Loyola’s Holiday Starts a Bit Too Early for Olive : College basketball: Lions shoot poorly and coach criticizes effort in 70-65 loss to Nevada.

The clanging coming from Gersten Pavilion on Wednesday night was the sound of Loyola Marymount suffering through its worst shooting game of the season.

The Lions made only 25 of 67 shots--37.3%--on their way to a 70-65 defeat by Nevada before 1,388.

“That was probably the worst game we’ve had shooting, rebounding and effort-wise,” Loyola Coach John Olive said. “I thought we got outworked tonight. As a competitor, that really bothers me.

“It’s the holidays, but that’s no excuse. If you are a competitor, you compete every time you step on the court. (Nevada) played harder than us and deserved to win the game.”

Loyola (3-4) rallied from an 11-point deficit during the second half to pull within 60-59 with 4:14 to play on a 15-foot jump shot by forward Zan Mason. But the Lions went nearly three minutes without another point as Nevada built a 65-59 lead with 1:30 left.

The Wolf Pack (4-2) made eight of 17 free throws in the final 3:15. It scored only two field goals in the last six minutes.

“This game was won on the defensive end, in my opinion,” Nevada Coach Len Stevens said. “We executed the best we have on the road this year.”

The worst part of the Wolf Pack’s game was its 20-of-38 effort from the free-throw line. During one stretch of the final two minutes, Nevada made only one of seven foul shots.

“They gave us plenty of opportunities, but we still couldn’t put the ball in the basket,” Olive said.

Loyola shot only 14 free throws, making eight.

Kirk Davidson, a 6-foot-10 center, and guard Melvin Jones led Nevada with 14 points each.

Mason had 13 points and personal-best 12 rebounds to pace the Lions. Guard Rahim Harris had 10 points and a personal-best 10 rebounds.