Jan. 27, 2015 BUY TICKETS | This is LMU Basketball | We Are LMU... | LMU on Facebook | LMU on Twitter
LOS ANGELES -- The second half of West Coast Conference play begins on Thursday with LMU taking its second-straight trip to the Bay Area. The home teams went 7-2 in the nine games last week and the Lions (6-15, 2-7), who are on a four-game road swing, posted one of those two wins for the visiting team. They continue the road tour at Saint Mary's (16-4, 8-1) on Thursday, Jan. 29 for a 7:30 pm tip-off. The game can be seen on Comcast SportsNet-California, Time Warner Cable SportsNet, ROOT-Rocky Mountain and out-of-market on TheW.tv. As always, the game will be aired live on KXLU 88.9 FM.
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INSIDE THE LIONS
The second half of West Coast Conference play begins on Thursday with LMU taking its second-straight trip to the Bay Area. The home teams went 7-2 in the nine games last week and the Lions (6-15, 2-7), who are on a four-game road swing, posted one of those two wins for the visiting team. They continue the road tour at Saint Mary's (16-4, 8-1) on Thursday, Jan. 29 for a 7:30 pm tip-off. The game can be seen on Comcast SportsNet-California, Time Warner Cable SportsNet, ROOT-Rocky Mountain and out-of-market on TheW.tv. As always, the game will be aired live on KXLU 88.9 FM.
INSIDE THE LIONS
The Lions' record sits at 6-15 and 2-7 after splitting their most recent road trip to the Bay Area, falling to Santa Clara 65-62 then defeating USF at the buzzer, 70-69. Sophomore Evan Payne grabbed an offensive rebound and put it off the glass as the buzzer sounded to lift the Lions to a come-back win Saturday. The Lions erased a 17-point second half deficit to get the road win.
The Lions have found some rhythm on offense, going for 78 assists in the last five games, nearly five per game above their average entering WCC play. Through 12 non-conference games, the Lions averaged 10.8 apg. In WCC play they have risen that to 13.3 apg, going for 15.6 apg the last five games. The Lions had 14 assists and a season-equalling low of six turnovers against the Broncos and then went for 17 assists and just 10 turnovers in the win over USF Saturday. In the last four games they have an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.4 as compared to their season ratio of 0.8.
Leading the charge has been senior Chase Flint, who has 48 assists and just eight turnovers the last six games. He had eight assists and just one turnover at Santa Clara and then went for nine assists and no turnovers at USF. He had six steals in the two games. In the nine WCC games, he leads the WCC with a 4.2 assist-to-turnover ratio (50a/12t). He is second in all games at 3.27, which ranks 13th nationally.
Junior Marin Mornar continues to shine in conference play with his second double-double in three games, going for a career-best 22 points and 11 rebounds. He has set career-highs in three of the last four games, hitting 8-for-14 from the field in 32 minutes against the Broncos. He equalled a career-best with 11 rebounds at USF and in the last four games he is averaging 14.0 ppg and 9.0 rpg.
Offensive rebounding continues to give the Lions extra chances, including a 14-8 edge in second chance points in the win over USF. Leading the way is senior Godwin Okonji, who had 11 offensive rebounds in the two games last week and has averaged just under five per game the last four games. He is second in the WCC with 63 total (3.15 per game), trailing SMC's Brad Waldow, who has 64 (3.2 orpg).
THE LIONS REAL QUICK
Senior Chase Flint has a career 2.77 assist-to-turnover ratio, jumping nearly two-tenths in the last month. He re-entered the starting line-up on Jan. 8 and he has posted 48 of his 73 assists this season in the last seven games, including a career-best nine at USF. He has just 22 turnovers on the season, good for a 3.27 assist-to-turnover average entering the game against Saint Mary's. He has 50 assists in the nine conference games, ranking tied for second at 5.6 assists per game. His assist-to-turnover ratio, which is a league-best 4.2 in WCC games, is ranked second, trailing only Kevin Pangos. In all games, his 3.4 assists per game is ranked 10th.
Junior Marin Mornar is averaging 11.6 ppg and 6.7 rpg while shooting 51.4 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free throw line in the nine WCC games. He is ranked 5th overall in the league shooting 53.8 percent while in WCC games he is ranked 20th in scoring, 5th in rebounding (6.7), 6th in field goal percentage (51.4%) and 10th in the league in free throw shooting.
The Lions continue to be tough around the rim, ranking third in the WCC in blocked shots. They have 76 blocks as a team and are now averaging 3.62 per game. Junior Marin Mornar equalled a career-high with five blocks against UC Riverside and added another pair at USF. He has 34 on the season, an average of 1.62 per game, ranking second in the WCC. Mornar now has 80 blocks in his career, good for 7th all-time. His season total of 34 is tied for 12th all-time at LMU. Senior Godwin Okonji added another to his resume at Santa Clara. He has 92 in his career, equalling Ime Oduok (1993-96) for 4th all-time in LMU history.
