Matadors Drop Hard-Fought Battle at UC Davis

DAVIS, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball (5-15, 2-4 BWC) battled UC Davis (13-7, 4-2 BWC) for the full 40 minutes but fell just short in a 63-56 decision on Thursday evening at the Pavilion. Senior Micheal Warren led all scorers with 20 points to go with three rebounds and two assists while fellow senior Tavrion Dawson posted 12 points, six rebounds and three assists. The Matadors led by double-digits in the first half but the Aggies put together a key 18-0 run and held off CSUN down the stretch.

"Beginning of the second half, I think their pressure got to us a little bit," said head coach Reggie Theus about the Aggies' defense. "I thought we took to many 3's but I think we missed some that we normally make. Down the stretch of the game our defense was fine, we just missed shots. We make those shots, we win the game. But I'm proud of our guys and their effort tonight."

The Matadors finished shooting 39.6 percent from the floor and just 26.1 percent from beyond the 3-point arc (6-for-23) while the Aggies shot 48.1 percent for the game but 1-of-10 from downtown. UC Davis won the rebounding battle 34-27 and registered a 46-26 edge in points in the paint.

CSUN received solid minutes from Jonathan Guevara who had six rebounds, four assists and three points in a career-high 30 minutes off the bench. Also giving the Matadors a lift, Mahamadou Kaba-Camara did not miss a shot on the night as he went 2-for-2 from the field and the free throw line, finishing with six points to go with three rebounds and a steal.

The Matadors knew they would need to play their best basketball to defeat a UC Davis team who came in with a 17-game home winning streak. Early on, CSUN kept pace with the Aggies as the teams exchanged five leads in the first seven minutes of the contest.

Near the midway mark of the first half, the Matadors would go a run, silencing the raucous UC Davis crowd. Dawson gave CSUN a 13-12 lead at the 12:46 mark on a drive to the basket. Kaba-Camara then put the Matador bench into a frenzy with a thunderous slam dunk to put CSUN up by three. Moments later, Guevara would force a turnover leading to another Kaba-Camara two-handed dunk.

The Matadors continued their run behind strong play on the defensive end. CSUN earned five consecutive defensive stops, giving its offensive an opportunuity to extend its lead. Capping an 11-0 run, Terrell Gomez forced a UC Davis turnover leading to a 3-pointer to push the lead to 22-12. In total, CSUN held the Aggies without a field goal for 6:28 in the period.

UC Davis would pull within 22-16 but the Matadors again stretched their lead to double-digits after buckets from Reggie Theus Jr. and Warren. The Aggies, however, would flip the script in the final four minutes, holding the Matadors without a point as they went on a 7-0 run. TJ Shorts II made it a 26-23 game at the half with a late basket.

After intermission, the Matadors committed five turnovers in the first 3:19, allowing the Aggies to keep their run alive. The Aggies scored the first 11 points of the second half, capped off a layup from Garrison Goode. Going back to the first half, UC Davis scored 18-straight points, flipping a 10-point deficit into an eight-point lead.

The Matadors battled back within five points (36-31) on a 3-pointer from Warren, but the Aggies orchestrated an 8-2 run to take a 44-33 lead with 11:58 left to play.

Looking up at a double-digit deficit, the Matadors showed little quit down the stretch. The Matadors scored five-straight points to trim the lead to 51-45 following a traditional 3-point play from Gomez. After Shorts II pushed the lead back to 55-47, Warren scored five consecutive points, capped off by a 3-point play of his own. Warren brought the Matadors within three (57-54) with 1:43 left to play but the Aggies went back up by five on a score from AJ John.

CSUN had several opportunities to make it a one-possession game but would be unable to convert. In a wild sequence, Gomez missed a layup but Warren forced a turnover leading to another missed shot from Dawson. Undeterred, Dawson grabbed the rebound and found Gomez open in the corner but the freshman's 3-pointer was just short. The Aggies would hit their free throws down the stretch to hold off the Matadors.

For the Aggies, Shorts II finished with a team-high 16 points while Chima Moneke posted 15 points and 13 rebounds.

The Matadors return home Saturday to take on Long Beach State for the second time this season. Tip off from The Matadome is slated for 7 p.m. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister will be on the call on the CSUN Sports Network presented by Dignity Health.

Matadors Drop Hard-Fought Battle at UC Davis

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Team Stats

Micheal Warren

Tavrion Dawson

Terrell Gomez

Kaba-Camara Mahamad

Players Mentioned

Tavrion Dawson

Terrell Gomez

Jonathan Guevara

Mahamadou Kaba-Camara

Reggie Theus Jr.

Micheal Warren