It’s a New Year and New Season for the Lions : Loyola Marymount Basketball Team Opens West Coast Conference Play Against League Favorite Pepperdine

The Christmas holiday was anything but a time of rejoicing for Loyola Marymount basketball Coach Jay Hillock.

Three lackluster games by the Lions and an injury to forward Brian McCloskey, the team’s leading rebounder and second-leading scorer, have put Hillock in a worrisome mood as Loyola (7-5) prepares to meet Pepperdine (7-5) in a West Coast Conference opener Saturday night at Firestone Fieldhouse in Malibu.

“We’ve been up and down, riding an emotional roller coaster,” Hillock said. “The scary thing is, in the last three games we’ve been terrible.”

The Lions were unconvincing in a 106-97 victory over Lehigh on Dec. 30, uninspired in an 84-80 victory over winless Marist on Jan. 2 and unable to do much of anything right in a 125-93 loss to DePaul on Sunday.

“It has been disconcerting,” Hillock said. “I think we’re a little down.”

Two reasons for that, Hillock said, have been injuries to McCloskey and forward/center Chris Knight. McCloskey has not been the same since suffering a sprained ankle in practice the week before the UCLA game on Dec. 20. The injury has developed into tendinitis of the knee, limiting his practice and game time. Knight, who leads the Lions in blocked shots and ranks third in rebounds, suffers from a chronic knee problem.

If McCloskey and Knight are not at their best or close to it, Hillock realizes it could be a long season. Loyola ranks last among the eight WCC teams in rebound margin and could have trouble against Pepperdine, which ranks second.

“Pepperdine can just crush you on the boards,” Hillock said. “They can play volleyball with you at any time. They can miss a shot and go get it and put the thing back in.

“We have to make sure each time they take a shot we lay a firm body on them to keep them from the ball. We haven’t done it yet.”

In a preseason poll of publications, Pepperdine was the consensus pick to win the conference title, with Loyola second. Hillock says Pepperdine deserves to be the favorite, but he isn’t so sure the Lions are the second-best team in the conference.

“I wouldn’t bet the ranch on it,” he said. “We can finish anywhere from second to sixth.

“I thought we would be playing better at this juncture. Usually my teams play well at Christmas. We need to bust out a little bit. We need to play with more flow and rhythm and more in sync. We’ve been very disjointed.”

Loyola’s erratic play can be traced, in part, to guard Terrell Lowery. The touted senior ranks first in the WCC in scoring (26.5), second in steals (2.5) and third in assists (5.7). On the other hand, he has made only 42% of his shots, including 35% from three-point range, and has 63 turnovers in 11 games.

Hillock suggested it could be a case of Lowery trying to do too much for a team lacking scorers. After Lowery, McCloskey ranks second in scoring with a 11.9 average.

“Terrell has been doing fine,” Hillock said. “I think there is a lot of pressure on him to do well. He’s always been a streaky shooter--sometimes hot, sometimes cold. I classify him more a scorer than a shooter. He’s a big-time scorer.”

Hillock has been pleased with the play of point guard Tony Walker, who leads the conference in field-goal percentage (60%)--he averages six shots and 10 points a game--and ranks second in assists (7.5).

Because of the injuries to McCloskey and Knight, Hillock said freshmen forwards Wyking Jones (St. Bernard High) and Robin Kirksey (Gardena) might be called upon more often during conference play.

“I’m pleased with their development,” Hillock said. “One of these nights, one of them is going to bust loose.”

The second-year coach hopes the same thing is true of Loyola, which has had trouble getting its run-and-gun attack in gear. Fortunately for the Lions, the conference appears to be balanced and lacking a runaway favorite.

“I think that it will be a heck of a (conference) race,” Hillock said. “There are probably five teams that are going to fight it out for second place.”