When Tavaras Hardy took over a Loyola men's basketball program that had gone 9-22 during the 2017-18 season and was losing two of its top scorers to graduation, he knew he was taking on a major rebuilding project.
What Hardy did have was the best scorer in the Patriot League. He just didn't know it yet. Junior wing Andrew Kostecka is averaging a conference-best 21.2 points per game for the Greyhounds, who are 8-17 overall and 4-8 in the conference.
"No one was telling me that Drew was going to be our best player coming in. Everybody picked us to finish last in the league," Hardy said. "Nobody picked him on any all-league teams. Drew's gotten in the gym and gotten better. I have a great staff that's been in the gym with him. He's bought into what we're trying to do, and he's seeing the results from it."