Brundy Helps Carry DePaul Past Loyola : Former Crenshaw Star Has 41 Points, 23 Rebounds in 122-108 Victory

Many of the numbers were in Loyola Marymount’s favor Saturday in its game against DePaul.

The Lions hit 13 3-pointers, outrebounded the Blue Demons, 52-47, and produced a 66-point second half. But DePaul was able to contain Hank Gathers while Loyola was unable to stop Stanley Brundy as the Blue Demons beat the Lions, 122-108, before a crowd of 9,656 at the Rosemont Horizon and a national television audience.

Brundy, the former Crenshaw High School star, had 41 points and 23 rebounds as DePaul improved its record to 123-15 at the Horizon.

Gathers, meanwhile, was triple-teamed the entire game and finished with a hard-fought 26 points, his season low, and 14 rebounds. Gathers, who was averaging 34.5 points a game, made 9 of 30 shots.

DePaul’s point total set a school record. Even more impressive was the Blue Demons’ foul shooting, normally 61%. DePaul made 31 of 39 free throws (79%), including its last 18, to hold off a determined Loyola charge.

The Lions shot only 38% for the game and hit only 15 field goals in the first half. They trailed by as many as 21 points and were down, 58-42, at halftime.

But their press proved effective in the second half, and, behind the long-range shooting of guards Jeff Fryer and Enoch Simmons, they cut the lead to 64-58 less than 5 minutes into the half, and moved to within 96-94 with 4:40 to play.

But the Blue Demons held off Loyola down the stretch, hitting all their free throws and getting several baskets by breaking Loyola’s press.

Fryer finished with a career-high 42 points, hitting 9 of 14 shots from 3-point range. Simmons added 27 points, with 4 3-pointers. But Gathers, Simmons and Fryer accounted for all but 13 of Loyola’s points.

DePaul had five players in double figures, with point guard Terence Greene getting 20 points and 11 assists, and reserve guard Chuckie Murphy adding 18 points.

DePaul Coach Joey Meyer said he knew his team’s first-half lead wasn’t safe.

“Lord knows you’ve got to keep scoring, because they will,” Meyer said. “In the second half, defensively, they turned it up a couple notches. We would (normally) never play that fast, but they make you play that pace.”

When the teams met here 3 weeks ago in the DePaul tournament (with DePaul winning, 115-111), Gathers scored 32. Meyer was concerned enough Saturday to have three--and sometimes four--players swarming on Gathers. The Blue Demons blocked a season-high 13 shots, as Brundy and 7-foot center James Hamby hounded the 6-7 Gathers.

Meyer said: “I told Hamby, ‘Wait for him at the free-throw line, hedge to his left and contest the shot.’ It worked well. We collapsed well, maybe too much. That left their outside shooters open. Unfortunately, Fryer went crazy.”

Lion Coach Paul Westhead said he told Gathers at halftime that if he was triple teamed, to “pass it off or take all three to the hole. I wouldn’t ever tell him to back down. The third (defensive) player was a new dimension for him. It was a learning experience.”

And how much does Brundy enjoy playing the Lions? “I wish I could play them every game,” the 6-foot-7 senior forward said with a grin. Brundy had 47 points and 20 rebounds the last time the teams played.

“That style allows him to use his quickness. I guess I expected him to have another big game,” Meyer said.

Westhead noted: “We held him below 47.”

Loyola’s record dropped to 8-6, whereas DePaul improved to 10-7. Loyola has won 6 of its last 8 games, with both losses coming at DePaul.

“I thought our guys for sure would make a run,” Westhead said. “To DePaul’s credit, they made all their fouls coming down to the end. They made some big plays when the game was in the 90s. That was the key.”