COLLEGES:

There’s a little salesman in every college basketball coach. And, this season, Vanguard University men’s coach Fred Litzenberger has surpassed his quota when it comes to the number of Lions buying the principles that can sometimes be hard to peddle.

“One of the most difficult things in any coaching situation in this day and age, is to get kids to buy into what you’re selling,” said Litzenberger, who in his second season as the lone head coach at Vanguard, has the Lions off to a surprising 6-2 start, 2-1 in the Golden State Athletic Conference. He was associate head coach with Bob Wilson in 2005-06, when the Lions made their first trip to the NAIA Tournament since 1990.

Vanguard, an NAIA school, extended its winning streak to four games Saturday with a 72-69 road victory against Cal State Los Angeles, an NCAA Division II program.

Wednesday, the Lions earned a 58-44 home triumph over conference rival Fresno Pacific. That’s the same Fresno Pacific team that trounced host USC, 65-44, in an exhibition game Saturday at the Galen Center.

First among Litzenberger’s wish list was establishing a defensive foundation from which all would follow.

“The biggest thing we’ve been trying to get our players to accept from Day 1, is that in order to earn playing time, they had to defend someone,” said Litzenberger, whose 35 years of coaching experience includes stints at NCAA Division I programs Oregon, Colorado State, Fresno State and the University of Miami. “I think the Fresno Pacific game was an example of a game in which we played good individual defense and good team defense.”

The Lions limited the Sunbirds to 15 first-half points, half the total they amassed three nights later against the Trojans. FPU shot just 30.4% from the field (14 for 46) and 15.8% from three-point range (3 for 19) against Vanguard.

The Lions led, 21-15, at halftime against the Sunbirds. And, contrary to a trend last season in which Vanguard led or was tied in the second half in 13 of its 22 losses, the Lions held on to finish the job.

Litzenberger was liberal with praise in terms of offensive production from his team this season, and the statistics indicate balance and depth are both constants for the Lions.

Sophomore Dennis Heenan, a former Newport Harbor High star, leads the team in scoring (11.5 points per game), rebounding (6.1 per game) and three-pointers (15 of 37 for 40.5%).

Senior De’Auonte’ Johnson is averaging 10.9 points, followed by sophomore point guard Greg Scott (8.8), junior guard Andrew Ellis (8.0), senior forward and Orange Coast College product Matt Davis (7.6) and senior center Arvydas Vaitiekus 6.5).

Vaitiekus is a 6-foot-11 transfer from Utah State, who along with Scott are the only two players to start all eight games.

Scott, who is averaging a team-best 5.3 assists, was singled out for his ability to help create a cohesive offensive flow.

“Greg has done a great job getting the new guys involved, because he passes the ball so well,” Litzenberger said.

Litzenberger also said the early success has fostered a confidence level not sustained by last year’s team.

“When you play well and have success, the confidence really grows,” Litzenberger said. “That’s where we’re at right now.”

The Lions, picked to finish 10th in the 11-team conference in the preseason coaches poll, return to action Saturday at home at 7:30 p.m. against Cal State Dominguez Hills, another NCAA Division II school.

Vanguard does not play a conference opponent until Jan. 8, when it plays host to No. 2-ranked Concordia.

 Litzenberger responded with enthusiasm to Fresno Pacific’s win over then-No. 24-ranked USC, which gave its top five scorers the night off.

“That was a big-time win for our entire conference,” he said. “I think it helps everybody in the country realize we’ve got a lot of good teams in this league.”

Remember, it was GSAC representative Cal Baptist (4-0, 2-0), which gave UC Irvine a scare before falling, 73-71, in a Nov. 6 exhibition game at Crawford Court.

 The Anteaters absorbed a one-two combination when it was revealed Saturday that not only would junior Adam Rodenberg miss the rest of the season due to surgery to repair a hernia, but he had also been granted his release to transfer out of the UCI program.

Rodenberg, who started all six games he played this season, averaged 6.8 points and 2.7 rebounds in 27.5 minutes per game. And while some of that was enhanced by the early absence of senior center Darren Fells, who served a two-game suspension due to personal misconduct, it was clear that Rodenberg’s strength, athleticism and 6-7, 235-pound frame would have been a valuable asset for Coach Pat Douglass’ squad.

Rodenberg returned to his home in Iowa, which is becoming a black hole for former Anteaters. Adam Templeton, who played the last two seasons at UCI out of a high school in South Dakota, transferred during the offseason to Drake, located in Des Moines.

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at [email protected].