Robert Lovaglio got plenty of attention from athletic programs around the country when he graduated from high school, but none appealed to him as much as Loyola.
It all started while Lovaglio attended Winter Park High School in Winter Park, Fla. He played on the school’s varsity basketball team all four years, serving as captain his junior and senior years.
During Lovaglio’s senior year, the Winter Park Wildcats won a state championship. He made Second Team All-Central Florida and Fourth Team All-State, and broke the school’s rebound record with 835 rebounds in his high school career. He also scored over 1000 points throughout his four years.
He received numerous college basketball offers and paid official visits to schools such as the U.S. Naval Academy, Colgate University and the University of Vermont.
But Lovaglio tore three muscles in his left leg during a Winter Park summer league game. It was a critical time in Lovaglio’s basketball career because it was just before the start of the Amateur Athletic Union summer season. “AAU summer season going into senior year is the most important time as far as scouting and scholarships are concerned,” Lovaglio said.
After his injury, he had to call all prospective coaches to say that he was unable to play for the summer. All of Lovaglio’s offers disappeared, forcing him to start from scratch. Interested coaches who called him once a week stopped calling all together. They couldn’t take the risk. “No one wanted to invest money in someone who was hurt,” Lovaglio said. He spent the rest of the summer in physical therapy to prepare for the season ahead.
Lovaglio intended on playing for Florida State University as a walk-on until he received a call and a scholarship offer from Loyola. Lovaglio cited his friend Austin Jacks, a Tulane football player from Winter Park, for influencing his decision to move to New Orleans.
Game crowds do not faze Lovaglio. He said Winter Park High was known as “the hardest home court to play in Central Florida.” Over the years, playing in front of crowds of 2,000 or more became a common occurrence.
“Winter Park is a very spirited school, so everyone came out to all of our games,” he said.
Lovaglio, who was accustomed to playing basketball with the same group of people since he was 11, had to adapt to an entirely new team and a different style of play at Loyola. He was used to running a triangle offense as opposed to a 4-out 1-in motion.
Lovaglio set a career record this season in a game against Auburn Montgomery with 10 rebounds and five assists. He also scored 15 points, earning his first double-double at Loyola.
Lovagio’s favorite matchup was against Xavier, in which he scored 29 points and said he felt “on top of his game” in terms of his ability to perform.
Before a game, Lovaglio likes to listen to music as a distraction and as a way to get “in the zone.” Once he gets on the court and starts playing, the crowd fades out and he is focused on the game.
Lovaglio’s main goal in life is to take over his father’s financial planning firm, but he is also open to playing basketball in an overseas league.
“If it was for the right amount of money and in the right place, I would postpone that goal for a couple of years,” Lovaglio said.
Scott O’Brien can be reached at
Austen Jacks, Tulane University finance sophomore, holds up a framed picture of a cat during the men’s basketball game in the Den against Spring Hill. “I just wanted to distract the other team so I brought the cat,” Jacks said after the game. (Bethany Wilde/Staff Photographer)
