Loyola’s Smith Scores 33, but U. of San Diego Wins

The University of San Diego’s inside game and 12-for-13 foul shooting in the last two minutes were enough to overcome Loyola Marymount, 62-54, Friday night despite 33 points by Loyola’s Keith Smith.

A crowd of 1,850 at Loyola saw the Toreros pull away from a 28-28 tie early in the second half as forward Anthony Reuss scored seven points in the first three minutes and center Scott Thompson hit three straight shots midway through the period.

Reuss and Thompson combined for 29 points and 17 rebounds in the game and closed down Loyola’s inside game, holding all the Lions but Smith to single figures.

Guard Pete Murphy nailed down the victory, getting all his points on 11 of 13 free throws, including 8 of 8 in the last 1:09. When Thompson had the Toreros’ only misfire from the free-throw line in the last two minutes, Murphy got the rebound and ended up shooting foul shots.

The victory raised San Diego’s overall record to 13-8 and its West Coast Athletic Conference mark to 2-4. Loyola, 9-12 overall, fell into a tie for last place in the WCAC with Portland at 1-5.

San Diego bounced back from a desultory first half in which neither team shot well and in which Loyola led at the end, 24-21. Loyola led by as many seven points in the half as Smith scored 14 points, and the Toreros shot 28.6%.

Reuss came out shooting in the second half, hitting three straight baskets, one good for a three-point play. The Toreros then pulled steadily away, building a lead that reached 12 in the closing minutes.

Reuss led the Toreros with 17 points and added eight rebounds. Thompson had 12 points and nine rebounds, and forward Nils Madden chipped in nine points and nine rebounds.

Smith hit 15 of 27 shots and added six assists. Freshman guard Steve Haney was next with eight points as Loyola had its lowest scoring night of the season. The Lions’ front-liners shot a combined 4 for 18.

San Diego Coach Hank Egan said his team did a good job defensively against Loyola, “especially on Haney . . . and I thought we did as good a job as you can do on Smith.”

Egan said his team also did a good job of getting the shots it wanted despite shooting only 39.6%. “We’ve been moving the ball well since the Pepperdine game,” he said. “Even in the first half we ran our offense well and got a lot of little shots that didn’t go down.”

Loyola Coach Ed Goorjian, whose team has lost four straight games, said the defense on Haney was excellent, adding, “We tried to compensate by punching it inside but couldn’t.”