#9 LMU vs. #5 USF

The first time these two teams met, January 19th on the Hilltop, they were in pretty similar positions. Both were 1-5 in WCC play, both had eight wins overall and both had either 10 losses (San Francisco) or 11 (LMU). The Dons won by 9 and broke their second five game losing streak of the season. From then the Dons went from bottom of the conference standings to the five seed in the tournament. LMU, on the other hand, continued to flounder for nearly the rest of the season.

The second time these two teams met, February 21st in L.A., they were in vastly different positions. Not just compared to each other but compared to where they were in the previous meeting. LMU lost, again, but this time it was only by two, 61-59. Last night, if you watched the Lions beat the Pilots, you saw baskets being made by Lions not named Anthony Ireland. That was the case in on the 21st as well.  Alex Osborne and Ashley Hamilton both pitched in 11 points and Taylor Walker added nine. Ireland hit his average of 21 but the key was that he wasn't doing it alone. Last night it was Hamilton that contributed 21 points. LMU was figuring out in the second USF game that Ireland couldn't do it alone, they just came up short. Last night the Lions broke through with that strategy and got the win.

Both teams have very good play at the point guard spot. The Dons' Cody Doolin is a great passer and scores by attacking the rim. Anthony Ireland can knock down threes but also thrives on the drive. This game features the typical WCC face off between two great point guards. If that wasn't such a true sentence and the face offs weren't so exciting I would get tired of pointing that out before every game.

Where Doolin struggles, from three, is where the rest of the Dons excel. San Francisco is the WCC's best three point shooting team. The Dons have hit 41.1% of their three pointers in conference play. Big man Cole Dickerson can stretch defenses with his 40.7% shooting from deep. He takes a lot of threes too, 31.8% of his shots from the field this season, so he's not just a big man who can make a three if left wide open. Dickerson requires guarding no matter where he is on the offensive end of the floor. Avry Holmes, an all-Freshman Team selection, hits 50% of his shots from deep and wing De'End Parker knocks them down at a 47.5% clip. 

This three point barrage led the Dons to a 99 point output in a second half come from behind upset of BYU on February 9th. Skip ahead to 1:55 in the video below to see what I'm talking about. 

Only thirty teams in the country have a worse three point percentage defense than the Lions.

The Lions offense is in flux right now. Anthony Ireland was the focal point all season, rightfully so, but last night he was off and they got a win. Unfortunately for the Lions that win came against the only team in the league that scores less frequently than they do.

6:00 PM PST
#5 San Francisco Dons vs. #9 Loyola Marymount Lions
Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Loyola Marymount is 9-21 on the season, 1-15 in the WCC regular season and currently on a one game winning streak.
San Francisco is 14-15 on the season, 7-9 in WCC play and currently on a three game winning streak.
San Francisco swept the Lions 2-0 in the regular season.
TV: BYUtv.
Radio: KXLU 88.9 FM in Los Angeles.
Satellite Radio: Sirius 110 and XM 193.
Online: Live video from WCC Digital and live audio from KXLU.