Gaels

Ranked among the top 10 in the Associated Press poll this week for the first time in almost seven years, UCLA celebrated by blasting St. Mary's, 123-93, Wednesday night at Pauley Pavilion. As it used to nightly in Westwood, garbage time came early. "We're playing well," UCLA forward Don MacLean said. "I think we're deserving of a top 10 ranking." The Bruins improved to 5-0, their best start in eight years. And, for the third time, they scored more than 120 points.

Defense used to be state of the art for Paul Landreaux when he coached El Camino College to two state basketball titles and led California community colleges in defensive average five times. But Landreaux's defense was in a sorry state Thursday when his St. Mary's team met Loyola Marymount's offense of the 1990s in Gersten Pavilion. Loyola scored the most points ever allowed by the Gaels on the way to a 150-119 victory.

Loyola Marymount extended its conference winning streak to seven games with a doubleheader sweep of St. Mary's here Saturday, 7-1 and 8-3. The Lions, who entered the weekend in hot pursuit of Pepperdine in the West Coast Athletic Conference baseball race, combined explosive hitting with solid pitching, holding the fading Gaels to four hits in each game while collecting 24 in the doubleheader. Right-hander Kalani Bush improved to 8-2 in the first game, giving up St. Mary's only run in the first inning.

Al Lewis scored 14 points to lead St. Mary's to a 65-47 win over the University of San Diego Saturday night in a West Coast Athletic Conference game at San Diego. The Gaels (22-3 overall, 10-2 in the WCAC), one of the top defensive teams in the nation, stymied San Diego from the outset and built a 28-13 halftime lead. Dondi Bell had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Toreros (6-8, 1-1), who staged a mini-rally in the second half but got no closer than nine points.

St. Mary's took charge of the West Coast Athletic Conference race Saturday night with a convincing 95-81 victory over Loyola Marymount. Before a boisterous standing-room crowd of 3,550, the Gaels took control with a 14-0 run in the second half to put them in good position in the WCAC race, though there are still four games left. The victory gave St. Mary's (20-3) its first 20-win season since 1941-42, and left the Gaels tied with Pepperdine for first place in the WCAC at 8-2.

Once again, it's showdown week for Loyola Marymount and St. Mary's in Gersten Pavilion. The Gaels go into the weekend holding a one-game lead over Loyola in the West Coast Athletic Conference and come to town Saturday. This week, the gym probably won't be packed, and Sports Illustrated won't be on hand. This is the distaff battle for first place in the WCAC. While the men's team is playing at St. Mary's on Saturday, the women will be in as fierce a race of their own.

St. Mary's basketball Coach Lynn Nance was unhappy about his team's 65-60 loss to Pepperdine last Saturday night. It knocked the Gaels out of a first-place tie with the Waves in the West Coast Athletic Conference. Nance was unhappier still with playing Loyola and Pepperdine, St. Mary's toughest competition this year, on successive nights. He contended that playing conference teams on successive nights has made the conference "the laughingstock of the West Coast" and is "a sad mistake."

The anticipated showdown--Loyola Marymount's offense of the Nineties (and usually hundreds) against the timeless defense of St. Mary's--failed to materialize Friday as St. Mary's showed it could beat Loyola at its own game. The gallop was in the Gaels as they ran away to a 116-104 victory before a sellout crowd of 4,366 at Gersten Pavilion. The victory allowed St.

High Noon comes to Loyola Marymount at 7:30 tonight when this town won't be big enough for both Loyola and St. Mary's. There aren't really bad guys in this plot, because it's more a conflict of philosophies than right vs. wrong. Would Gary Cooper be Paul Westhead, the erudite ringleader of the hell-bent-for-leather Loyola scoring machine, or would he be St. Mary's Lynn Nance, a ruddy Texan who favors Alamo-style defense?

While Loyola Marymount has been running and pressing its way to fame, St. Mary's has been playing the best basketball in the West Coast Athletic Conference with an altogether different game. Let Loyola try to lead the nation in scoring offense. St. Mary's would rather lead in scoring defense. So far, Loyola is averaging 112 points a game--and allowing 112 points a game. The Lions are 3-4, but, in fairness, have been slowed by Bo Kimble's knee injury. St.