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>Loyola Marymount +7 over SAN DIEGO
We get a very sweet price here on the Lions due to the teams recent struggles that’s seen them lose five of their past six games. It started with a home loss to these same Toreros back on Jan. 9 and continued with losses to Gonzaga, Portland, Santa Clara and St. Mary’s. The timing was not very good for the Lions, however, Gonzaga, St. Mary’s and Santa Clara are a combined 16-4 in the conference and sit 1-2-3 in the standings. The Lions responded with a blowout win in their last start at home over Pepperdine and there’s a very good chance that momentum will carry over here. The reason is as follows: after playing without three starters last weekend against Santa Clara and Saint Mary's, the Lions earned a big boost with the return of two of them to the line-up. Sophomores Daryl Pegram and Brandon Worthy provided a big spark for the Lions in their return on Saturday, coming off the bench in the win. Pegram, who missed two games with a left knee injury, played 17 minutes to score nine points with eight rebounds, tied for the game high with teammate Matthew Knight. Worthy returned for the first time after missing nine games due to knee surgery on Dec. 29. With Worthy and Pegram both in the line-up the Lions improved to 8-3 on the season. Worthy's impact has been great in his return to the Lions this season after missing all of last year on a medical redshirt with a broken wrist in his shooting hand. With Worthy in the line-up, the Lions are 5-1 and average 74.5 points per game while allowing just 66.7. It’s no coincidence that as soon as Pegram and Worthy returned the Lions won by 17 points. The Lions have played three ranked teams this year, a two-point loss at West Virginia (then No. 25), just a seven-point loss to No. 13 Washington and lastly, an 11-point loss to Gonzaga minus Pegram and Worthy. Meanwhile, the Toreros haven’t beaten or come close to beating a single notable team all year. Among their losses is a 16-point loss to Pepperdine, a nine-point loss at Texas Arlington, a 20 point defeat at San Diego St and their past three games all by double-digits. Perception is everything and we trust that this line in inflated due to that perception that has the Lions the inferior squad here when in fact, they’re not. LMU is healthy again and with that convincing win over Pepperdine, the whole team has got to be feeling pretty good about its chances tonight, so do we. Play: Loyola Marymount +7 (Risking 1.65 units to win 1.5).
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fficeffice" /><o>Loyola Marymount +7 over SAN DIEGOWe get a very sweet price here on the Lions due to the teams recent struggles that’s seen them lose five of their past six games. It started with a home loss to these same Toreros back on Jan. 9 and continued with losses to Gonzaga, Portland, Santa Clara and St. Mary’s. The timing was not very good for the Lions, however, Gonzaga, St. Mary’s and Santa Clara are a combined 16-4 in the conference and sit 1-2-3 in the standings. The Lions responded with a blowout win in their last start at home over Pepperdine and there’s a very good chance that momentum will carry over here. The reason is as follows: after playing without three starters last weekend against Santa Clara and Saint Mary's, the Lions earned a big boost with the return of two of them to the line-up. Sophomores Daryl Pegram and Brandon Worthy provided a big spark for the Lions in their return on Saturday, coming off the bench in the win. Pegram, who missed two games with a left knee injury, played 17 minutes to score nine points with eight rebounds, tied for the game high with teammate Matthew Knight. Worthy returned for the first time after missing nine games due to knee surgery on Dec. 29. With Worthy and Pegram both in the line-up the Lions improved to 8-3 on the season. Worthy's impact has been great in his return to the Lions this season after missing all of last year on a medical redshirt with a broken wrist in his shooting hand. With Worthy in the line-up, the Lions are 5-1 and average 74.5 points per game while allowing just 66.7. It’s no coincidence that as soon as Pegram and Worthy returned the Lions won by 17 points. The Lions have played three ranked teams this year, a two-point loss at West Virginia (then No. 25), just a seven-point loss to No. 13 Washington and lastly, an 11-point loss to Gonzaga minus Pegram and Worthy. Meanwhile, the Toreros haven’t beaten or come close to beating a single notable team all year. Among their losses is a 16-point loss to Pepperdine, a nine-point loss at Texas Arlington, a 20 point defeat at San Diego St and their past three games all by double-digits. Perception is everything and we trust that this line in inflated due to that perception that has the Lions the inferior squad here when in fact, they’re not. LMU is healthy again and with that convincing win over Pepperdine, the whole team has got to be feeling pretty good about its chances tonight, so do we. Play: Loyola Marymount +7 (Risking 1.65 units to win 1.5).
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