COLLEGE NOTES : Bo Kimble Healthy Again, But Foes Are Already Sick of Him

Loyola Marymount’s victory over UC Santa Barbara over the weekend was probably the Lions’ most impressive in two seasons and served as a coming out for Bo Kimble.

The high-scoring senior made his point--51 of them--that he is sound physically and served notice that other highly regarded foes can expect similar treatment.

Kimble’s explosion was the most points scored by a West Coast Conference player since Greg Williams of Seattle hit 52 against Nevada Las Vegas in 1973 and earned Kimble the Player of the Week honor.

The 104-101 victory was Kimble’s way of boldly showing he could shoulder team leadership with several other key players, and the Lions showed they could win a big game under adverse conditions.

Outside conference games, Loyola had not beaten an NCAA postseason contender since dropping Wyoming in the NCAA Regionals in 1988. The Lions were tripped in close losses last season to UC Santa Barbara, Oregon State, DePaul, Xavier and Arkansas and were whipped by Oklahoma after playing the Sooners even for a half. Kimble, who battled knee injuries as a sophomore and junior, was not a factor in most of those games.

Extra pressure was on Kimble against Santa Barbara because shooting guard Jeff Fryer was out with a hand injury and center Hank Gathers blacked out with 14 minutes left in the game and did not return, and the Gauchos quickly whittled into a 20-point lead.

Kimble was the man with most of the answers, going inside, shooting three-pointers, and hitting all 12 of his free throws. In a way, it was role reversal for Kimble and Gathers, who has been the Lions’ bellwether the last two seasons. Kimble responded by hitting 17 of 24 shots and grabbing seven rebounds.

“Teams usually don’t know how to play me,” he said after the game. “The Bo Kimble they were scouting was always injured. The strongest part of my game is going inside with two or three guys hanging on me.”

With Gathers and Fryer out, Kimble became the focus of the offense, with the team concentrating on trying to get him the ball in shooting position. Point guard Tony Walker, who had nine assists, did a good job of setting up Kimble down the stretch.

“I said, ‘Now it’s time for Bo to go to work,’ and I was able to do the job,” Kimble said. “It was one of those games I had to be the sole provider as far as the big offensive threat. It was a challenge. We had to pick up the slack ‘cause Hank was out. We showed a lot of character, we showed we can play in this type of game and win.”

Kimble said to prepare for Santa Barbara he watched films from last year’s 95-94 loss in which he played but was clearly hobbled. “I was trying to remind myself of the experience,” he said. “I looked at the tape, I saw myself limping. I almost couldn’t watch it. As a team we remember those guys saying they were the best team in California, and we felt we were.”

After Saturday’s exhibition against Athletes in Action, next up is 23rd-ranked Oregon State on Tuesday. The Beavers have won their last two meetings. “I want to do the same thing I did (against Santa Barbara)--take the ball to the basket, have an impact,” Kimble said. “(Last year) Gary Payton and I had a few words. I’m looking forward to the game--and meeting Gary Payton.”

Loyola goes into Tuesday’s game at Oregon State with a 5-1 record. Unless Pepperdine pulls off a major upset at Kansas on Saturday, Loyola will be the only West Coast Conference team with a winning record after the weekend.

The Lions’ early dominance is reflected in WCC stats. Loyola has the top nine individual scoring performances, the top two scorers--Kimble at 31.3, Gathers at 28.5--two of the top three rebounders, the top two in assists (Terrell Lowery and Tony Walker averaging seven apiece) and four of the top five in steals.

In team categories, Loyola leads in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, assists, steals and turnovers. It also has the best scoring margin.

Without Loyola’s 5-1 record, the WCC goes into tonight’s games with a combined mark of 12-19.

The Cal State Dominguez Hills women’s basketball team, off to a 7-2 start and riding a five-game winning streak, is on its best tear in five years. The last Lady Toros team to open faster was the 1984-85 club that won its first seven games.

The program’s fortunes took a downward turn in the intervening years, but second-year Coach Van Girard has the team back on track thanks to an infusion of talented newcomers mixing with a handful of experienced players.

In two victories last week guard Julie Scott provided 17 points while centers Khyra Anderson and Yvonne Vanlandingham combined for 21 rebounds. Their efforts helped the Lady Toros overcome a 16-0 deficit to Cal Baptist. Against Biola, Dominguez Hills led from the outset, paced by 23 points from the talented freshman Vanlandingham and a season-high 15 rebounds by veteran forward Brigitte Frazier.

The fast start has put the team among California Collegiate Athletic Assn. leaders in most categories. Freshman point guard Allison Krause entered the week leading the CCAA in assists at 7.1 per game. Anderson paces the CCAA in rebounding (10.3) and blocked shots (2.3), with Vanlandingham fourth in rebounding (8.4) and eighth in scoring (12.1).

The Lady Toros took this week off for finals. They resume play Monday at UC Davis.

College Notes

Cal State Dominguez Hills soccer standout Kristi White was named to the Division II All-American team Thursday. The senior midfielder finished the season as the Toros’ career leader in goals (33) and points (97) and led the Lady Toros to a 18-3 record and spot in the Final Four last month. Judy Vonheeder of Sonoma State was the only other West Coast player on the 12-woman team . . . Former Hawthorne High standout Kim Bueltel is among five inductees in the Pepperdine Athletic Hall of Fame. Bueltel played basketball and volleyball for the Waves from 1976 to 1980 . . . Loyola’s Paul Westhead has moved into sole possession of third place in basketball coaching victories at the school with 84. No. 2 is John Arndt at 91 . . . Loyola freshman Eric Hill received honorable mention as a midfielder on the All-West Coast Conference soccer team . . . Loyola’s Tricia Gibson goes into tonight’s basketball game against Fullerton battling for the conference lead in shooting accuracy. She’s shooting 57%, just behind leader Chris Enger of San Diego at 58.7% . . . Gibson leads in blocked shots at 3.3 per game and is third in rebounding at 9.0 . . . Teammate Kristen Bruich ranks third in the WCC in scoring (17.0), fourth in assists (4.3), first in steals (4.5) and second in free throw accuracy (88.5%) . . . Dominguez Hills guard Robert Barksdale remains among CCAA scoring leaders at 18.6 points per game.