California State University Northridge Athletics
Team Stats
RID
CSUN
FG%
.473
.559
3FG%
.316
.450
FT%
.786
.500
RB
29
31
TO
6
9
STL
5
2
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned

Photo by: Paul Trafecanty
Matadors Pull Out 81-80 Win Over Rider
12/23/2018 4:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
LAS VEGAS, Nev.---Freshman Darius Brown II hit two free throws with 10 seconds left to lift CSUN Men's Basketball (5-8) to an 81-80 win over Rider on Sunday afternoon at the Continental Tire Las Vegas Classic. Four Matadors scored in double figures led by freshman Lamine Diane who tallied 24 points and nine rebounds while sophomore Terrell Gomez had 21 points, Rodney Henderson Jr. had 16 and graduate Cameron Gottfried chipped in with 10 points and nine boards.
The Matadors won both games in Las Vegas this weekend to win the Upper Division Las Vegas Classic as Diane earned MVP and All-Tournament honors.
"I think we're getting better, that's the most important thing," said head coach Mark Gottfried. "You go back to those first couple games and we feel like we've given a couple away but what we saw today was we learned from our mistakes. We had to try to win the game with our defense and we had a lot of different things happen offensively very well. Today, we looked like a basketball team to me. We were solid, we attacked their zone and we attacked their man [to man defense]. They made a couple runs at us and we had three guys foul out of the game and still figured out a way to come out winning."
CSUN shot 55.9 percent for the game and 45.0 percent from 3-point range (9-of-20) while Rider posted a 47.3 shooting percentage and 31.6 clip from beyond the arc (6-of-19). The Matadors out-rebounded the Broncs 31-29 and earned a 16-11 edge in assists.
After an even first few minutes of the first half, the Matadors would go on an 11-2 run, capped off by a 3-pointer from Henderson Jr., to go up 23-12. Â CSUN though would go scoreless for nearly three minutes, giving Rider a chance to rally back. A layup from Frederick Scott brought Rider within 29-27 with a little over four minutes on the clock.
Â
Led by 11 first-half points from Diane, the Matadors would remain in front for the remainder of the period. Diane scored off a put-back to push the lead to four, and Gottfried later knocked down a mid-range jumper at the 2:58 mark. CSUN would take a 41-33 lead at the half following an exciting sequence in the final seconds. After a defensive stop, Diane found Gomez in transition for a 3-pointer as time expired.
Gomez stretched the lead back to double digits on a 3-pointer after intermission but CSUN again would struggle from the field for a three-minute stretch. Rider took advantage and went on a 12-3 run to pull within 47-45. From there, the teams would trade leads down the stretch of the second half. Rider went up 65-61 with 7:39 left to play before the Matadors scored five-straight points including a key game-tying 3-pointer from Brown. Moments later, Gomez knocked down a trey at the 4:18 mark to put CSUN on top 72-70.
CSUN went on an 8-0 run to capture a 77-70 lead before Rider answered back with a 9-2 run to even the game. Moments later, Diane was whistled for his fifth foul, which gave Scott a chance to hit a go-ahead free throw with 16 seconds on the clock. On the ensuing CSUN possession, Brown tried to move along the right sideline but was fouled, giving him two free throws. Brown calmly hit the tying and go-ahead free throws to put CSUN ahead 81-80.
Needing one last stop, the Matadors' defense held firm as Jared Pearre blocked a jumper from Jordan Allen. Tyere Marshall picked up the loose ball but missed the final shot as time expired.
Brown finished with eight points to go with four assists while his backcourt mate Gomez also had four assists and knocked down 5-of-10 from 3-point range.
For Rider, Scott finished with 21 points and seven rebounds.
The Matadors will have six days off before hosting Morgan State on Saturday, Dec. 29 at The Matadome. Tip off is slated for 7 p.m.
Â
The Matadors won both games in Las Vegas this weekend to win the Upper Division Las Vegas Classic as Diane earned MVP and All-Tournament honors.
"I think we're getting better, that's the most important thing," said head coach Mark Gottfried. "You go back to those first couple games and we feel like we've given a couple away but what we saw today was we learned from our mistakes. We had to try to win the game with our defense and we had a lot of different things happen offensively very well. Today, we looked like a basketball team to me. We were solid, we attacked their zone and we attacked their man [to man defense]. They made a couple runs at us and we had three guys foul out of the game and still figured out a way to come out winning."
CSUN shot 55.9 percent for the game and 45.0 percent from 3-point range (9-of-20) while Rider posted a 47.3 shooting percentage and 31.6 clip from beyond the arc (6-of-19). The Matadors out-rebounded the Broncs 31-29 and earned a 16-11 edge in assists.
After an even first few minutes of the first half, the Matadors would go on an 11-2 run, capped off by a 3-pointer from Henderson Jr., to go up 23-12. Â CSUN though would go scoreless for nearly three minutes, giving Rider a chance to rally back. A layup from Frederick Scott brought Rider within 29-27 with a little over four minutes on the clock.
Â
Led by 11 first-half points from Diane, the Matadors would remain in front for the remainder of the period. Diane scored off a put-back to push the lead to four, and Gottfried later knocked down a mid-range jumper at the 2:58 mark. CSUN would take a 41-33 lead at the half following an exciting sequence in the final seconds. After a defensive stop, Diane found Gomez in transition for a 3-pointer as time expired.
Gomez stretched the lead back to double digits on a 3-pointer after intermission but CSUN again would struggle from the field for a three-minute stretch. Rider took advantage and went on a 12-3 run to pull within 47-45. From there, the teams would trade leads down the stretch of the second half. Rider went up 65-61 with 7:39 left to play before the Matadors scored five-straight points including a key game-tying 3-pointer from Brown. Moments later, Gomez knocked down a trey at the 4:18 mark to put CSUN on top 72-70.
CSUN went on an 8-0 run to capture a 77-70 lead before Rider answered back with a 9-2 run to even the game. Moments later, Diane was whistled for his fifth foul, which gave Scott a chance to hit a go-ahead free throw with 16 seconds on the clock. On the ensuing CSUN possession, Brown tried to move along the right sideline but was fouled, giving him two free throws. Brown calmly hit the tying and go-ahead free throws to put CSUN ahead 81-80.
Needing one last stop, the Matadors' defense held firm as Jared Pearre blocked a jumper from Jordan Allen. Tyere Marshall picked up the loose ball but missed the final shot as time expired.
Brown finished with eight points to go with four assists while his backcourt mate Gomez also had four assists and knocked down 5-of-10 from 3-point range.
For Rider, Scott finished with 21 points and seven rebounds.
The Matadors will have six days off before hosting Morgan State on Saturday, Dec. 29 at The Matadome. Tip off is slated for 7 p.m.
Â
2026 CSUN Athletics Giving Day
Friday, February 13
2026 CSUN Men's Volleyball Hype Video
Saturday, January 24
2025 CSUN Women's Volleyball Hype Video
Thursday, December 11
2025-26 CSUN Men's Basketball Hype Video
Thursday, December 11












