Matadors Fall at New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.---CSUN Men's Basketball suffered a 97-70 setback at New Mexico on Saturday night at Dreamstyle Arena. Junior Lance Coleman II scored a game-high 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting while junior Terrell Gomez added 14 points and three assists. After a back-and-forth first half, the Lobos pulled away in the second half, outscoring the Matadors by 16 points.

New Mexico enjoyed hot shooting throughout the night, finishing 60.0 percent from the floor including 6-of-16 from 3-point range (37.5 percent). The Matadors shot 44.4 percent and knocked down 8-of-23 from downtown (34.8 percent). The Lobos out-rebounded CSUN 36-30 while points in the paint also went New Mexico's way at 56-24.

FIRST HALF
The first half featured six lead changes and three ties despite 36.4 percent shooting from the Matadors. The Lobos started quickly, making their first five field goals to stake to an 11-3 lead. The Matadors though weathered the storm and received a pair of shots from Coleman II followed by two-straight Rodney Henderson Jr. 3-pointers to trim the deficit to one. Festus Ndumanya would throw down a putback to cap an 8-0 run for CSUN and a 15-14 lead at the 14:11 mark.

Moments later, Elijah Harkless gave the Matadors a 26-25 lead with just over the nine to play. However, CSUN went cold from the field over the final eight minutes of the half leading to a Lobo 13-1 run. Corey Manigault threw down a dunk to give New Mexico its biggest lead at 14 points but Coleman II finally ended the scoring drought with a last-second 3-pointer to make it a 43-32 game at the break. Jaquan Lyle scored 11 of his team-high 18 points in the first half.

SECOND HALF
Coleman II and Gomez kept the Matadors within striking distance early on in the second half with jumpers. Ndumanya scored off an offensive rebound inside that brought CSUN within 51-39 at the 16:37 mark. The Lobos though continued to find success going to the hoop as four-straight layups immediately ballooned the lead 62-43. Zane Martin converted on a 3-point play for the Lobos to push the lead to 21 points at the 10:12 mark (69-48).

Brendan Harrick came off the bench and gave the Matadors solid minutes down the stretch of the second half. After the lead swelled to 26, Harrick knocked down a long two-pointer. Harrick scored again on a drive to the basket and Gomez followed with a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession but the Matadors would not get any closer than 85-64. New Mexico led by as many as 29 points in the final minutes.

GAME NOTES
Sophomore Darius Brown II just missed a double-double, finishing with nine points and nine assists. Off the bench, Henderson Jr., Harrick and Pearre scored six points apiece.

For the Lobos, five players scored in double figures. Carlton Bragg and Manigault had 17 points apiece while Martin had 13 and Keith McGee scored 10.

ACCORDING TO HEAD MARK GOTTFRIED
In the first half, our defensive transition and our foul shooting hurt us. But we were still down 11 and a few possessions away from being right there. In the second half, it kind of broke down a little bit. Without Lamine Diane, we're struggling to score right now but I also thought [New Mexico] did a really good job. They have a nice team - they added a couple good players that weren't there last year. They've got some experience and they're a lot older than us. I thought they played really well."

UP NEXT
CSUN returns to The Matadome for its home opener on Tuesday night. The Matadors face visiting Pepperdine at 7 p.m.

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Team Stats

Lance Coleman II

Terrell Gomez

Darius Brown II

Jared Pearre

Players Mentioned

Darius Brown II

Lance Coleman II

Lamine Diane

Terrell Gomez

Elijah Harkless

Brendan Harrick

Rodney Henderson Jr.

Festus Ndumanya