Want Scoring? Schedule Loyola, Not Trojans, at Gersten

A yawner was played in Loyola Marymount’s Gersten Pavilion on Monday, but it didn’t have anything to do with Loyola.

USC borrowed the Loyola gym for its non-conference game against Colorado State, and George Raveling’s Slo-Mo Trojans slugged it out with the Rams, 46-41. That’s a pretty good Rams game but not even a half-time score for the basketball teams that usually play in Gersten.

Obviously, Raveling has decided his undermanned team can be more competitive by keeping the score down. The Trojans have won two of their last four games by holding opponents to 47 and 56 points.

The great irony is that three players who could be wearing the cardinal and gold of Troy--Hank Gathers, Bo Kimble and Tom Lewis--are playing for Loyola (Kimble and Gathers) and Pepperdine (Lewis) and are averaging more as a threesome than Raveling’s entire team.

Gathers is leading the West Coast Athletic Conference with an average of 23.3. Lewis is next at 23.2. Kimble is right behind at 17.5 That adds up to 64 points per game. The Trojans are averaging 61.9. Their leading scorers are barely in double figures--Chris Moore at 10.8, Anthony Pendleton at 10.6.

The three transferred out of USC after their freshman season two years ago when Stan Morrison was replaced as coach by Raveling. Things have been un-Raveling ever since for USC. Kimble and Gathers said before this season they would have liked to stay at USC. Lewis probably would have left, regardless.

But they never had the chance to decide. The complainants on both sides aired their grievances through the media and never worked them out face to face. Finally, Raveling delivered his infamous letters telling them their scholarships would not be renewed. All the coaches involved now say privately that things should have been handled differently and the talented trio should still be at USC.

The WCAC is experiencing a surge thanks to their departures from the Pac-10, while USC is holding slumber parties. This appears to be one transaction with clear-cut winners.

Two years ago St. Monica High had one of the best back courts in prep basketball, featuring Earl Duncan and Jason Matthews. Duncan was clearly the star, a flashy prep All-American. Matthews emerged from Duncan’s shadow last season.

Matthews may have been the better of the two. Now Duncan and Matthews are opponents in the Big East Conference. Duncan, who had to sit out last season under Proposition 48 (academics), is playing at Syracuse. Matthews is starting for undefeated Pittsburgh.

Duncan is struggling and has been replaced in the starting lineup as Syracuse has gotten off to a 10-2 start. Duncan is averaging 7.5 points and 4.3 assists--ninth best in the Big East--but is shooting only .377 from the field. He has played better coming off the bench than he did starting the first four games.

Matthews has moved comfortably into the lineup for Pitt, which has forged a 9-0 record and is rated No. 2 in all polls. The slender freshman has started all games and is averaging 10.1 points on 45% shooting. He has hit 26 of 30 free throws and 7 of 17 three-pointers and is the Panthers’ third-leading scorer--ahead of All-American forward Jerome Lane (whose scoring average is 9.4).

What makes life on the road so tough for basketball teams?

When Loyola Marymount played the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay in Green Bay last Monday, the wind-chill factor was 60 degrees below zero. Loyola has two players from Philadelphia and one from Chicago. The rest are West Coast natives who may have been experiencing the coldest weather of their lives.

On top of that, the Lions played before a highly partisan crowd of 5,235 in the Green Bay civic center that had a noticeable effect on the team, according to Loyola sports publicist Barry Zepel.

“It was definitely a tougher crowd than we’ll face anywhere in conference, including Santa Clara and San Diego,” he said. “They were on us the whole game, and it got really bad.”

Green Bay also turned out to be a tougher team than expected--the best Division I team in the state (which would include Marquette and Wisconsin), according to one Milwaukee sportswriter. The Lions had early deficits of 23-9 and 30-16 and shot a season-low 43%, well under their team average of 52% entering the game.

The amazing ending considering the conditions: Loyola won, 70-67, then beat Marquette on Wednesday in Milwaukee.

The more predictable road script was followed by Cal State Dominguez Hills this week. The Toros lost at Grand Canyon College and at Southern Utah. In the two games, the Toros shot a combined 11 of 15 from the foul line while their opponents were 43 of 62. In the Grand Canyon game, the Toros had more field goals but couldn’t overcome the disparity at the foul line.

Toros Coach Dave Yanai, whose team doesn’t play another official game until the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. opener against Chapman on Jan. 15, accepted the home teams’ advantages without bitterness. The Toros are 1-5 on the road, and those opponents have a combined record of 53-22. “Like Bob Knight says,” Yanai said, “a difficult road schedule helps you prepare for the conference season.”

The Harbor College football team will sponsor a free weight-lifting clinic on Jan. 16 for coaches and athletes--male and female--ages 8 through high school. The clinic will run from 10 a.m. to noon in the athletic department weight room.

The clinic will be conducted by Harbor football assistant coach Jim True, who oversees the team’s weight training, and South Bay Gym owner Jim Rundell. It will offer tips on nutrition and routines as well as weight-lifting techniques.

No preregistration is necessary. Information is available at the Harbor football office, 518-1000, extension 348.

College Notes

Former Palos Verdes High distance running star Kirsten O’Hara placed 11th in the recent NCAA cross-country meet at Charlottesville, Va., to earn All-American honors. Running for UC Berkeley, the junior ran 16:27 over a 5,000-meter course, her best cross-country time ever. The following week she placed 15th at The Athletics Congress meet in New York City. O’Hara is hoping to go to Olympic trials for 10,000 meters. . . . Chapman College guard Corine Sandfry leads the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. women in free throw shooting with a perfect 16 for 16. The Bishop Montgomery graduate is averaging 10.3 points. . . . Loyola’s Hank Gathers was named West Coast Athletic Conference basketball player of the month. The 6-7 sophomore leads the WCAC in scoring and had the high single game of 39. . . . Loyola’s Mike Yoest was named WCAC player of the week. He had 30 points and 24 rebounds in two Loyola victories just before New Year’s day. He celebrated Wednesday by hitting 11 of 12 shots and scoring a season-high 28 points against Marquette. . . . Killer Bs: Dominguez Hills center Anthony Blackmon is averaging 20 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists in his last 5 games, shooting 53% from the field. He’s shooting .875 for the season from the foul line. Off the bench, freshman guard Robert Barksdale is averaging 13.3 points in his last three games on 16 of 21 shooting (76%).