4 years after near-death experience on the court, Philip Alston helping Loyola bounce back
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Phillip Alston has been a big part of Loyola's turnaround this season. He's made a serious impact on the Ramblers since joining them as a transfer from the Division II level, but he first had to work his way back from a serious health incident.
Alston has been thriving in his second year at Loyola, throwing down some high-flying dunks, while being a force on the defensive end, helping the Ramblers' resurgence towards the top of the Atlantic 10.
"We're proving that last year was a fluke, and our defense, that's something that we've really been harping on this year, just trying to play aggressive defense. I mean, it's just amazing. I just feel extremely blessed just to be here, and be a part of this team this year," Alston said.
Alston said he treats every moment on the basketball court as precious. Four years ago, as a freshman at California University in Pennsylvania, he nearly died on the court, going into cardiac arrest during a scrimmage.
"I came over for a water break. I think we just had lost, and then I guess I just collapsed, basically. I woke up with my trainer giving me CPR, and a whole bunch of medics just around me reviving me basically. Then my head coach comes to me, and he hands me my phone and my dad, and right when I hear my dad's voice, I just immediately start breaking out crying," he said.
From there, he was life-flighted to a Pittsburgh hospital, where doctors worked to figure out how this happened to a healthy college athlete. It turned out his heart was fine, but he had been bleeding slowly over time from an ulcer on his digestive tract.
"Basically, I wasn't getting enough blood pumping to my heart. So, like, basically, my heart was just working too much. Obviously playing basketball, such a rigorous sport, caused it stop. I was lucky to get all that blood situation figured out, and then I felt like my game just skyrocketed from there. So I almost look at it like a blessing in disguise," he said.
As Alston mentioned, his game took off after he returned, and after an All-American season at the Division-II level, he transferred to Loyola, where he's become a key cog for the Ramblers and a favorite of head coach Drew Valentine.
"I think what makes him special is that is that he doesn't have a lot of entitlement to him. If I have him in film the next day, and I'm telling him, and we're watching his defensive stuff, and I'm like, 'this is the stuff you need to get better at,' he doesn't have an attitude with me. He agrees, and he just tries to get better. When one of your better players has that mindset, and mentality, and approach, that just sets the standard, and it makes it easier to coach everybody else on your team," Valentine said.
Alston doesn't have a sense entitlement when it comes to anything in his life at this point. He's thankful to be alive and happy where he's at.
"I just live every day to the fullest, because I literally could've died, and I just think about that sometimes, and it just makes me extremely grateful. I feel like this team has something that we can accomplish this year, and I just feel like all these things that happened to me, it happened for a reason, and I just feel like it's really going to show," he said.
Alston will likely continue to show out for the Ramblers the rest of the way.
Alston likely had been dealing with blood loss for years, even through most of high school. He said coaches thought he was lazy, and it was frustrating to not get the results he wanted. That's how he was under-recruited and ended up starting at Division II; but, as he said, everything has worked out for the better.
