Loyola Marymount completed the 1998-99 season at 11-16 overall and 6-8 in the West Coast Conference. Both marks were the best finishes for LMU in three seasons. Finishing fifth in the WCC standings, the Lions crept out of the cellar in the conference standings where they had finished for two straight years and four of the last seven dating back to 1992-93. LMU exited from the WCC Tournament in the first round after suffering a 77-64 loss to host Santa Clara.
LMU and Santa Clara met for the fifth time in the history of the West Coast Conference Tournament. The Broncos broke their jinx against the Lions, however, picking up their first win against LMU, 77-64. The last time the two teams met in the tournament, LMU handed Santa Clara a 70-61 loss in the first round of the event, which was hosted by Loyola Marymount in 1996-97. In last year's game, Santa Clara entered as the No.4 seed while LMU entered at No.5, its highest seeding in two years.
The Lions again were a much better team at home than on the road. LMU finished at 9-5 at home and just 2-10 on the road. Road wins came against UC Santa Barbara and San Diego. Losing its first two games at home, the Lions won four of their next six. After one of the toughest road swings in the country that saw LMU lose at Utah, Xavier and UCLA, LMU answered with six wins in its next nine games, which put the team in contention for second place in the conference behind Gonzaga. However, the Lions lost four of their final five regular season conference games and placed fifth in the WCC race.
Point Guard Haywood Eaddy was named to the All-West Coast Conference team, LMU's first selection to that group since Jim Williamson in 1996-97. Eaddy completed the season rated fifth in scoring averaging 14.8 points per game. He led the conference in assists averaging 5.6 per game and in free-throw percentage at 89.8 per game. Ranked second nationally in free-throw shooting, Eaddy moved up to second among all-time LMU free-throw shooters both in a single season and for a career (86.3 percent). Scoring 20 or more points in seven of his last 13 games, Eaddy completely commanded the team's top scoring duties through the season. He scored 20 or more points during a six-game stretch, a mark that matched former guard Terrell Lowery who achieved similar marks during the 1991-92 season.
Center Silvester Kainga posted eight blocked shots in the team's final two regular season games and claimed the WCC blocked shots title averaging 2.1 per game. Averaging 1.9 in WCC games, Kainga became the first LMU player to claim the conference crown since Richard Petruska tied for the title in 1991. With 55 total blocked shots in 1998-99, Kainga tied the single-season school record previously held by Richard Petruska in 1991. With 74 career blocked shots, Kainga now ranks third on the all-time career top-10 charts, surpassing Wyking Jones' total of 72 he set from 1992-95.
LMU finished the 1998-99 regular season averaging 4.0 blocked shots per game and claimed its seventh title in the category since 1980. In fact, Loyola Marymount won its second-straight title and came within 0.9 per game of breaking the all-time school record for season average.
With 106 career three-pointers, guard Willie Allen completed his career tied for seventh all-time in three-pointers made. Ranking seventh all-time along with Jim Williamson (1994-97) and Craig Holt (1991-92), Allen moved ahead of Per Stumer who recorded 81 during LMU's great run into the NCAA's in 1989 and 1990. He also bumped out Cobi McElroy who totaled 76 three's from 1992-95. Allen rated among the WCC's top shooters in the league averaging 2.6 three pointers per game.
Forward Elton Mashack finished the season as the team's top rebounder (third in the WCC) averaging 6.9 per game. Also ranked third on the squad averaging 12.1 points per game, Mashack posted seven double-doubles over the course of the season. Ranking fifth among top sophomore performances in LMU history with those seven double-doubles, Mashack led the team in rebounding 13 times and scored in double figures 19 times during the season. He set a career-high in rebounding pulling down 15 in the team's 73-49 loss at USC. With 22 points in LMU's 89-73 win at San Diego, he tied his career-high in scoring.
LMU captured the 1998-99 league free throw title after converting 73.3 percent of its shots (441-602) through the regular season. The Lions shot just 67.0 percent in 1997-98 (393-587), its lowest percentage since the 1994-95 campaign when it shot just 64.4 percent (454-705). LMU had not shot over 72.0 percent from the line in any season since 1990-91 when it finished the year averaging 73.2 percent (556-760). The last time LMU won a WCC free throw percentage title dated back to 1988 when the Lions shot 72.2 percent (335-464).
Team And Player Notes
LMU launched a season-high 36 three pointers in its 85-72 loss at home to Gonzaga (Feb. 20). That total surpassed LMU's previous high of 34 set in the team's 86-81 loss at Saint Mary's (Jan. 23). LMU hit a season-high 13-of-25 early in the season in an 89-73 win at San Diego in conference play.
Allowing Portland just 61 points at home (Feb. 19), the mark set the fewest points allowed by LMU in 54 games dating back to 1997 when it defeated Santa Clara, 70-61, in the first round of the WCC Tournament hosted at LMU.
- LMU committed fewer turnovers than its opponents in nine of its last 13 games.
- LMU had six players score in double figures against Pepperdine (Feb. 3) marking the first time any Lion squad had accomplished the feat since 1992.
- Loyola Marymount shot a season-high 34-of-42 from the free-throw line at home against Pepperdine (81.0 percent), breaking its previous season-high performance against San Francisco (33-38).
- LMU's 97-55 defeat at Xavier ranked tied for seventh all-time in worst losses in program history. The 42-point deficit tied with a 103-61 loss to Seattle in 1979.
- LMU's losses at Utah and Xavier ranked second all-time in worst back-to-back defeats in program history. The record is held by Loyola Marymount's 1990-91 squad that lost two games in succession, 149-98 at UCLA and 172-112 at Oklahoma.
- Loyola Marymount was 8-4 last season when leading at halftime, 9-4 when leading in field goal percentage, and 6-1 when it outrebounded its opponents.
- LMU shot a season-high 63.8 percent (37-58) in its win over Saint Mary's (Jan. 29), surpassing its previous best of 59.2 percent (29-49) from the field against San Francisco (Jan. 15).
- Guard Haywood Eaddy was nearly perfect from the free-throw line when shooting in the last two minutes of the game. He converted 24-26 in those situations, while the team also shot 80.2 percent from the line in the last two minutes of the game.
