Saturday, November 28
Las Vegas, Nev.
1:00 pm
California State University at Northridge
vs
Air Force
Photo by: Braden Villanueva
CSUN Takes on Air Force, Seattle U in Las Vegas
11/27/2020 9:15:00 AM | Men's Basketball
FULL GAME NOTES
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball (1-0) hits the road for the first time this season to compete in the Men's Vegas Bubble in Las Vegas, Nev. The Matadors square off with Air Force on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. before taking on Seattle University on Monday at 2 p.m. Fans can watch both games on FloHoops with a paid subscription. Audio only broadcasts will also be available at GoMatadors.com/Radio with Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister on the call for each game.
The combination of senior Lance Coleman II and freshman Alex Merkviladze led the way offensively for the Matadors, scoring 42 combined points in a 97-79 season-opening win over NAIA Westmont on Wednesday. Coleman II scored a career-high 22 points, all of which in the first half, and dished out a personal-best five assists in the victory. Merkviladze, in his CSUN debut, recorded a double-double by posting 20 points and 12 rebounds. After Coleman II's hot scoring first half, Merkviladze shouldered the load offensively in the second half with 14 points. CSUN broke open a slim lead near the midway point of the first half and never looked back as it led by as many as 33 points in the second half.
A total of eight Matadors made their CSUN debut in the win over the Warriors. Junior transfer TJ Starks knocked down 3-of-6 from 3-point range and finished with 11 points to go with four assists. Off the bench, freshmen Fidelis Okereke (seven points), Atin Wright (seven points) and Amound Anderson (six points) combined for 20 points in their collegiate debuts. Freshmen Kailen Rains, Marcel Stevens and Matt Solomon also gained minutes late in the second half.
Matador mainstays also contributed in the win as junior Darius Brown II had eight assists and added six points while sophomore Festus Ndumanya had seven points as he started at center. In 20 minutes, junior Ron Artest III grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and tallied six points. Sophomore Brendan Harrick also chipped in with five points in 12 minutes.
Brown II took over sole possession of eighth place on the Matadors' all-time career assist list on Wednesday. He previously was tied with Tre Hale-Edmerson (2012-16) at 303 assists to start the season. Brown II now stands at 311 career assists and is just four away from tying former Division II standout Troy Dueker (1984-88) for seventh on the list.
CSUN faces Air Force for just the second time in team history on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons handed the Matadors a 72-63 defeat in the programs' only ever meeting in Dec. 2010, which took place at the Air Force Academy. Rashaun McLemore paced the Matadors in that game with 18 points while Lenny Daniel recorded 16 points and 15 rebounds in defeat.
Seattle U leads the all-time series with CSUN 5-2 and has won the last five meetings, dating back to 2010. The teams last faced off in Nov. 2014 with the Redhawks prevailing in Seattle, 70-58. Ajon Efferson had a team-high 11 points for CSUN in the last meeting. CSUN's last win over Seattle U took place at The Matadome in Jan. 2010.
A Closer Look at Air Force
The Falcons are opening up their 2020-21 season against the Matadors on Saturday after their game against Denver was postponed due to a positive COVID-19 case. Air Force went 12-20 last season and 5-13 in the Mountain West Conference for a ninth-place finish in the league. The team has returned nine letterwinners from last year's roster but only one starter, A.J. Walker. Head coach Joe Scott is in his second stint with the team and returns after previously leading the program from 2001-04.
Walker led the Falcons in assists with 98 last season and averaged 11.1 points per game, which was third-best on the team. He also shot 40.3 percent from beyond the arc. Other key returners on the team include seniors Chris Joyce (6.6 points per game) and Keaton Van Soelen (3.5 points per game and 3.1 rebounds per game).
A Closer Look at Seattle U
The Redhawks opened the season with a road win at Portland on Wednesday, 84-72. Seattle U went 14-15 last season and 7-7 in the Mountain West Conference, finishing tied for fifth place. The team was selected to finish fifth in the WAC this season while junior forward Riley Grigsby earned Preseason All-WAC Second Team honors. Jim Hayford has entered his fourth season as the head coach of the Redhawks.
The team's lone returning starter, Grigsby, scored 28 points to lead Seattle U to a win over Portland. Last season, he averaged 9.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Newcomer Darrion Trammell scored 17 points and added nine assists in the season-opening win while Emeka Udenyi tallied 12 points in his Redhawk debut. The team has four returning letterwinners on the roster as well as 11 newcomers including former Matador Jared Pearre (2018-20) who joined as a graduate transfer.
