By MTN Sports Reporter: Ian Wolfe
Murfreesboro, Tenn.- MTSU forward Chris Loofe is coming off a solid freshman season with the Blue Raiders and the staff seems happy with how he’s developing so far.
Loofe took a step forward in high school and enrolled at Link Year Prep School in Branson, Missouri to help develop his talents to prepare for college. The staff noticed him at Link Year Prep and were impressed with his size and how well he could move on the court.
“He’s got the size you would want in his position. He has really good mobility and athleticism for his position and he had the work ethic.” MTSU head coach Nick McDevitt said. “When you combine those things, generally those guys pan out.”
MTSU assistant coach Wes Long, who works with Loofe the most on the staff, also mentioned his athleticism for his size mentioning how well he moves but also adding that “he’s sneaky bouncy”, referring to how well he can jump.
“It’s not like he’s ground-bound. He can get up off the floor pretty quickly.” Long said, continuing, “That’s the first thing that stood out to us was his mobility.”
Loofe came into the team with two experienced players in his position, looking at a limited first year at MTSU. But an unfortunate injury to forward Josh Ogundele meant Loofe had to fill a hole in his freshman year.
Although Loofe wouldn’t get consistent minutes with a standout season from Jared Coleman-Jones, only averaging 10.1 minutes this season. But he would capitalize on the opportunities given by improving his game throughout the season.
Long mentions there are struggles for new players but confidence is something he feels Loofe has gained this season with the minutes he’s played.
“We’re going to roll you out there and there will be some growing pains.” Long said. “But you are going to grow. The pains of sitting on the bench are different than the pains of growing in the game.”
Loofe was named conference freshman of the week four times this season with his performances against Wofford, Belmont, Southern Utah, and Murray State. McDevitt feels this also helps Loofe’s confidence going forward.
“It should give him some confidence that he can get the job done at this level and that he can be a really good collegiate basketball player,” McDevitt said. “He was obviously one of the better freshmen in our league this past season and that should give him a lot of confidence heading into the offseason.”
With a big year for forward Jared Coleman-Jones, competition for playing time was difficult but it helped push Loofe to get better this season.
“Healthy competition is the biggest driver for development. It just is.” Long said. “On a team, if you can get your mindset to ‘that guy is not my enemy’ but ‘he’s an ally and we drive each other’, then that is the best case scenario.”
With a full season of experience, the staff feels Loofe has a strong mindset and feels good about his upside going into his sophomore season.