Final Stats

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LOS ANGELES - LMU capitalized on bench production and points off turnovers to earn their first victory of the year, knocking off previously unbeaten UC Riverside, 76-64. LMU was led by career highs from Eli Scott and Mattias Markusson to move to 1-1 on the young season.

"I just think that we learned from the Arlington game," said Head Coach Mike Dunlap. "We played rock solid, and took care of the ball. We had 10 turnovers in the game compared to Arlington where we had 19. I like the fact that we played team ball and got the ball inside a lot a lot. Defensively, we played solid man-to-man defense and forced them to commit 19 turnovers."

Scott scored 21 points to lead all scorers in his second-career game, going 7-15 from the field.

His strength was most notable when he used his strength for a coast-to-coast and-1 at the 13:33 mark of the second half and then followed it with a putback and foul off the offensive glass a minute later.

The second chance opportunities were there all night, as LMU totaled 15 offensive boards for 20 second chance points. Although Scott corralled five offensive rebounds, the team's leading rebounder was Markusson. The 6'3'' sophomore grabbed a career-high tying eight rebounds to go along with his career-high 14 points.

"There were mismatches for us," said Dunlap. "Obviously, Mattias has a height advantage. That's why he collected eight rebounds in the second half. With Eli, a lot of time's the fours are bigger than him, but he has foot speed, can make a jumper, and is very strong and active. That's why we recruited him.

In his first game back, Steven Haney pushed the score to double-figures for the first time as he converted a three-point play the old-fashioned way leading into the under-12 minute time-out, putting LMU ahead 51-41.

The Lions then benefited from a 17-8 run over a 5:51 stretch that was capped by a James Batemon triple to give LMU a 63-49 lead in the second half. Batemon finished with 12, and Cameron Allen added 10 to give LMU four double-digit scorers for the second-straight game.

Scott put down the exclamation point on the game at he jammed in his 21^st point with 2:35 on the clock to increase the LMU lead to 15.

The Lions capitalized on takeaways in the first half, outscoring the Highlanders, 11-2, in points off turnovers in the first half, and 18-7 in the game. Scoring production came from eight different in the opening half, leading to LMU's 22-2 bench points advantage before the break.

The LMU bench outscored Riverside's bench, 45-9.

The action returns to Gersten Pavilion on Sunday for a 3 p.m. date with McNeese State University. The game will be a "Canned Food Drive" as Loyola Marymount will be collecting canned goods and other non-perishable food items to donate to families in the area in advance of Thanksgiving. Fans who donate receive a discount on their tickets.

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