Henderson Scores 28 as Fullerton Beats Loyola

The NBA talent scouts were out at Loyola Marymount University Saturday night, so Cal State Fullerton played “Star Search,” scoring 99 points, while Loyola was closer to the “Ted Mack Amateur Hour” in scoring 79.

The 99-79 Fullerton victory in Loyola’s Gersten Pavilion, played before a crowd of 1,350 including Jerry West of the Lakers, Jack McMahon of the 76ers and several pro scouts, was fueled by Fullerton’s 54-point first half in which the Titans (6-3) shot 67% and at one time tripled Loyola’s score.

Fullerton shot 56% for the game with all five starters hitting double figures. Guard Kevin Henderson had 28 and forward Kerry Boagni, the other senior displaying his wares, had 17 points.

Titan Coach George McQuarn, who has been searching for the right combination, started junior Herman Webster for the first time at center. Webster responded with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Sophomore forward Henry Turner, starting his third game and averaging 7.5 points, scored 22 including 18 in the first half when he and Boagni combined for 14-of-17 shooting.

“It’s the best 40 minutes we played this year,” McQuarn said. “You’d have to say we played great the first half. That would have to be the appropriate term. We rebounded, we defended and we shot the lights out.”

Loyola (5-2) began slowly and made things worse by rushing its shots, which Fullerton converted into fast breaks. The Lions shot only 35% in the first half and 44% overall.

Senior guard Keith Smith scored 27 points but senior forward Forrest McKenzie had only eight and none in the second half. Loyola was down, 24-8, less than seven minutes into the game. Fullerton led at halftime, 54-33. Loyola never got closer than 15 points.

Loyola Coach Paul Westhead said his team needs to work on defense and offensive pacing, but said, “At this moment I’m more impressed with Fullerton’s play than with our deficiencies. We could search through the night for things that went wrong but Fullerton played good basketball.”

Fullerton guard Richard Morton, the fifth starter, had 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Henderson, who added seven assists, hit all six free throws to run his string to 31 straight. Sophomore forward Mark Armstrong and freshman guard Enoch Simmons added 10 points apiece for Loyola.

The game was the start of a big week for Loyola, with the Lions playing UC Irvine on Wednesday and UCLA on Friday in a search for respectability.

“We can’t let that (loss) pull us down,” Westhead said. “We have to grow from it, not mull over it. We have to show we can play with some bigger teams.”