California State University Northridge Athletics
Memorable Dates in CSUN History: Nov. 21, 2000 - CSUN Stuns UCLA
12/20/2017 8:07:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Matadors stun No. 15 UCLA inside Pauley Pavilion for the program's first ever win over a nationally-ranked team.Â
Northridge, Calif.---The 2000-01 CSUN Men's Basketball team made it habit of making history. Loaded with 10 upperclassmen including a pair of future Matador Hall of Famers, CSUN set milestone after milestone in a historic season to remember. In the team's first record-breaking moment, the Matadors traveled to Pauley Pavilion and stunned the college basketball world with an upset victory over the No. 15 ranked UCLA Bruins on Nov. 21, 2000. The triumph was the school's first ever win over a Top 25 team in program history and it would be just the beginning of what was to come during the year.Â
After posting 20 wins in 1999-2000, the team's second-straight winning season, the Matadors came into the 2000-01 year as one of the favorites in the Big Sky Conference. A huge part of the team's high expectations came down to the team's deep roster. Among the senior class, CSUN boasted high-scoring center Brian Heinle along with hard-nosed forward Jeff Parris up front while junior guard Markus Carr distributed the basketball and senior guards John Burrell, Carl Holmes and Marco Mccain roamed the backcourt.
Posting signature victories over Fresno State and Oregon during the 1999-2000 season, the Matadors began to gain a reputation for upsetting top programs. Early on in the 2000-01 season, the Matadors added another notch to their belt. Scoring an opening night win over Howard two nights before, CSUN faced a UCLA team that advanced to the 2000 NCAA Sweet 16. The Bruins boasted five future professional basketball players that season including four NBA players in Matt Barnes, Jason Kapono, Earl Watson and Dan Gadzuric. Among the many standouts on the UCLA roster was also future CSUN Women's Basketball head coach Jason Flowers.Â
Staring down one of the top teams in the nation and a squad that would go on to advance to another Sweet 16 that season, the Matadors frustrated the Bruins with tenacious defense and balanced scoring on the other end. Jumping back into the national spotlight, CSUN posted a 78-74 victory over the Bruins and secured perhaps its biggest win to date in school history. As a result, CSUN received national coverage from media publications including the lead showcase on SportsCenter.Â
Parris led all Matadors with 27 points while Burrell had 17 points and Heinle chipped in with 13. Carr dished out eight assists and racked up seven points and four rebounds.Â
Led by the trio of Parris, Burrell and Heinle, the Matadors erased a 13-point first-half deficit including a seven-point UCLA halftime lead to surge in front in the second half. CSUN put together a key 21-5 run in the second half and scored 13 unanswered points at one point. After UCLA made a run to pull within two, Parris hit a key basket and Carr followed with a late 3-pointer to keep the Matadors in front down the stretch.Â
The Matadors would carry on the momentum of the UCLA win into Big Sky Conference play where CSUN registered a 13-3 record en route to winning the program's first Division I regular season conference title. However, the Matadors' historic season would not be done quite yet. Just seven days after the conclusion of the regular season, the Matadors made more history as they would dance all over The Matadome and advance to the NCAA Tournament.Â
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Northridge, Calif.---The 2000-01 CSUN Men's Basketball team made it habit of making history. Loaded with 10 upperclassmen including a pair of future Matador Hall of Famers, CSUN set milestone after milestone in a historic season to remember. In the team's first record-breaking moment, the Matadors traveled to Pauley Pavilion and stunned the college basketball world with an upset victory over the No. 15 ranked UCLA Bruins on Nov. 21, 2000. The triumph was the school's first ever win over a Top 25 team in program history and it would be just the beginning of what was to come during the year.Â
After posting 20 wins in 1999-2000, the team's second-straight winning season, the Matadors came into the 2000-01 year as one of the favorites in the Big Sky Conference. A huge part of the team's high expectations came down to the team's deep roster. Among the senior class, CSUN boasted high-scoring center Brian Heinle along with hard-nosed forward Jeff Parris up front while junior guard Markus Carr distributed the basketball and senior guards John Burrell, Carl Holmes and Marco Mccain roamed the backcourt.
Posting signature victories over Fresno State and Oregon during the 1999-2000 season, the Matadors began to gain a reputation for upsetting top programs. Early on in the 2000-01 season, the Matadors added another notch to their belt. Scoring an opening night win over Howard two nights before, CSUN faced a UCLA team that advanced to the 2000 NCAA Sweet 16. The Bruins boasted five future professional basketball players that season including four NBA players in Matt Barnes, Jason Kapono, Earl Watson and Dan Gadzuric. Among the many standouts on the UCLA roster was also future CSUN Women's Basketball head coach Jason Flowers.Â
Staring down one of the top teams in the nation and a squad that would go on to advance to another Sweet 16 that season, the Matadors frustrated the Bruins with tenacious defense and balanced scoring on the other end. Jumping back into the national spotlight, CSUN posted a 78-74 victory over the Bruins and secured perhaps its biggest win to date in school history. As a result, CSUN received national coverage from media publications including the lead showcase on SportsCenter.Â
Parris led all Matadors with 27 points while Burrell had 17 points and Heinle chipped in with 13. Carr dished out eight assists and racked up seven points and four rebounds.Â
Led by the trio of Parris, Burrell and Heinle, the Matadors erased a 13-point first-half deficit including a seven-point UCLA halftime lead to surge in front in the second half. CSUN put together a key 21-5 run in the second half and scored 13 unanswered points at one point. After UCLA made a run to pull within two, Parris hit a key basket and Carr followed with a late 3-pointer to keep the Matadors in front down the stretch.Â
The Matadors would carry on the momentum of the UCLA win into Big Sky Conference play where CSUN registered a 13-3 record en route to winning the program's first Division I regular season conference title. However, the Matadors' historic season would not be done quite yet. Just seven days after the conclusion of the regular season, the Matadors made more history as they would dance all over The Matadome and advance to the NCAA Tournament.Â
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