MBB: Matadors Defeat Vanguard 72-52

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Northridge, CA – The CSUN Matadors (2-2) defeated the Vanguard Lions (4-1) on Wednesday night in The Matadome in their regular season home opener, 72-52. Sophomore Micheal Warren and senior Olalekan Ajayi contributed 17 points each, and Ajayi added 10 rebounds for the double-double. The team tallied a total of 21 assists, a feat they only accomplished once last season (2/17/15 vs. Bethesda).

"I thought it was a real team effort," said Head Coach Reggie Theus. "We're headed in the right direction. Guys are sharing the ball, pulling for each other [and] reading each other."

In the first half, the Matadors came out to an early lead and were up 9-0 after just two minutes of play. They led by as many as 17 points and went to the locker room winning by 13 at 39-26.

Warren scored 10 points in the first 20 to go with five rebounds and two 3-pointers, while sophomore forward Tavrion Dawson helped out contributing eight rebounds and six points. The Matadors were 5-for-6 at the free throw line, good for 83.3%. Twenty-four first half points for the Matadors came in the paint, compared to just eight for Vanguard.

"We compliment each other," said Warren of the team's fast-paced, guard-driven style of play. Of himself, he admits that he's "letting the game come to me, taking the shots that I get" to contribute double-figures in points game after game.

A steal by Warren started off the second half for the Matadors, and with a layup by freshman Jason Richardson CSUN was off and running. The first of two second half dunks by Ajayi about four minutes in kept things going, with the score moving to 48-31 Matadors.

From there on out, the Matadors kept the game tempo up and the closest the Lions came was within 14 points.

Richardson contributed a total of 14 points, six rebounds and four assists for the Matadors and Dawson hit for 10 with nine rebounds and four assists. Senior Tre Hale-Edmerson led the team with five assists and scored six, including one slam dunk, adding two steals and two blocks. The Matadors finished the game 9-for-12 at the free throw line with 48 points in the paint.

Off the bench, sophomore Zacarry Douglas scored eight points with five rebounds and three assists in 29 minutes, while freshmen Kelton Conway and Mehran Nazarian each saw a few minutes of playing time towards the end of the game. Senior Landon Drew also played off the bench in the first half before leaving the game with 14 minutes left.

For the Lions, guard Jaamon Echols led the team in scoring with 16 points, with nine points off of 3s, and forward Zach Allmon added 10 points, nine rebounds and three steals.

The Matadors play next against USC at the Galen Center on Monday, November 23 at 6:00 p.m.

MBB: Matadors Defeat Vanguard 72-52

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Team Stats

Micheal Warren

Olalekan Ajayi

Jason Richardson

Tavrion Dawson

Players Mentioned

Olalekan Ajayi

Kelton Conway

Tavrion Dawson

Zacarry Douglas

Tre Hale-Edmerson

Mehran Nazarian

Jason Richardson

Micheal Warren