The Loyola-Chicago Ramblers have enjoyed a Cinderella run to this year’s Final Four in San Antonio, reaching college basketball’s main event as an #11 seed.

When we think of the symbol behind the Ramblers run, the first thing that crosses our minds is, of course, the aura of 98-year-old nun Sister Jean.

However, the play of junior point guard Clayton Custer has been one of the biggest keys to the Ramblers success this March.

Growing up in Overland Park, KS, Custer was one of the state’s top prospects, playing for the powerhouse program Blue Valley Northwest High School. The state of Kansas had witnessed some of it’s best prospects during Custer’s four-years of high school, like Perry Ellis, Conner Frankamp, Shavon Shields, and current NBA players Ron Baker, Semi Ojelye, and lottery pick Willie Cauley-Stein.

Custer, and his former 3rd-grade classmate, Ben Richardson, led Blue Valley Northwest to a 94-6 record from 2011-2014. During that stretch, the Huskies reached the state championship game every season, winning the title in Custer’s junior and senior years.

Custer averaged 22.2 points and 5.3 assists per game throughout his high school tenure, and despite the success, many of the top basketball programs, including this year’s Midwest regional champion, the Kansas Jayhawks, didn’t show any interest in the local product.

“Being overlooked has been happening to me in gyms since I was a kid,” Custer said. “I know I don’t exactly look like a college star.”

When Kansas head coach Bill Self was asked about Custer coming out of high school, Self said, “He was good enough to play at Kansas. But you know, we were loaded at the guard spot. I mean, we already had Frank (Mason) and Devonte’ (Graham), and so that would’ve been a tough one.”

Basketball wasn’t the only sport that Custer thrived in, he received many opportunities to play baseball at the division-one level. He was offered a scholarship for both basketball and baseball at Kansas State.

Despite being overlooked, Fred Holberg, who was the head coach of the Iowa State at the time, offered Custer a scholarship to play for the Cyclones.

Unfortunately, playing time became scarce for Custer early on as a freshman, playing in only 12 games, averaging just 1.1 points per contest. Also, it didn’t help matters that he was stuck behind the Cyclones’ core of now professionals, Monte Morris, Georges Niang, Naz Long, Jameel McKay, and Abdel Nader.

With the lack of playing time, Custer decided to transfer from Iowa State. The opportunity to play baseball for K-State came again; however, Custer would once again turn down the offer.

“Even after I hadn’t played for a year,” Custer said. “I had worked too hard (in basketball) for this.” It turned out to be a good decision. Custer would end up re-joining his Blue Valley Northwest teammate at Loyola-Chicago the following season.

The decision has since paid off big time.

After red-shirting his first season at Loyola-Chicago, Custer would start all 32 games in the 2016-17 season, averaging 11.6 points and three assists per game.

Custer’s junior season is now proving to be one to remember, averaging 13.2 points and 4.2 assists per game, also taking home the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year. His winning ways in high school paid off in this year’s NCAA tournament, as Custer would hit a game-winning jumper to knock off the third-seeded Tennessee Volunteers in the round of 32.

After the Ramblers clinched their first Final Four appearance in 55 years last Saturday in a win over Kansas State, Custer reflected on his journey, “It makes me think back to all the ups and downs I’ve gone through in my career. Having to transfer, going through tough years, to go through all that hard work and now be able to live this moment it makes everything worth it.”