Late Shot by Smith Beats USD

Loyola Marymount Coach Paul Westhead knew there was something wrong during the first half of the Lions’ key West Coast Athletic Conference game Saturday night against the University of San Diego.

Westhead’s usually reliable point guard, Keith Smith, was having an off night. Smith, who leads the conference in scoring with a 24.0 average, hit just 2 of 8 shots in the first 20 minutes.

“I looked at the stat sheet and I was surprised,” Westhead said. “I told him to just keep shooting.”

Smith did just that. And it worked. He hit all seven of his shots in the second half including a 20-foot jumper with one second remaining that gave the Lions a 72-70 win over the Toreros in front of 2,800 stunned fans in the USD Sports Center.

Smith’s dramatic basket climaxed a tremendous second half which saw neither team lead by more than two points until the final minutes. Two free throws by Mike Yoest, a jumper by Smith and another jumper by Forrest McKenzie gave Loyola a 70-64 lead with 1:29 remaining before USD staged an improbable comeback.

After Mark Bostic hit a shot from the lane, USD guard Pete Murphy forced two turnovers to set the Toreros up for the tie. Paul Leonard sneaked inside Loyola’s tight 2-3 zone defense for an off-balance jumper that tied the score, 70-70, with 11 seconds left.

Smith, however, took the inbound pass, raced the length of the court, made a 360-degree spin and put up his game-winning jumper from the top of the key.

“About the only thing he did wrong on that last shot was that he left one second on the clock,” Westhead said with a grin. “Actually, I think it was appropriate that the game ended on a buzzer beater. Both teams played so well and so close.”

That was of little solace to USD. The loss dropped the Toreros (4-2 in conference, 14-6 overall) two games behind the Lions (6-0, 14-6). USD will quickly have a chance for redemption, however, as the teams will meet again Friday at Loyola.

“Things really weren’t clicking as well for us as they had been lately,” USD Coach Hank Egan said. “But we hung tough and in a lot of ways it was a good effort. (Smith) really made one hell-of-a shot.”

Though Smith’s jumper came from outside and provided the winning margin, the game may actually have been decided in another area of the floor. Yoest, Loyola’s 6-foot 7-inch forward, led all scorers with 24 points and did a good job of allowing the Lions to function inside against the taller Toreros.

Yoest repeatedly took the ball inside against USD’s 7-foot center Scott Thompson and scored easy layups. Defensively, Yoest was most responsible for a Loyola defense that kept the Toreros pinned outside most of the night.

“You could safely say that without Mike Yoest, we wouldn’t have won tonight,” Westhead said. “He has been an unsung hero all season long just because everybody’s always talks about McKenzie and Smith.”

Not that they weren’t worth talking about. McKenzie, whose move from forward to guard has been one of the keys to Loyola’s recent surge, scored 20 points on a 10-of-19 shooting effort. Smith wound up with 22 points.

While Smith’s shooting was off, McKenzie scored 12 first-half points to help Loyola take a 34-30 lead. USD hung tough in the second half, however, behind Murphy, who led the Toreros with 18 points.

Murphy, who injured his left ankle against Pepperdine Thursday night, played freely Saturday and was the main reason USD was able to keep up with the Lions throughout a torrid pace in the second half.

But while Murphy was hot from outside, USD never could get its inside game going. Egan was upset afterward that his team did not shoot one free throw in the second half while Loyola attempted nine.

“I thought the disparity in the free throw attempts in the second half was a bit (pause) interesting,” he said. “Especially when both teams were playing zone and we were pounding it inside more than they were.”

Yoest, however, did do his share of pounding. But when he didn’t, McKenzie and Smith took over.