Sophomore men’s basketball forward Kevin Young has been granted a release from the team, the Loyolan confirmed with the Athletics Department on Friday. Young was the fourth-most prolific scorer for the Lions this past season, averaging 10.7 points per game. He appeared in all 34 games, and started in 31 of them.
“We were obviously disappointed,” said Head Coach Max Good when asked what his initial reaction was. “Kevin was a big part of our success and a big contributor in us going from three wins one season to 18 wins this year. The program really grew on the back of those three [Jarred DuBois, LaRon Armstead and Young], but on the other hand, Kevin has to do what’s in his heart to do and we’re not going to try to hold him against his will. Wherever he ends up, whatever he does, we wish him the best because he is a really, really good person and he has the affection of everybody on the coaching staff. We care deeply about him.”
Associate Head Coach Myke Scholl echoed many of Good’s statements, and in talking to the Loyolan Friday wanted to stress his continued commitment to help Young academically.
“My initial reaction on top of [what Coach Good has said] has to do with academics,” said Scholl. “If he wants to get his release nobody worries that he won’t find a place to play, he’s a good player, our biggest worry is about him getting his degree. He would be the first in his family to do it and its a commitment we as a coaching staff made to his family. We know he’ll do well athletically. We just want to make sure he does well academically and graduates.”
Young quickly became a fan favorite his freshman year, best known for his high energy play and slam-dunking abilities. Young also shattered the LMU freshman rebound record in the 2008-09 season with 224, as well as the record for rebounds per game for a freshman with 7.2. He leaves the Lions 9th on the all-time LMU block list with 63 career blocks in just two seasons.
“I’m sure Kevin is a fan favorite because he is a high riser and a dunker and we will miss him from that standpoint,” said Good. “He’s the kind of kid who will get people out of their seats but I think we have capable replacements.”
In his sophomore season, along with being the team’s fourth-best scorer, Young was also the Lions’ third-best rebounder, averaging 5.3 per game.
“The child fans especially love him because of the way he plays,” Scholl said. “It’s definitely going to be sad for them.”
Young’s LMU career finishes with him averaging 10 points and 6.4 rebounds per game. He appeared in 61 games and averaged a significant 31 minutes per game.
According to Good and Scholl, the coaching staff is not through recruiting for next season. With the excitement that Young has helped create over the past two seasons, higher caliber basketball players are now considering LMU, something that wasn’t happening one year ago.
“We have access to a pool of players we didn’t have access to before,” Scholl said. “Kevin has helped build that, and it’s unfortunate that he won’t be able to benefit from something he helped build.”
Good echoed that statement. “He helped get us to where we are and I’m just disappointed he is not going to see that to fruition. We will, however, still be able to put a good product on the floor.”
Young, who told the Loyolan that he preferred not to talk about his decision, is thankful to the fans for the support they have shown him. “I would like to thank all the LMU fans for supporting the team these last two seasons and wish the team luck in future years.”
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