Loyola Wastes Williamson’s Effort

Loyola Marmount guard Jim Williamson did all he could, he just didn’t get enough help from his teammates.

The 5-foot-10 senior scored a career-high 37 points but the Lions never caught up after trailing early in an 86-72 loss to San Francisco in their West Coast Conference opener before 801 at Gersten Pavilion.

Loyola Marymount (3-10, 0-1 in conference) trailed the Dons by 21 points late in the first half. But the Lions went on a 16-2 run, including 10 by Williamson, to open the second half, cutting the lead to 48-44, before San Francisco recovered.

The Lions pulled to within five points several times, but could get no closer. Williamson scored 27 points in the second half. However, the rest of the Lions made only 13 of 36 shots from the field, one of eight from three-point range.

Gerald Zimmerman scored 28 points, including six three-pointers, and Hakeem Ward scored 26 on 11-of-15 shooting for San Francisco (6-7, 0-1).

Zimmerman and Ward, both juniors, are two of five players San Francisco Coach Phil Mathews recruited from Ventura College. Mathews coached at Ventura for 10 seasons before leaving in 1995.