Moving Forward with Basketball Superstar

Lex Therien, ’25, always had an independent streak, so she was determined not to follow her two older sisters into Loyola’s women’s basketball program.

The plan instead was to head to Boston University, another Patriot League institution. Then the Terriers had a coaching change late in her senior year of high school, and she was left uncertain about where she would attend college.

When Therien reached out to Loyola coach Danielle O’Banion—herself just a few weeks into the job with the Greyhounds—she found a program happy to have her. But she still had to face some teasing from her sisters, Isabella, ’21, and Ava, ’22, M.A. ’23, MBA ’24, after becoming a Greyhound.

As much of a whirlwind as her process leading to the Evergreen campus was—she said it lasted about 20 minutes—it turned out to be one of the most impactful in the history of Loyola’s program. She won the Patriot League’s Rookie of the Year award in 2021-22, was a second team all-conference selection as a first-year and sophomore, and earned a first-team nod in 2023-24.

Now an MBA student who graduated with a degree in writing in the spring, Therien heads into her fifth year with 1,356 points (seventh all-time at Loyola) and 1,001 rebounds (fifth).

Therien is one of two Greyhounds with 1,300 points and 1,000 rebounds. The other is Patty Stoffey Edelman, ’96, the program’s all-time leading scorer and fourth-leading rebounder entering 2025-26.

“The way she plays is the way she lives her life,” O’Banion said. “She’s a beautiful, bold personality, and she plays basketball that way. The way she pursues the basketball, whether there’s one person or four other people around her—the fact is she won’t be denied. She’s a fierce competitor. She holds herself to a high standard. Those are qualities that have helped transform our locker room.”

O’Banion took over a program that was winless in the truncated 2020-21 pandemic season. With Therien as a foundational piece, the Greyhounds earned five victories in 2021-22 and 10 the following year. Loyola went 16-15 in 2023-24 and seemed on the cusp of a program breakout in Therien’s senior year.

However, Therien had dealt with back injuries since her first year at Loyola, managing them through a variety of treatments. But after the Greyhounds’ third game last year, she realized she couldn’t lift her foot.

“I thought ‘I need to get help,’” Therien said. “I walked back to my car and thought ‘I’ve got to tell somebody.’ I ended up telling my athletic trainer, ‘I think it’s time, I need to get this surgery.’”

O’Banion was supportive of the decision but also challenged her to find a way to contribute. Loyola struggled with a team-wide spate of injuries last season, and Therien continued one of her traditions of writing an inspirational message on the dry erase board in the locker room about a half-hour before every game. For road games she couldn’t attend, she passed the message on to O’Banion. “I needed to still support and cheer as loud as I could on the sideline and let them know they’re capable.”

Because she played in so few games, Therien retained her final season of eligibility and will be back for another shot in what she describes as a “little revenge tour.”

“It just makes me fired up for this year,” said Therien, who hopes to play overseas for a couple of years or work in sales after college.

I know I have a lot to get done and a lot of work to put in. I have big goals and aspirations for this season for myself and the team. Battling through this injury has made me realize how much I do love basketball and how much it’s going to mean to me when I step on the court again for the first time.

Therien’s ability to navigate her extended time off the floor also reinforced to O’Banion the 6-foot-1 forward’s growth during her time at Loyola.

“It has obviously been fantastic to watch Lex grow on the court, but I’d also say watching her mature from an educational standpoint, from a worldview standpoint, has been equally rewarding,” O’Banion said. “I credit that to our cura personalis philosophy here. She’s taken full advantage of her Loyola educational opportunities. It’s been fun to watch her grow into an informed, compassionate young woman.”

Perhaps most impressive was Therien’s decision to remain at Loyola, particularly in an era when student athletes transfer at a higher frequency than before. She and O’Banion had conversations about her plans after each of her seasons.

And while the thought of transferring crossed her mind, Therien knows the school she didn’t plan to attend as a high schooler is the only place she wants to be.

“I might not leave a legacy [elsewhere] that I could leave at Loyola, especially when I know this year we could do something really special,” she said.