California State University Northridge Athletics
California State University at Northridge
4-12, 0-1BWC
UC Davis
11-3, 1-0BWC
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| CSUN | 31 | 30 | 61 |
| UC Davis | 44 | 27 | 71 |
CSUN Suffers 71-61 Defeat at UC Davis
1/8/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
En Español
DAVIS, Calif. –
A double-digit deficit at halftime proved too much to overcome as the CSUN Matadors (4-12, 0-1 Big West) were defeated by the UC Davis Aggies (11-3, 1-0 Big West) 71-61 on Wednesday night at The Pavilion in each team's Big West Conference opener. CSUN held UC Davis to one field goal over the final 9:24 of the game and got as close as seven points down the stretch before being defeated.
"You look at the stats and we're up five points at the end, except for when you look at the 3-point line. We're not going to win many games if we shoot 12-for-21 from the free-throw line," said CSUN men's basketball head coach Reggie Theus. "You do that and you give up 12 threes, it puts a lot of pressure on your defense."
The Matadors started the game off brightly as Landon Drew hit a 3-pointer on the first possession of the night. Both sides traded jabs throughout the first half, answering the other shot for shot for 17 minutes before the Aggies jumped ahead going into halftime.
CSUN held a 27-25 lead after Stephan Hicks drained a short jumper with five minutes to go in the half, but a 19-6 run for UC Davis gave the Aggies a 13-point cushion 44-31 after the first 20 minutes of play. UC Davis relied on the 3-point shot in the opening half, making 8-of-15 from downtown.
"When you get tired you can't make mistakes," said Theus. "We made four mistakes defensively to give them those baskets down the stretch in the first half and they were tired mistakes. They were mistakes made trying to take a shortcut and [UC Davis] burned us each time."
The second half belonged to the Matadors, but it ended up being a case of too little too late. CSUN outscored the Aggies 30-27 in the period thanks to 10 points from Stephen Maxwell and eight from Aaron Parks.
However, despite holding the Aggies to 40.9% shooting in the half CSUN was unable to capitalize on the other end of the floor. There were three stretches in the second half where neither team scored for nearly two minutes, and nearly four minutes passed between a Maxwell dunk and a 3-pointer by Parks with 1:52 left in the game.
The Matadors used a 14-2 run at the midway point of the second half to get within seven points at 66-59, but five critical free throws for UC Davis put the game out of reach.
Maxwell finished with a game-high 18 points and 11 rebounds to turn in his seventh double-double of the season and 36th of his career. Hicks added 15 points while Parks chipped in 11 off the bench.
Devonte Elliott scored 10 points to round out the list of Matadors in double figures and Drew tied for the game high with seven assists. With his seven assists, Drew passed Brian Heinle on CSUN's all-time leaderboard and is now seventh in school history with 294.
Maxwell became the fifth Matador in history to reach 1,500 career points (1,513) and inched closer to the 900 career rebounds milestone (840). With seven free throws, Hicks needs just 23 more to establish a new Big West Conference all-time record.
The Matadors will stay on the road for their next contest, a Saturday night meeting with the Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors in Honolulu. Tipoff at Stan Sheriff Center is scheduled for 7 p.m. HT (9 p.m. PT).
