CSUN Rallies from 23 Down to Defeat Hawai'i in OT

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---Behind a game-high 28 points from TJ Starks and a triple-double from Darius Brown II, CSUN Men's Basketball (8-9, 4-6 Big West) rallied to defeat Hawai'i (8-8, 6-8 Big West) 88-80 in overtime on Saturday afternoon at The Matadome. Brown II finished with 18 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and five steals while Starks scored 22 of his points after halftime. Freshmen Alex Merkviladze and Amound Anderson each tallied 16 points apiece. The Matadors trailed by as many as 23 points in the first half and by 15 points with 11 minutes to play in the second half before sending the game into overtime where they would outlast the Rainbow Warriors to earn a series split.

Brown II recorded just the second triple-double in Matador history on Saturday and the second in as many seasons. Elijah Harkless notched the first triple-double in CSUN history last season against NAIA Saint Katherine. Brown II is the first Matador to record a triple-double against a Division I opponent and a Big West Conference opponent. It was also the 13th triple-double in Big West history.

CSUN shot 44.4 percent from the field while making 13-of-32 from 3-point range (40.6). Hawai'i would shoot 40.6 percent and make 13-of-29 from 3-point range (44.8 percent). Both teams shot an identical 11-of-16 from the free throw line (68.8 percent). CSUN out-rebounded Hawai'i 46-41 while the Matadors edged the Rainbow Warriors in points in the paint, 30-28.

FIRST HALF
For the second-straight game, Hawai'i came out quickly and put the Matadors in a double-digit deficit. The Rainbow Warriors knocked down their first three shots from the 3-point line to stake to a 9-2 lead. Casdon Jardine would later extend the Hawai'i lead to 16-4 on a driving layup at the 14:45 mark of the half. After Atin Wright knocked down a 3-pointer, the Rainbow Warriors put together a 9-0 run to make it a 25-7 game. Brown II brought the Matadors closer after a layup but the Rainbow Warriors would have an answer. A Jardine 3-pointer and two free throws as well as a layup from James Jean-Marie put CSUN in a 37-14 hole with 6:23 on the clock.

Looking up at their biggest deficit of the game, the Matadors would flip the script in the closing minutes of the half. Three Matador freshmen, Anderson, Merkviladze and Fidelis Okereke combined to score 10 points in a CSUN 12-0 run. Mate Colina stopped the run for a moment but Brown II scored consecutive baskets in the final minute, including a buzzer-beater, to pull CSUN to within 39-32 at the break.

SECOND HALF
Out of the intermission, Brendan Harrick knocked down a 3-pointer to pull CSUN closer at 39-35. Hawai'i though responded with a 10-2 run as Biwali Bayles scored six of those points and Junior Madut added a 3-pointer. CSUN again kept chipping away at the lead, eventually cutting the deficit down to six only to see the Rainbow Warriors orchestrate a 14-5 run to push the lead back to 15 points (63-48) with 11:18 to play.

Starks would help lead the comeback in the closing minutes as 10 consecutive points along with five-straight points from Brown II capped a 15-4 spurt. After Noel Coleman drained a 3-pointer, Starks answered with a 3-pointer of his own on the ensuing possession. Starks later cut the lead down to 74-73 on a driving layup with 4:39 left to play. CSUN held Hawai'i to two points and zero field goals over the last six-plus minutes as the Matadors finally drew even on a driving layup from Brown II. Both sides missed shots in the final seconds as the game went into overtime deadlocked at 75-75.

OVERTIME
Brown II found Anderson for a 3-pointer on CSUN's first possession of extra time to give the Matadors their first lead of the game. After Hawai'i pulled to within one on a Jardine basket, Starks stretched the lead back to three on another drive to the hoop. Merviladze converted on two free throws followed by a free throw from Starks that put CSUN ahead 83-77. Starks would score back-to-back baskets near the final minute of overtime to put the game out of reach. In overtime, Starks scored seven points on 3-of-3 shooting as CSUN made 4-of-6 shots.

GAME NOTES
In addition to his triple-double, Brown II pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds in the game. He also moved into third place on the Matadors' all-time career assist list, ahead of Landon Drew (2012-16). With 394 career assists, Brown II is 88 assists shy of passing Andre Chevalier (1990-94) for second place on the list.

Anderson's 16 points and eight rebounds were season-highs for the freshman. Merkviladze added seven rebounds to his stat line. The trio of Starks, Anderson and Merkviladze each made three shots from 3-point range.

For Hawai'i, Jardine had a team-high 22 points.

ACCORDING TO HEAD COACH MARK GOTTFRIED
"I'm really, really proud of these guys. They battled. We were down 23 in the first half. They started the game and couldn't miss. Our guys hung in there and played really hard. Darius was spectacular in every phase, his rebounding and scoring. TJ was good, Amound, Alex, all of them played well. It was a gutsy win. I think these young guys grew up a little bit today."

UP NEXT
CSUN hits the road for the final time in the regular season as the Matadors take on CSU Bakersfield on Friday and Saturday. Both games will tip at 7 p.m. on ESPN3. Audio broadcasts of both games will stream at GoMatadors.com/Radio with Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister on the call.

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Team Stats

TJ Starks

Darius Brown II

Alex Merkviladze

Amound Anderson

Players Mentioned

Amound Anderson

Darius Brown II

Elijah Harkless

Brendan Harrick

Alex Merkviladze

Fidelis Okereke

TJ Starks

Atin Wright