Toreros Will Be Seeking Revenge Against First-Place Lions Tonight

The University of San Diego men’s basketball team, coming off a last-second 72-70 loss last Saturday night to Loyola Marymount, will have a chance to gain revenge at 7:30 tonight when it faces the Lions in a West Coast Athletic Conference game at Los Angeles.

The Toreros (4-2 in conference and 14-6 overall) trail first-place Loyola (6-0, 14-6) by two games and second-place Pepperdine by one. USD will play at Pepperdine Saturday night.

Loyola, which is led by the nation’s highest-scoring backcourt duo (Keith Smith 23.9 points per game and Forrest McKenzie, 19.4), has won eight straight and is off to its best start since the 1967-68 season.

“It’s kind of interesting having to play them back-to-back game,” Paul Westhead, Loyola coach, said. “We’ve both had a week off so I think that will neutralize everything.”

The Toreros will have to find a way to neutralize Smith and McKenzie. Smith made the game-winning jumper with one second on Saturday and McKenzie contributed several outside jumpers to finish with 22 points. Mike Yoest, a 6-foot 7-inch forward who averages only 8.9 points per game, scored 24 against the Toreros last week.

USD will also need a better effort from 7-foot center Scott Thompson, who leads the team in scoring with a 13.3 average. Thompson had only six rebounds against the smaller Lions on Saturday. Guard Pete Murphy (13.2) is the Toreros’ best outside shooter.

This seems to be a vital game for USD (the Toreros could fall three games behind in the conference race), and Westhead said it is just as important for the Lions.

“I kind of see a little edge for USD because it’s such a get-after-it game for them,” he said. “But we don’t exactly have the type of team that can afford to throw a game away. We have a little advantage right know, and we know we have to try and keep it.”