AMMERMAN STEPS IT UP\LMU 83, GONZAGA 69.

Byline: Kathy Orton Special to the Daily News

With its leading scorer missing in action offensively, the Loyola Marymount men's basketball team turned to its unheralded sophomore forward.

Ime Oduok had been the high-point man in eight games this season. But the last three games, the 6-foot-9 senior center has been almost nonexistent in the points column.

So with West Coast Conference rival Gonzaga nipping at its heels Friday night, Loyola Marymount relied on Ben Ammerman, who had a career night, as the Lions downed the Bulldogs 83-69 in front of 1,672 at Gersten Pavilion.

"Players go through periods like that," Loyola Marymount coach John Olive said of Oduok's low-scoring night. "Sooner or later he'll come out of it."

Oduok has been held to a combined 23 points the Lions' past three outings. He scored just eight points against the Bulldogs (13-6, 4-3).

Although his game has suffered on the offensive end of the court, defensively he has continued to contribute. Oduok led LMU (14-6, 4-3) in rebounding for the 13th time this season, grabbing 10 against Gonzaga.

At the same time, Ammerman has stepped up his offensive output in those games, scoring 14, 15 and a career-high 22 points Friday.

"Ben's been feeling pretty good offensively the last couple of games," Olive said.

Two other Loyola Marymount players scored in double figures - Mike O'Quinn added 14 and Jim Williamson 13.

The Lions came out of the locker room with intensity, scoring on their first three possessions of the game to go up 7-0, while the Bulldogs were held without a field goal for five minutes, 11 seconds.

When Gonzaga finally was able to shift its offense into gear, it looked to Paul Rogers. He sank the first field goal of the game - a jump shot from the right corner of the baseline - and went on to score 14 points in the half.

But Rogers was never a contributor in the second half, finishing with just 18 points in the game.

"Will Jones showed us how to play him," Olive said of his sophomore reserve forward. "He did a good job of fronting him."

Loyola Marymount held on to its lead until less than five minutes remained in the half, when Gonzaga went on a 9-2 run for a six-point lead.

Jones dunked a missed free throw by Tim Kennedy to give the Lions a two-point advantage at the half.

Aggressive defense by Loyola Marymount forced the Bulldogs to turn the ball over 14 times in the first half. Eight were off steals by the Lions.

With the win, LMU created a logjam for the second spot in the conference. Santa Clara remains atop the standings, with the Lions, San Francisco, Gonzaga and Portland tied for second.