#UniteTheValley
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NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball (1-0) hits the road for the first time this season to compete in the Men's Vegas Bubble in Las Vegas, Nev. The Matadors square off with Air Force on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. before taking on Seattle University on Monday at 2 p.m. Fans can watch both games on FloHoops with a paid subscription. Audio only broadcasts will also be available at GoMatadors.com/Radio with Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister on the call for each game.
The combination of senior Lance Coleman II and freshman Alex Merkviladze led the way offensively for the Matadors, scoring 42 combined points in a 97-79 season-opening win over NAIA Westmont on Wednesday. Coleman II scored a career-high 22 points, all of which in the first half, and dished out a personal-best five assists in the victory. Merkviladze, in his CSUN debut, recorded a double-double by posting 20 points and 12 rebounds. After Coleman II's hot scoring first half, Merkviladze shouldered the load offensively in the second half with 14 points. CSUN broke open a slim lead near the midway point of the first half and never looked back as it led by as many as 33 points in the second half.
A total of eight Matadors made their CSUN debut in the win over the Warriors. Junior transfer TJ Starks knocked down 3-of-6 from 3-point range and finished with 11 points to go with four assists. Off the bench, freshmen Fidelis Okereke (seven points), Atin Wright (seven points) and Amound Anderson (six points) combined for 20 points in their collegiate debuts. Freshmen Kailen Rains, Marcel Stevens and Matt Solomon also gained minutes late in the second half.
Matador mainstays also contributed in the win as junior Darius Brown II had eight assists and added six points while sophomore Festus Ndumanya had seven points as he started at center. In 20 minutes, junior Ron Artest III grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and tallied six points. Sophomore Brendan Harrick also chipped in with five points in 12 minutes.
Brown II took over sole possession of eighth place on the Matadors' all-time career assist list on Wednesday. He previously was tied with Tre Hale-Edmerson (2012-16) at 303 assists to start the season. Brown II now stands at 311 career assists and is just four away from tying former Division II standout Troy Dueker (1984-88) for seventh on the list.
CSUN faces Air Force for just the second time in team history on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons handed the Matadors a 72-63 defeat in the programs' only ever meeting in Dec. 2010, which took place at the Air Force Academy. Rashaun McLemore paced the Matadors in that game with 18 points while Lenny Daniel recorded 16 points and 15 rebounds in defeat.
Seattle U leads the all-time series with CSUN 5-2 and has won the last five meetings, dating back to 2010. The teams last faced off in Nov. 2014 with the Redhawks prevailing in Seattle, 70-58. Ajon Efferson had a team-high 11 points for CSUN in the last meeting. CSUN's last win over Seattle U took place at The Matadome in Jan. 2010.
A Closer Look at Air Force
The Falcons are opening up their 2020-21 season against the Matadors on Saturday after their game against Denver was postponed due to a positive COVID-19 case. Air Force went 12-20 last season and 5-13 in the Mountain West Conference for a ninth-place finish in the league. The team has returned nine letterwinners from last year's roster but only one starter, A.J. Walker. Head coach Joe Scott is in his second stint with the team and returns after previously leading the program from 2001-04.
Walker led the Falcons in assists with 98 last season and averaged 11.1 points per game, which was third-best on the team. He also shot 40.3 percent from beyond the arc. Other key returners on the team include seniors Chris Joyce (6.6 points per game) and Keaton Van Soelen (3.5 points per game and 3.1 rebounds per game).
A Closer Look at Seattle U
The Redhawks opened the season with a road win at Portland on Wednesday, 84-72. Seattle U went 14-15 last season and 7-7 in the Mountain West Conference, finishing tied for fifth place. The team was selected to finish fifth in the WAC this season while junior forward Riley Grigsby earned Preseason All-WAC Second Team honors. Jim Hayford has entered his fourth season as the head coach of the Redhawks.
The team's lone returning starter, Grigsby, scored 28 points to lead Seattle U to a win over Portland. Last season, he averaged 9.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Newcomer Darrion Trammell scored 17 points and added nine assists in the season-opening win while Emeka Udenyi tallied 12 points in his Redhawk debut. The team has four returning letterwinners on the roster as well as 11 newcomers including former Matador Jared Pearre (2018-20) who joined as a graduate transfer.
#UniteTheValley
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