Matadors Host Long Beach State on ESPN3

FULL GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball (8-12, 2-2 BWC) returns to action on Wednesday evening as the Matadors host Long Beach State on ESPN3 at 7 p.m. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister will also be on the call in an audio broadcast on the CSUN Sports Network presented by Dignity Health at 6:50 p.m.

The Matadors suffered a heartbreaking home loss last Saturday to UC Irvine, 74-68. CSUN led 47-31 at the half but could not hold on to the lead down the stretch. The Matadors, who shot 63.3 percent from the field in the first half, went cold in the second half, giving the Anteaters a chance to fight back. UCI would out-rebound CSUN 51-30 and collect 36 second-chance points. The Anteaters went on a 14-3 run to end the game, capitalizing on a six-minute CSUN scoring drought.

Sophomore Terrell Gomez collected 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting while freshman Lamine Diane poured in 21 points, nine rebounds, four assists, four blocks and two steals. Junior Rodney Henderson Jr. added 18 points for the Matadors who dropped their second-straight game.

Nearly collecting another double-double against the Anteaters, Diane is ranked seventh in the nation in rebounds per game (11.3) and ninth in points per game (23.9). The 6-foot-7 freshman is also first in the country in field goals made (188), second in field goal attempts (391), seventh in double-doubles (11) and 19th in blocked shots per game (2.4). Diane leads the Big West in points per game, rebounds per game and blocked shots per game while he is ranked third in steals per game (1.6).

With another five 3-pointers last Saturday, Gomez is now second in the nation in 3-point field goals made with 75. Fourth in the Big West in 3-point percentage (44.6), Gomez is rapidly climbing the Matadors' all-time season and career Top 10 lists in treys. His 75 are the fourth-most in Matador history for a single season and just 23 short of the record set by Kyle Kerlegan (98) in 1990-91. On the career leaderboard, Gomez is tied with Carl Holmes (1997-01) for sixth in school history with 140 3-pointers. Up next, Gomez would move into fifth place on the career list, currently occupied by Brian Heinle (1997-01), with nine more 3-pointers.

Long Beach State leads the all-time series with CSUN, 41-24. The Beach swept the season series last season including edging the Matadors 70-66 at The Matadome. Gomez scored a then career-high 24 points with six 3-pointers at the Pyramid last season. Three of the last four games at The Matadome have gone Long Beach State's way but the Matadors picked up a win two seasons ago, 108-98.

A Closer Look at Long Beach State
The Beach (8-11) is 2-1 in Big West play this season. On Wednesday, Long Beach State earned its first road win of the year by defeating UC Irvine 80-70 but fell to Cal State Fullerton 92-90 in overtime last Saturday. Head coach Dan Monson is in his 12th season at Long Beach State. Wednesday's game with the Matadors brings former head coach Bobby Braswell back to The Matadome. Braswell, who in his first season as an assistant coach at LBSU, coached the Matadors for 17 seasons from 1996-2013.

Fifth in the Big West in scoring, senior Deishuan Booker is averaging 17.0 points with 4.6 assists. Booker is second in the nation in free throws made (126). Senior Temidayo Yussuf is tops on the team in rebounds per game (7.2) to go with 12.9 points. Also scoring in double figures, senior Bryan Alberts is averaging 11.2 points. As a team, LBSU is first in the Big West in steals per game (7.3) and third in points per game (76.1).

Matadors Host Long Beach State on ESPN3

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Players Mentioned

Lamine Diane

Terrell Gomez

Rodney Henderson Jr.