Loyola Is Still Searching for Answers : Basketball: Despite a rugged nonconference schedule, the Lions do not expect to have an easy time in West Coast Conference play.

The Loyola Marymount men’s basketball team scored an impressive victory on Saturday night against U.S. International, but the Lions are asking many of the same questions that existed before the season started:

* With Terrell Lowery shifted to point guard, who is his backup?

* Can Craig Holt become a shooting guard on the level with Jeff Fryer?

* Will inconsistent Chris Knight become a steady force inside?

* How well--and quickly--will Coach Jay Hillock’s freshmen class produce?

* Will Hillock ever be able to put his full complement of players in uniform for the same game?

Although everyone close to the Loyola program knew the talent level had dipped from the 1989-90 team that reached the NCAA round of eight, the Lions (6-8) are similar to recent Loyola teams: They still run and press all-out, average more than 100 points a game and have a national scoring contender in Lowery, who is averaging 29.6 points.

But the Lions have been wildly inconsistent, due in part to the endless stream of injuries and over-scheduling. They’re allowing 121.8 points a game, a statistic that stretches credibility.

The first, and perhaps most telling blow the Lions suffered was the loss of point guard Tony Walker. He had off-season wrist surgery and never fully recovered and is being redshirted.

The loss of Walker forced Hillock to move Lowery from shooting guard to the point. That move also weakened the press, and Hillock has been desperate for a backup point guard. Sophomore Greg Walker has been seeing more action at the point in recent games.

That series of moves left the off-guard spot to Holt, a streaky shooter, and freshman Kareem Washington, who started well but suffered a groin injury three games into the season. Washington has not played since Dec. 2, but is it hoped he will be ready for the Lions’ West Coast Conference opener Friday against Santa Clara.

Another player expected to add offense, redshirt sophomore forward Brian McCloskey, suffered a stress fracture in his lower back and has not played since Dec. 15.

That leaves much of the outside game to Holt. When he shoots well--as he did against Louisiana State and St. Joseph’s--teams can’t gang up on Lowery and the Lions are competitive. When Holt is shut down--he was held to eight points by Georgia Tech and four by Pacific--the Lions struggle.

After a recent game, Hillock said, “Believe it or not, our problems are more offensive then defensive.”

Chris Knight, the 6-9 junior, remains an enigma. At LSU, against one of the nation’s best big men, Shaquille O’Neal, Knight scored 17 points and played an impressive all-around game. Two days later against Georgia Tech, he scored one point. Against a smaller Westmont team Wednesday, he managed only one basket.

After missing most of the preseason and the first three games with a groin injury, 6-10 center Richard Petruska has looked like the answer in the middle. He has scored 20 or more points in three of the last five games and has a knack for blocking shots. But in a rapid, end-to-end game like Monday’s 133-118 loss to La Salle, he had trouble keeping up. “He’s about a step behind,” Hillock said. Senior Tom Peabody has also been slowed by an ankle injury, limiting his kamikaze efforts in the press.

In some ways, junior John O’Connell and sophomore Christian Scott have been the most consistent front-court players, although Scott’s offense has faltered in recent games.

The schedule, made up by Coach Paul Westhead with an eye on national TV matchups before he departed in September, has not helped Loyola’s record. After opening with 10 road games including consecutive stops at UCLA, Oklahoma, LSU and Georgia Tech, Assistant Coach Mark Armstrong said: “Our guys are beat. Coach Westhead left us a pro schedule.”

But it may have helped toughen up some freshmen. Small forward Rahim Harris has been a solid contributor since the trip to the Southeast, and 6-6 guard Ross Richardson has come off the bench to average 11.3 points in the last three games. He had a season-high 14 points against Westmont.

All the questions make it tough to gauge Loyola’s chances in the WCC. But as Hillock said recently, “We’re not gonna have an easy one all year.”