Josh Schertz on potential to bring Robbie Avila, Indiana State stars to Saint Louis: 'We certainly hope so'
Shortly after Indiana State learned its NIT fate, news broke of Saint Louis’ pursuit of head coach Josh Schertz. That was on Selection Sunday, and the Billikens were finally able to announce his hiring last week after the Sycamores fell to Seton Hall in the NIT title game.
Just days after SLU officially hired Schertz, multiple key Indiana State players entered the transfer portal. That includes star forward Robbie Avila, who officially hit the open market Tuesday afternoon with a no-contact tag next to his name – hours before Schertz headed to Busch Stadium, donning a Saint Louis hat and a Cardinals jersey as he threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Bally Sports’ Jim Hayes also caught up with Schertz during the fourth inning and asked him about potentially bringing some of that Indiana State talent with him to St. Louis. He sounded optimistic about that idea.
“We certainly hope so,” Schertz said. “We’ve got a really enticing recruiting pitch. You look at our system, style of play, and everything we have to offer. The city, the facilities, etc. So hopefully we’ll be in the mix for some great players. We coached some great players at Indiana State. But the goal is to put together a championship level team here by the start of this season – certainly by June we want to have the roster set and the talent and character to compete for a championship.”
Avila was the face of an Indiana State team that looked primed for a March run. He was a first team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection as he averaged 17.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.0 assists. During the year, he went viral on social media with his trademark goggles and playmaking ability, and KSR’s Matt Jones affectionately dubbed him “Cream Abdul-Jabbar.”
Avila isn’t the only notable Indiana State player to hit the portal, though. The rest of ISU’s starting five – Ryan Conwell, Isaiah Swope, Jayson Kent and Julian Larry – all decided to transfer as the Sycamores get their coaching search underway.
Josh Schertz and Indiana State put together an impressive year to make a strong case for March Madness. The Sycamores made it into the AP Top 25 for the first time since Larry Bird played in Terre Haute as part of a 32-win season to become a No. 1 seed in the NIT.