News

When they’re not shooting hoops or spiking the ball, Loyola student-athletes don’t just spend the rest of their time with their noses in the books. Rather, many have hobbies just like any other person. Women’s volleyball middle blocker Elle Van Grinsven likes to spend her time watercolor painting. Meanwhile, men’s basketball guard Paxson Wojcik can often be found with a fishing pole when he’s not in the gym. Read the full article in the Loyola Phoenix. 

It’s unlikely that many even noticed. There was a late addition to Porter-Gaud’s roster ahead of the 2017 state playoffs. The lineup already included six future college commits, two projected to one day be NBA draft picks. So the chances that anyone paid much attention to the call-up of a 5-foot-7 eighth-grader from the junior varsity are as slim as his 120-pound frame. Read the full story in Moultrie News. 

Recruiting Coordinator Doug Wojcik hasn't slowed down these last few months, despite the challenging circumstances. In fact, Tom Izzo and Michigan State's great summer of recruiting just keeps rolling on with the addition of another four-star prospect to their 2021 class. Read the full story in Basketball Recruiting. 

There’s no telling if there will be college basketball this fall and winter, but that’s hardly slowed the recruiting momentum in East Lansing. On Thursday afternoon, Tom Izzo and his staff – including Recruiting Coordinator Doug Wojcik – kept the ball rolling as Michigan State gained a commitment from four-star point guard Jaden Akins of Farmington. Read the full story in the Detroit News. 

Not everyone buys in to the idea of recruiting momentum. But right now, in the college basketball world, it’s getting difficult to deny that’s exactly what’s happening at Michigan State, where Doug Wojcik serves as the Recruiting Coordinator. Read the full story in the Detroit News. 

Following a college career where he finished as Central Michigan's all-time leader in assists and a brief stint overseas, Chris Fowler now finds his way to Arizona. Read the full story in the Arizona Daily Sun. 

Ypsilanti Lincoln basketball phenom Emoni Bates, the No. 1 prospect in the country for the 2022 class, committed to Michigan State basketball during a live interview on ESPN on Monday. Read the full story in USA Today. 

Harvard added to a successful 2021 recruiting class on Saturday by landing a pledge from French native Louis Lesmond. The four-star prospect joins Bennett Pitcher and Denham Wojcik, son of Lael and Doug Wojcik. Read the full article in 247 Sports. 

Tom Izzo has been named of the 100 most influential people in college basketball by Silver Waves Media. The list is comprised of college coaches, conference commissioners, and other people impacting the college basketball world. Read the full story here. 

Harvard kicked off its 2021 class with one of the sturdiest, most tough-minded lead guards found in America. Denham Wojcik, a 6-foot-1 junior and three-star recruit, gave his verbal commitment to the Crimson on Friday afternoon. Read the full story in Basketball Recruiting. 

With March Madness canceled because of the coronavirus, we looked back at 16 of the most memorable first-round games involving teams from D.C., Maryland and Virginia on Thursday. After the weekend that normally would have decided the tournament’s Sweet 16, here are eight of the most memorable second-round games involving the same subset of schools. Read the full article in the Washington Post. 

Tom Izzo cleaned his closet. He plans on cleaning his garage. He slept until 9 a.m. Saturday morning and he can’t remember the last time he stayed in bed that late. If ever. Though the extra zzz’s came after he’d risen at 5 a.m. to watch a little film. Because, well, “it was something to do.” Read the full article in Yahoo! Sports. 

The cancellation of the NCAA tournament thanks to the spread of COVID-19 has hit sports fans everywhere hard. Of course, the athletes and coaching staff who worked extremely hard to be in a position to succeed in the annual dance are now dealing with a serious void. Read the full article in Detroit Sports Nation. 

There were brooms and there street and sidewalks to be swept. Jordan Clarkson was there in the crowd, relishing another playoff series victory by his hometown San Antonio Spurs. Read the full article in The Athletic. 

Denham Wojcik, son of Lael and Doug Wojcik, is a cerebral player when he’s on the basketball court. The La Lumiere junior is savvy, does the little things and plays as hard as possible for 32 minutes. Nothing less would be expected from a son of a coach, team leader and a point guard who has a scholarship offer from Harvard. Read the full article in the Wheeling News-Register. 

Michigan Statue University's Cassius Winston went to bed around 4 a.m. on Sunday, closing his eyes in the infinite silence of those predawn hours, when everyone else is long asleep. Read the full article in The Athletic. 

Denham Wojcik, son of Lael and Doug Wojcik, is a cerebral player when he’s on the basketball court. The La Lumiere junior is savvy, does the little things and plays as hard as possible for 32 minutes. Nothing less would be expected from a son of a coach, team leader and a point guard who has a scholarship offer from Harvard. Read the full article in The Times Leader. 

From Wolves to Ramblers, this pack of first-year players is experienced playing basketball with each other. Guards Paxson Wojcik, son of Doug and Lael Wojcik, and Marquise Kennedy and forward Tom Welch all played on the same Illinois Wolves team before joining Loyola this season. Red the full article in the Loyola Phoenix.

There isn’t much Michigan State has yet to accomplish under Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo, from Big Ten titles and Final Four trips to winning a national championship. Read the full article in the Associated Press. 

Doug Wojcik remembers it like it was yesterday. A young, bright-eyed kid, who lived on Wheeling Island, getting up each morning and picking up his basketball and heading to the outdoor courts at Belle Isle to get some shots up. “My dreams were probably a little bit bigger than most, but I was always dreaming of what could be,” Wojcik said. Read the full article in the Wheeling News-Register.