California State University at Northridge
3-9
Texas A&M - Corpus Christi
4-6
Matadors Lose to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 75-68
12/21/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
En Español
NORTHRIDGE, Calif. -
A late shooting surge was too much to overcome as the CSUN Matadors (3-9) dropped a 75-68 decision to the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders (4-6) in a non-conference game on Saturday night at The Matadome. The Matadors led for nearly half an hour, but 3-point shooting from the Islanders propelled the visitors to victory.
"Our guys played hard and they do a lot of good things, but it takes 40 minutes to win a basketball game," said CSUN head coach Reggie Theus. "We just have to keep working. There's no magic trick, there's no drills. Just have to keep working. We need to stay real, but we have to stay positive at the same time."
CSUN got off to a fast start on the night, jumping out to a 9-0 lead over the first six minutes. Stephen Maxwell paced the Matadors early and scored 12 of the team's 27 points in the first half. He led the way with six before the Islanders got on the board after a layup with 13:10 to play in the half.
The basket sparked an 8-0 swing for the Islanders, but the Matadors withstood the charge and held onto the lead. CSUN rebuilt its cushion to eight points on an old-fashioned three-point play by Maxwell with two minutes remaining before the Islanders once again trimmed the gap to one. Ajon Efferson's 3-pointer with two seconds to go in the half allowed the Matadors to head into the locker room up 27-23.
A back-and-forth game in the second half was in CSUN's control for most of the way as the Islanders continued to mount pressure. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi erased deficits of nine and six points to tie the game four times, the latest with 7:25 left in regulation.
A 3-pointer from Jelani Currie gave the Islanders the lead for the first time at 53-50 and the team never looked back. The Matadors got back within four points with 53 seconds to play, but the Islanders made enough free throws down the stretch to seal the game.
Maxwell finished with a team-high 23 points for CSUN and also pulled down four rebounds. The senior is now four boards shy of setting a school record for career rebounds. Stephan Hicks scored 14 points and had six rebounds, while Devonte Elliott had nine points, six rebounds and three blocks.
Currie led the Islanders with 27 points off the bench. He went 8-of-9 from the floor and 7-for-7 from 3-point territory.
The Matadors will hit the road for their next game, a Tuesday night meeting with the No. 4 Louisville Cardinals in Kentucky. CSUN and Louisville will play at 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. PT) at the KFC Yum! Center and the game will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU and WatchESPN.