In the win over the Pilots, the Lions held the Pilots to 39.4 percent shooting, the fifth time this season an opponent has been under 40 percent. The Lions' defense hasn't done that since the 2011-12 season (14 times). Against, BYU, the Lions had five players in double figures for the first time in over a year and finished with a season-best 18 assists (against D-I opponent). They finished shooting 7-for-14 from three against the Cougars, which was a season best until the Lions hit 8-for-12 against the Pilots (66.7 percent). It is the best percentage since hitting 10-for-15 in the win over No. 17 UCLA on Nov. 11, 2011.
ON THE GLASS
The Lions have been outrebounded only once in WCC play and in the last 11 games the Lions hold a +4.3 (369 to 322) rebound margin. On Jan. 17 against #3 Gonzaga, the Lions outrebounded the best in the WCC, 38-33, going for 19 offensive rebounds. The Lions held a 26-24 edge on the Broncos, getting five of their eight offensive rebounds from Godwin Okonji. At USF, the Lions held a 38-37 edge on the glass, grabbing 15 offensive boards to USF's 10. Okonji had six of his eight rebounds on the offensive side. It helped the Lions attempt 12 more shots than USF and gave them an edge in second-chance points, going 16-2 against the Waves and 19-10 at BYU.
THE SERIES
For the third straight game the Lions are taking on one of its longest running opponents in program history. This will be the 137th all-time meeting between LMU and Saint Mary's, the fourth longest running series at LMU. The Gaels took the opening round of this season's match-up, 72-63. The Gaels went 11-for-30 from three and finished hitting 15-of-16 free throws to overcome 41.1 percent shooting from the field on the game. It was the only game in WCC the Lions were outrebounded, 37-28. Evan Payne led the Lions with 24 points. Aaron Bright had 24 for the Gaels, hitting six three-pointers. Here is a look at the top-five all-time series at LMU:
1. Pepperdine 161
2. San Francisco 149
3. Santa Clara 144
4. Saint Mary's 136
5. Portland 93
SENIOR LEADERSHIP
The Lions, with 11 newcomers on the roster, lean heavily on an experienced trio of seniors. Both Godwin Okonji and Ayodeji Egbeyemi are coming off medical redshirt seasons and are in their fifth season in 2014-15. The two have played in 116 and 112 games, respectively, at LMU, ranking tied for 6th and tied for 13th all-time in program history. Both were expected to be mainstays in the starting line-up a year ago before their medical redshirts and enter the game against Saint Mary's with a combined 169 starts among them. Joining them is senior Chase Flint. He, along with Egbeyemi, have already earned their Bachelor degrees and both are in master programs at LMU. Egbeyemi is the MBA program while Flint is in the Elementary Education program. Flint has steadied the Lions' offense in the last four games with the second-best assist-to-turnover ratio in the WCC. All told, the trio have combined to play 291 games as Lions.
THE VOICE
Ayodeji Egbeyemi has become the Lions' captain and voice on the floor, and he continues to show why. He averaged 16.3 ppg at the Diamond Head Classic, hitting 50 percent from the field and 87.5 percent from the free throw line. Egbeyemi has 10 double-digit scoring games this season, including his career-best 22 against Portland. He has led the Lions in scoring three of the last four games and is shooting 80.6 percent from the charity stripe on the season. He is ranked 10th in the WCC. He leads the team in minutes at 28.6 per game... Fellow senior Godwin Okonji scored 13 points with nine rebounds, a block and three steals against Santa Clara and went for nine points and eight rebounds (six offensive) at USF. He now leads the Lions with 6.1 rebounds per contest, ranking 7th in the WCC. He has 122 rebounds this season, giving him 565 in his career. He is the 27th Lion to top 500 rebounds in a career, currently ranking tied for 17th with Dick Schiendler (1962-65). He is also ranked 10th in the WCC with 24 steals (1.2 spg)... As for Flint, his nine assists with no turnovers is the most assists in a no turnover game since Damian Martin had 11 assists and zero turnovers on Nov. 17, 2006 as LMU defeated New Mexico State 71-69. Flint is also in the top-15 in steals within the WCC, ranking 14th at 1.0 spg. He had six in the last two games.
RETURNING PRODUCTION
The other two returning players from the Lions' roster last year are having a big impact. Sophomore Evan Payne has put up the points, running his career total to 860 in 52 games (16.5 ppg in his career). His 18.2 ppg this season trails only BYU's Tyler Haws and Brad Waldow in the WCC. Payne is also second in free throws attempted (120), third in free throws made (95), 11th in free throw percentage, fifth in field goals made (120) and fourth in attempted (258). Marin Mornar has also turned heads the last month, going for a career-best 16 points and eight rebounds against BYU then doing one better with his first double-double, scoring 21 points with 10 boards against Portland. He did it even better at SCU with 22 points and 11 rebounds in 32 minutes. He matched his career-best in rebounds with another 11 at USF.
