LMU Game Preview: Lions Start Off Paradise Jam Against Northern Iowa
By Josh Horton
Nov 29, 2011; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Loyola Marymount Lions coach Max Good (left) and guard Anthony Ireland (3) react during the game against the Saint Louis Billikens at Gersten Pavilion. LMU defeated Saint Louis 75-68. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports
LMU vs. Northern Iowa (Paradise Jam)
Game Time: 10:30 a.m. PST
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio:
Team Records: LMU – 4-0 – UNI – 1-2
Leading Scorers: LMU – Ireland 16.5 – UNI – Rank 15.3
Leading Rebounders: LMU – Levin 7.5 – UNI – Singleton 13.0
Leading Distributors: LMU – Ireland 7.0 – UNI – Washpun 3.3
Projected Starters:
LMU
Anthony Ireland
Ayodeji Egbeyemi
Chase Flint
Gabe Levin
Ben Dickisnon
Northern Iowa
Wes Washpun
Matt Bohannon
Deon Mitchell
Seth Tuttle
Ted Friedman
The Undefeated Loyola Marymount Lions come into the Paradise Jam with a great deal of momentum, which will be beneficial against Missouri Valley foe Northern Iowa.
The Opponent
The Panthers come are off to a tough start with losses to Ohio and George Mason. Both of those games were against quality opponents on the road, but the Panthers were not able to get the job done. Norhtern Iowa’s lone win is against Coe College, a divison III school.
Northern Iowa was picked to finish 3rd place in the Missouri Valley Conference this season.
Scoring points has been tough for the Panthers this season. The Panthers are 208th in the nation in points per game (73.3) and their starters only account for 54.0% of Northern Iowa’s scoring.
Reserve Wes Rank is the Panthers leading scorer at 15.3 points per game. Expect him to come into the game early and see extended minutes in order to keep up with the high scoring and fast-paced Lions.
Keys to the Game
Run the Floor
In order to have the best chance of winning this game, the Lions will need to come out of the gate running. UNI is a fundamentally sound squad, but do not score at a high rate. If LMU can dictate the pace of the game and turn it into a running match, that would be big. A high-tempo game highly favors the Lions
Hit the Three
The Lions will most likely be given a handful of open three-point attempts, and whether they knock them down or not could be indicative of the outcome to the game. The Panthers have the 245th best three point defense, allowing opponents to shoot 35.9% from downtown against them.
The Lions have great shooters on their roster – Anthony Ireland, Chase Flint, Ayodeji Egbeyemi, Nino Jackson, Evan Payne – but they have not had a lot of success shooting the three ball this season. Loyola Marymount will need to shoot better than its current 25.0% from three (310th in the country), or things could get ugly.