Feb. 5, 2005

Box Score

San Francisco, CA (Feb. 5) - Loyola Marymount men's basketball team has proven to be at its best when their defense is in full gear. The Lions were at it again and the defense put the Lions in position for a final second rally as sophomore Matthew Knight hit a three-point play with 19 seconds remaining to earn a come-from-behind 50-49 win over the University of San Francisco in West Coast Conference play on Saturday night.

The Lions, who trailed by as many as 11, held USF to just one field goal the final 7:59 of the game and closed the contest on a 16-7 run to earn their first win at USF since 1992 and first series sweep of the Dons since the 1990-91 season. LMU improves to 11-11 overall and 3-6 in the WCC while USF drops to 13-9 overall and 4-5 in the WCC.

Knight was the only Lion in double figures with 12 points. The Lions' bench came up big as sophomore Brandon Worthy added eight points while Damian Martin and Daryl Pegram each had six. Tyrone Riley led the Dons with 18 points and 20 rebounds and John Cox had 15.

"That was a gutsy performance by our team on a night that we did not shoot the ball that well," said Head Coach Steve Aggers. "Our defense and mental toughness won the game."

It was a night of defense as both teams struggled from the field. LMU forced USF into a season-high 22 turnovers and gathered 10 steals to hold the Dons to just 31.5 percent from the field. LMU survived a cold shooting night of its own, shooting just 34.5 percent from the field. It was the second WCC opponent in the last three games the Lions has held under 50 points on the season.

With 1:34 remaining, USF took a 48-44 lead on John Cox's field goal in the paint. The Lions would respond on a three-pointer by Pegram with 1:24 remaining to make it 48-47. USF's Tyrone Riley would hit just one of two free throws with 34 seconds remaining to put USF back up by two, 49-47.

After an LMU timeout, the junior Wes Wardrop missed a three-pointer from the corner with 22 seconds remaining. However, Pegram fought off Riley under the hoop and would grab the offensive rebound to set-up a perfect pass to Knight.

The sophomore from Australia, who had to leave the first half in the final two minutes with a sprained ankle, would capitalize on a driving lay-up and was fouled by Jason Carter. After a USF timeout, Knight would hit the free throw to give the Lions their first and only lead of the game with 19 seconds on the clock.

USF would have two more opportunities in the final seconds but the Lions defense would hold. Cox's 15-footer in traffic was off and sophomore Brandon Worthy grabbed the rebound. However, he was pushed out of bounds and no foul was called to give the Dons the ball back with two seconds remaining. On the next inbound the Riley missed a lay-up at the buzzer.

"We really managed the game very well in the final five minutes," said Aggers. "The last minute and 30 seconds we executed very well and showed great poise and composure. We got the ball in the hands of the right guys. Daryl and Matt made big plays."

The Lions will head home to take on Portland on Thursday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m. For tickets call (310) 338-LION.

- GO LIONS -