ST. LOUIS — Fans will have a plethora of nicknames from which to choose next season, but the most important factor for Saint Louis University men's basketball coach Josh Schertz is that Robbie Avila will have his last name on an SLU uniform.

The 6-foot-10 rising junior committed to SLU on his campus visit after soaring in prominence at Indiana State and leading the Sycamores to the National Invitation Tournament championship game.

The relationship between Avila and Schertz was on display throughout the season and cemented the decision, Avila said Saturday before leaving St. Louis.

“I believed in him when he recruited me to Indiana State and it went well there, so I didn’t see a reason to change it up,” Avila said. “I was convinced from the beginning to follow him here. The biggest thing that draws me to him is he’s up front and honest and we’ve had a good deal the last few years.”

Known for wearing goggles when he plays, Avila finished as runner-up in the Missouri Valley Conference player of the year voting his sophomore season that saw him average 17.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists.

Along the way, he was tagged as “Cream Abdul-Jabbar,” “Larry Nerd” and “Steph Blurry,” to name a few of the monikers he picked up. He is arguably the most prestigious recruiting pickup for SLU since Larry Hughes arrived as a freshman. Avila has two years of eligibility remaining.

It was thought Avila could go to most any program he wanted, but his relationship with Schertz and success in his offense were strong lures. He had entered the transfer portal with a “do not contact” designation, marking the first signal he would choose SLU.

SLU does not have the name, image and likeness resources of power conference schools, and it is believed that Avila had to surrender a much bigger payout than he could have commanded elsewhere.

“NIL is a big deal and you could possibly get more at a power five school,” Avila said. “But there’s more to it than NIL that me and others realize. Being able to check boxes outside of the money is what Schertz does for me. St. Louis is a big city, and I think I’ll be able to use my player profile to get in the city and maybe make more than I could at another school.”

Avila is working with his agent on an eyewear sponsorship, and he said a deal likely will be in place before next season.

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