NCAA BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT : Dream Offense Fuels Loyola, 149-115 : West Regional: Lions advance to the final 16 for the first time, setting several tournament records during rout of Michigan.

After Friday’s 111-92 NCAA tournament victory over New Mexico State, someone wrote on the blackboard in the Loyola Marymount locker room, “The Dream Lives.”

No need to erase that Sunday.

The Lions, who feared their emotions might outrun them when they returned to the court after teammate Hank Gathers’ death, instead outran two opponents in Long Beach Arena to advance to the NCAA’s Sweet 16 for the first time in school history.

Sunday’s victim was defending champion Michigan, which fell in a flurry of scoring records, 149-115. Michigan was seeded third in the West; Loyola was 11th.

The point total was the highest in tournament history, by plenty. Loyola broke the tournament team scoring record of 127 set by Lion Coach Paul Westhead’s alma mater, St. Joseph’s, in 1961 in four overtimes against Utah. Westhead was a senior on that team.

The 264 combined points is another record.

Senior Lion guard Jeff Fryer scored 41 points, making 11 of 15 three-pointers. He broke the record of 10 three-pointers by Fred Banks of Nevada Las Vegas three years ago.

The Lions made 21 three-pointers, breaking the record of 14 by Providence in 1987.

Loyola’s Bo Kimble scored 37 points but made only 11 of 29 shots. Guard Terrell Lowery added 23 off the bench and forward Per Stumer got 21 points and eight rebounds.

“On the bus ride here I instructed our guys to play bombs away,” Westhead said. “Let ‘em fly. You saw our fast-break system as we see it every day. The players are free to let it go.”

Meanwhile, the Lions forced 27 Michigan turnovers and out-re-bounded the taller Wolverines, 51-39.

Michigan Coach Steve Fisher, who suffered his first tournament loss after seven victories, said, “Loyola is on a crusade, they played that way today. If they can continue to shoot the way they did, they will be very difficult for anybody to beat. They made NBA three-point shots with people guarding them, and with people not guarding them.”

Fryer, playing with great intensity, said the Lions are “just on an emotional hurricane. We don’t get discouraged by any team, because we’re doing it for Hank.”

Said Kimble: “A lot of people think the emotion will wear off. Well, we’ve played this way all year. We knew we had the opportunity to make an impact on the tournament. There’s always some team that comes from nowhere and shocks people.”

The Lions began to pull away midway in the first half after Michigan took a 15-14 lead. They took a 24-19 lead on a Fryer three-pointer, and built it to 28-21 on a jumper by Chris Knight.

The Lions’ constant press began to force turnovers, and they went on a 16-6 run to go ahead, 44-30. The Wolverines, with center Terry Mills scoring 19 points before halftime, pulled to 60-54 but never got closer. The Lions led at the half, 65-58, with Fryer having scored 21.

A Stumer three-pointer made the score 95-76 with 11:55 to play, and the Wolverines appeared to be cracking. Two minutes later Stumer made two free throws and the lead grew to 106-82.

Said Westhead: “I was still doing some adjustments with the press when one of my assistants leaned over and told me, ‘It’s over.’ ”

The Lions (25-5) will play Alabama in the Western Regional semifinals Friday in Oakland.

Mills and All-American guard Rumeal Robinson led the Wolverines (23-8) with 23 points apiece. Forward Loy Vaught had 19 points and 17 rebounds. But Vaught and Mills were not factors in the second half.

Mills said Loyola “kept Loy and myself running up and down the court constantly. It seemed like when we were at halfcourt Fryer was shooting a three-pointer.”

Said Fisher: “When we got down in the second half we had a spurt where we took some quick, unwise shots. That got us hopelessly behind. When you get behind you get caught up doing what they do, but not as well.”

Fryer, who had his second 40-point game in the last month without the benefit of a free throw, made 15 of 20 shots. “Fryer shot the ball as well as anyone I’ve ever seen,” Mills said.

Even reserve Tom Peabody, not normally a scorer, got in on the act Sunday, making four of five shots for a season-high 14 points.

“When we were sending them onto the floor, we told them to shoot if they were open. I told Jeff and Per and Bo to shoot. Then I got to Tom . . . and I said, “Oh, what the hell,” Westhead said.

Fryer said the Lions are enjoying getting back to competition after beating up on each other in emotional practices recently. “We were just tired of taking it out on each other and, unfortunately for New Mexico State and Michigan, we took it out on them,” Fryer said.

“I feel sorry for whoever we play next.”

THE RECORDS NCAA tournament records set in the Loyola Marymount-Michigan game:

INDIVIDUAL

Most 3-pointers, game (11): Jeff Fryer, Loyola Marymount (old record 10, Freddie Banks, UNLV vs. Indiana, 1987).

TEAM

Most 3-point field goals, game (21): Loyola Marymount (old record 14, Providence vs. Alabama, 1987).

Most 3-point field goal attempts, game (40): Loyola Marymount (old record 39, Loyola Marymount vs. North Carolina, 1988).

Most points, game (149): Loyola Marymount (old record 127, St. Joseph’s, Pa. vs. Utah, 1961, 4OT).

Most 3-point field goals, both teams, game (25): Loyola Marymount (21) vs. Michigan (4) (old record 21, Providence (14) vs. Alabama (7), 1987).

Most 3-point field goal attempts, both teams, game (53): Loyola Marymount (40) vs. Michigan (13) (old record 48, Loyola Marymount (39) vs. North Carolina (9), 1988; Loyola Marymount (39) vs. Arkansas (9), 1989).

Most points, both teams, game (264): Loyola Marymount (149) vs. Michigan (115) (old record 247, St. Joseph’s, Pa. (127) vs. Utah (120), 1961, 4OT).