Matadors Defeat Mustangs in Overtime, 75-71

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San Luis Obispo, CA - The CSUN Matadors (10-17, 5-8 BWC) pulled out a gritty win over the the Cal Poly Mustangs (9-18, 4-9 BWC) in overtime, 75-71, on Saturday night in Mott Athletics Center. The Matadors were leading through the final minutes of the game, when a Mustang comeback forced the overtime period. CSUN bested Cal Poly at the free throw line in extra time for the hard-fought win.

Tonight's win gives CSUN its first series victory over Cal Poly since 2008 and its first season with two Big West Conference series wins (Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton) since 2010-11.

Sophomore Jerron Wilbut led the Matadors in scoring on the night with 16 points and junior Aaron Parks followed closely behind with 15, putting him above the 700-point mark for the first time in his three-year career. Junior Kendall Smith scored 14 and sophomore Micheal Warren added 11. Senior Olalekan Ajayi had eight boards to lead the Matadors.

Senior Tre Hale-Edmerson moved into sole possession of the number one spot on the all-time CSUN games played list on Saturday night. His two assists on the night tie him for eighth-place all time (290) and his six rebounds put him above the 700-mark for the first time in his career (702).

"I'm just incredibly proud of our guys," said Head Coach Reggie Theus. "This is not the first time that they've showed amazing ability to fight through adversity. Tonight they learned a little bit more about how to win and what it takes to win. It's just a really great win for our program this year."

Theus continued, "We had four guys in double figures, AP with seven rebounds was huge and the guys that came off the bench – Z, TD, Jerron – all those guys made big plays for us down the stretch. It's just a complete team effort and that's how you have to win."

Wilbut shot 4-for-5 from beyond the arc in the first half, putting up most of the Matadors' early points and giving them their first lead of the game at about the nine-minute mark after a charging layup by Smith.

CSUN hovered a point or two either way of the Mustangs from there, and Cal Poly called a timeout down by one with six seconds left in the first half. Coming out of the huddle, the Mustangs weren't able to convert and CSUN led at the half, 32-31.

The Matadors came into the second half ready to go and quickly put up five points to take a six-point lead off the bat. They increased their lead to as much as 14 by the 11-minute mark and stayed solidly on top until there were two minutes left in regulation.

A dunk by Joel Awich closed the Mustangs within one with minutes left in regular time, with sophomore Tavrion Dawson fighting for the CSUN lead again before a 3 for the Mustangs evened up the game. After timeouts for each team, the buzzer sounded even at 61 to force the overtime period.

The five minutes of overtime was evenly contested, with back-and-forth scoring throughout. Much of the extra time was decided at the free throw line, where CSUN went 6-for-6 and the Mustangs went 7-for-12. The Matadors used their fouls wisely and were able to build on their small advantages for the win.

On the night, CSUN bested Cal Poly shooting (39 percent to 38), on 3-pointers (50 percent to 35) and at the free throw line (21-for-27 vs. 12-for-25). The Matadors also won in the paint and with points off the bench.

For Cal Poly, guard Reese Morgan scored 23 points and guard Jaylen Shead and forward Josh Martin each had 10 rebounds.

The Matadors return home to The Matadome next Thursday for their penultimate home game to take on UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, Feb. 25 at 7:30 p.m. on Fox Sports Prime Ticket on It's On Us T-shirt Night. After that, the Matadors face Hawai'i and UC Davis before concluding the season.

Matadors Defeat Mustangs in Overtime, 75-71

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Team Stats

Jerron Wilbut

Aaron Parks

Kendall Smith

Micheal Warren

Players Mentioned

Olalekan Ajayi

Tavrion Dawson

Tre Hale-Edmerson

Aaron Parks

Kendall Smith

Micheal Warren

Jerron Wilbut