met as non-conference opponents. The first and most recent matchup between the two teams took place on December 16, 2015 when Cleveland State claimed a 60-54 win in Chicago. 

ROB SUMMERS BEGINS FIRST SEASON AS HEAD COACH

Monday's game will be the first for Rob Summers as Cleveland State head coach. Summers was named the 18th head coach in program history in April. Summers is a familiar face to Cleveland State after serving as an assistant coach under Dennis Gates from 2019-22. During that time the Vikings won two Horizon League regular season titles and one tournament title, making postseason appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2021 and the NIT in 2022. Following his three-year stint in Cleveland Summers spent two seasons as an assistant at Miami(OH) and then reunited with Gates as an assistant at Missouri this past season. Summers is a Columbus, Ohio native and played collegiately at Penn State and West Virginia, helping the Mountaineers advance to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in 2006. 
 

SCOUTING THE RAMBLERS

Loyola enters the 2025-26 season with a roster of eight returning players and eight newcomers. The Ramblers finished 25-12 last season and placed third in the Atlantic 10 with a 12-6 conference mark. Loyola returns two starters from last year's team that advanced to the semifinal round of the NIT. Entering this season the Ramblers are picked fifth in the A-10 Preseason Poll. Head coach Drew Valentine enters his fifth season in charge of the Loyola program. He has amassed a record of 83-51 in his first four seasons. 

SUMMERS ADDS FIVE TO COACHING STAFF

Rob Summers has added an experienced group of five assistant coaches to his first Cleveland State staff. Associate head coach Frank Young comes to Cleveland after six seasons at Appalachian State. Young and Summers were teammates at West Virginia for their final two collegiate seasons. Veteran assistant Louis Rowe brings almost two decades of coaching experience and most recently was an assistant at Oregon. Rowe and Summers coached together at James Madison where Rowe was the head coach for four seasons. Assistant coach Michael Hunter comes to Cleveland after two successful seasons of head coaching experience at Shawnee State University. Hunter coached under Summers at Urbana University. Assistant coach Casey Perrin brings almost a decade of experience at three Division I programs. Perrin most recently was an assistant at Louisiana for the past three seasons. Dalon King returns to his alma mater as an assistant coach. King was on staff with Summers for all three seasons of his first stint at Cleveland State and went on to Missouri where the two worked together again last season.  

FRESH FACES

Cleveland State features a brand new roster set to debut on Monday night. The Vikings added 15 new players this offseason who will be suiting up in the green and white for the first time. Cleveland State is one of six teams in Division I with all new players. The Vikings are one of ten teams in the country with zero returning points and one of eight teams with zero returning scholarship players. 

ROSTER BREAKDOWN

Cleveland State's roster features 14 transfer student-athletes and one incoming freshman. Among the transfers, 11 of them are upperclassmen. The roster includes five seniors and six juniors, along with three sophomores and one freshman. Among the transfers, seven of them have Division I playing experience. 

LOCAL FLAVOR

Among the Cleveland State newcomers are some familiar names who have had success in the high school and college ranks in the Northeast Ohio region. Junior Josiah Harris comes from Akron where he played in six games last season before suffering a season-ending injury. Harris played his high school basketball at Richmond Heights, located on Cleveland's east side. Harris was a Northeast Lakes Division All-District IV first team selection. Manny Hill is another local product who is a familiar face as he follows in his older brother's footsteps. Yahel Hill played four years for the Vikings and graduated in 2023. Manny has made stops at Notre Dame College, Cuyahoga Community College and most recently Heidelberg University. Hill will play his final season of college basketball at Cleveland State. 

SAME COLORS, NEW TEAM

Foster Wonders is another familiar name to Horizon League fans as he comes to Cleveland after two seasons at Green Bay. Wonders began his career at Southen Illinois before transferring to Green Bay for his sophomore and junior seasons. At Green Bay he played in 57 career games and averaged just under seven points per game. The Iron Mountain, Michigan native was one of the top scorers in Michigan Upper Peninsula basketball history finishing with over 2,200 points in his high school career. 
 

PLAYER AND COACH TOGETHER AGAIN

Senior Tre Beard will see a familiar face on the Cleveland State bench as the season begins. Beard transfers in after three successful seasons at Shawnee State University. He was named an NAIA All-American last year after averaging 19.1 points per game. Beard played under current Cleveland State assistant coach Michael Hunter at Shawnee State, and the two are excited to work together again this season. 

CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE AWAITS

Rob Summers has assembled a difficult non-conference slate in his first season in charge of the CSU program. The Vikings will match up with Loyola and Northwestern in the season's first week. Later in November, Summers will reunite with his mentor, former Cleveland State head coach Dennis Gates, as the two will square off when the Vikings visit Missouri. A trip to the historic Greenbrier Resort as well as a matchup with UAB are also on the schedule. Cleveland State will take on five teams that won 20 or more games last season and four who made postseason appearances in either the NCAA Tournament or NIT.  
 

CLEVELAND STATE TABBED EIGHTH IN HORIZON LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL

The Horizon League released its preaseason poll which is voted on annually by coaches, media members and Sports Information Directors from each of the league's 11 institutions. Cleveland State was picked eighth in the rankings. Cleveland State received 217 total points, just shy of Wright State who is seventh with 221. Milwaukee has been picked as the preseason favorite finishing with 24 first place votes.

UP NEXT

Cleveland State returns home for the home opener against Capital University on Thursday, November 6. The Vikings will hit the floor at 7:00 p.m. The game will be Faculty Appreciation Night with schedule posters available while supplies last. New in 2025-26, the Box Office will be cashless on game days. Fans purchasing tickets on the day of the game will be asked to utilize a credit or debit card for each transaction.