Box Score Dec. 6, 2015 LOS ANGELES - Six different players scored in double figures for LMU men's basketball as they used second half defense to remain unbeaten at home to start the 2015-16 season, claiming a 77-76 thriller over UC Riverside at Gersten Pavilion on Sunday afternoon.
The Highlanders (5-3) shot better than 55 percent in the first half to build a lead as large as 10. However, the Lions defense wore down UC Riverside and held them to just 35 percent shooting in the second half to secure the home win. The Lions (5-3) have won four of their last five and are a perfect 4-0 at home.
"Our field goal percentage defense in the second have was tremendous," said Head Coach Mike Dunlap. "We really got to their legs. It was a heck of a basketball game. They returned all of their guys from last year and won a lot of games in their conference. I think this was a pivotal win for us early in the season."
With the game tied at 76-76, senior Marin Mornar hit the second of two free throws to give them a 77-76 lead with 1:03 to play. The Lions defense would secure the win. They would earn their ninth steal, the second by Brandon Brown, and then force a miss wide by Jaylen Brand in the final seconds to keep the Highlanders off the board. Junior Adom Jacko would secure the rebound as the buzzer sounded.
Jacko led the six Lions in double figures with 16 points and seven rebounds. Munis Tutu came off the bench to go 4-for-4 from three to finish with 13 points. Brown had 12 points and seven assist while Steven Haney also had a dozen. Shamar Johnson had 11 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steal. Marin Mornar also had 11, adding five rebounds and two blocks.
The Lions finished the game shooting 42.9 percent and for the sixth straight game had more than eight three-pointers, going 9-for-22. The Highlanders finished the game hitting 39.7 percent from the field. They hit 7-for-14 from long distance in the first half (46.7 percent), but hit just 2-for-12 in the second (16.7 percent).
"Our rebounding was much better tonight. It is something we have been working on to become more consistent," said Dunlap. The Lions out rebounded UCR 40-36. "We took much better care of the ball and balanced scoring, not just in terms of players but also form position. We scored both on the outside and on the inside with our bigs."
Taylor Johns led all players with 24 points and 17 rebounds. Jaylen Bland and Secean Johnson added 17 each.
The Lions once again forced the action on defense, earning nine steals and forcing the Highlanders into 15 turnovers. The Lions finished with 13 turnovers, eight of which came in the first half. For only the second time on the season the Lions did not hold an edge in points off turnovers as the Highlanders led that by a count of 23-10.
The Highlanders built a 33-23 lead after a Malik Thames three-pointer with 8:56 remaining in the first half. At that point, they were hitting 75 percent from the field and were 5-for-7 from three.
UC Riverside held on to the lead throughout the first 10 minutes of the second half and took a seven-point lead with 12 minutes to play. From there, an 18-1 run by the Lions swung the tables, giving the Lions a 66-59 lead after a three-pointer by Haney.
It was far from over. The Lions took a 78-71 lead on a Jacko dunk with 6:59 to play. Over the next three minutes, UC Riverside went on a 9-0 run to take a 72-71 lead with 3:35 to play. The lead would change hands twice and become tied two other times in the next two minutes. Thames would knock down a pair of free throws to tie the game at 76-76 with 1:18 to play, setting up the final stretch.
The Lions are back on the road with a pair of game next week. The stretch starts at Boise State on Dec. 9 with a 6 pm tip-off. The game can be heard on KXLU 88.9 FM.
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