Lions search for missing roar
Steve Aggers thought all the pieces to the perplexing puzzle he had been handed when he took over the Loyola Marymount men’s basketball program four years ago were finally in place.
His roster was loaded with solid, veteran players. He had taken his team to Europe over the summer and watched as his players bonded, learned, matured – and finished 5-0. Just six games into the 2004-05 season, he had his Lions sitting 5-1 and loving life.
Then, just prior to a Dec. 12 matchup against nationally ranked Washington, starting small forward Adoya Evans-Miller was forced to shut down for the season because of a bad back. Eleven days later, starting point guard Brandon Worthy was sidelined with a torn meniscus in his knee.
Suddenly, LMU’s once-promising season turned into a struggle, thanks to a run of key injuries that rivals that of last season when three starters went down for extended periods.
“I must have done something in a previous life,” lamented the hard-luck Aggers, who brings his limping Lions into Gonzaga’s sold-out McCarthey Athletic Center at 7 tonight for a West Coast Conference showdown against the Bulldogs. “It’s really frustrating. You work so hard and so long to get things a certain way; you’re 5-1 and rolling; you’re really playing well, and then ‘Bam!’
“I just don’t know how to explain it.”
Not that the Lions have morphed into cupcakes, mind you. Despite losing Evans-Miller and Worthy, they come in 9-6 overall and 1-1 in the WCC. They feature one of the league’s top guards in senior Charles Brown, who is shooting 41 percent (26 of 60) from 3-point range and averaging 12 points a game. They seem to have found a legitimate inside force in Matthew Knight, a 6-foot-8, 240-pound sophomore center, who is averaging a team-high 15.3 points and 5.9 rebounds.
For sure, they still have the respect of GU coach Mark Few, who is quick to note how well they played in 100-93 loss to then 16th-ranked Washington and a 79-77 overtime road loss to Virginia, which was ranked No. 25 at the time.
“They had the best preseason they’ve ever had,” Few said of the Lions. “Steve is a great coach and he knows Gonzaga better than anyone. They’re always hard-nosed and tough, and they still have some experience.
“Their guards have been around, and they seem to have found an inside guy in Knight who they have a lot of confidence in.”
Still, Aggers would prefer to have all of his weapons available against a GU team (11-3, 1-1) that is ranked 16th in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll, despite losing at Saint Mary’s on Saturday night.
The Bulldogs, Aggers insists, have built a program that ranks among the nation’s elite and have not missed a beat since losing five seniors from last year’s 28-3 team.
“Good programs survive the loss of quality players, and they’ve built a really good program at Gonzaga,” Aggers said. “The Casey Calvarys of the world teach the younger players what they need to do to be successful and just seems to carry on. They’ve really got it going.
“And they ought to be in a pretty good mood after losing to Saint Mary’s.”
Aggers said he is impressed with the Zags’ Derek Raivio and Adam Morrison, a pair of talented sophomores who refuse to act their age.
“Raivio might be the best shooter on their team, and Morrison is probably their best scorer,” he added. “I’ve always loved Morrison’s competitiveness. I think he’s just a terrific player with a bright future – probably in the NBA.”
Morrison leads GU in scoring with an average of 19.1 points per game. Senior forward Ronny Turiaf, despite his recent slump, is averaging 16.4, and Raivio is next at 12.7.
As for his team, Aggers said all he can do is continue to teach and hope.
“I really felt like at the beginning of the year we had turned the corner in getting our program to where it need to be,” he said. “But losing those two starters changed our team. We’re not quite as athletic and not as good offensively as we were. It’s taken us a few games to figure on how to play.
“But all good programs survive injuries. And I like the how our guys compete.”