CSUN Completes Road Trip at Montana State

GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball completes a four-game road trip with a Saturday afternoon matchup with Montana State. Tip off is slated for 12 p.m. PT on ESPN+ while an audio broadcast will be available at GoMatadors.com/Radio with Ghizal Hasan on the call.

FOR STARTERS
CSUN wraps up the first month of the season as well as its stay in Montana on Saturday. The Matadors finished 2-1 at Montana's Stew Morrill Classic to improve to 5-2 on the season. That records matches the 5-2 start the team posted last season. Prior to Wednesday's loss to Montana, CSUN had registered its best six-game start to a season at 5-1 since the 2012-13 campaign. After CSUN faces Montana State on Saturday, the Matadors return to Northridge to prepare for their BIg West opener against UC Riverside on Thursday, Dec. 5 at Premier America Credit Union Arena.

CSUN FINISHES RUNNER-UP AT STEW MORRILL CLASSIC
The Matadors completed the Stew Morrill Classic in Missoula, Montana on Wednesday, finishing 2-1 overall. CSUN collected victories over Utah Tech (79-69) and Denver (89-60) but fell in the championship game to host Montana 83-75. The duo of Marcus Adams Jr. and Keonte Jones were named to the All-Tournament Team.

In the first game against Utah Tech last Sunday, the Matadors rallied from a 13-point second-half deficit, ultimately outscoring the Trailblazers 49-29 in the second half. Adams kept up his explosive offensive performances with a team-high 25 points while Jones added 23 points, nine rebounds and three blocks and Scotty Washington chipped in with 19 points. CSUN kept up its winning ways with a Monday 29-point victory over Denver after leading from nearly start to finish. Adams again led the way with 19 points and 11 rebounds against the Pioneers followed by Jones with 17 points and PJ Fuller II with 10 points.

The Matadors played Montana in the championship game of the Stew Morrill Classic on Wednesday. CSUN kept pace with Montana for most of the game, but the Grizzlies took control in the second half. The Matadors struggled from the field in the first half, shooting just 29.7 percent before catching fire late in the game. After digging a 15-point deficit, CSUN battled back to within eight in the final minute but ran out of time. Adams again topped CSUN in scoring with 17 points while Jones posted 15 points and 12 rebounds followed by Fuller with 12 points.

LEADING THE BIG WEST
CSUN tops the Big West in scoring heading into Saturday's game, averaging 83.3 points per game. The Matadors also rank second in the conference in field goal percentage (48.6) and assists per game (16.1). On the defensive side, CSUN is leading the conference in opponent field goal percentage (36.5) and rank second in blocks per game (3.9). The team also shares the Big West lead with UC Irvine in rebounds per game at 41.0.

KEONTE FILLING UP THE STAT SHEET
Senior forward Keonte Jones tops the Matadors in multiple categories through seven games including points per game (16.3), rebounds per game (8.9), assists per game (3.6), blocks per game (2.0) and steals per game (2.1). Jones' fantastic start to the season has him ranked first in the conference in blocks, second in rebounds, fourth in steals and seventh in points. He is also shooting 53.8 percent from the field as well as 66.7 percent from long range (6-of-9).

NEWCOMERS MAKING AN IMPACT
CSUN has turned to a host of newcomers this season with many already making a significant impact. Off the bench, sophomore Marcus Adams Jr. is second on the team and 10th in the Big West in scoring average at 15.3 points while he is ranked second on the squad in rebounding (5.4). Junior Scotty Washington is also scoring in double figures, totaling 13.6 points per game to go with shooting 40.0 percent from 3-point range and 80.0 percent at the free throw line. In the assists department, senior Tyler Beard is ranked eighth in the Big West in assists per game (3.1) followed by senior PJ Fuller (3.0). Junior Grady Lewis has also been a key contributor, averaging 7.0 points on 69.0 percent shooting in the early going.

SCOUTING MONTANA STATE
The Bobcats are 3-4 on the season after back-to-back wins at the Basketball Travelers Invitational over Southern Miss (79-59) and Abilene Christian (85-59). Montana State sports a perfect 3-0 record at home on the year. A season ago, Montana State went 17-18 and won the Big Sky Tournament to clinch an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament for a third consecutive season. Prior to the season, Montana State was picked to win the Big Sky in the media poll while it was second in the coaches' poll. Brandon Walker, a Preseason All-Big Sky selection, tops the Bobcats in scoring at 14.1 per game and rebounding at 5.4 per game. Other double digit scorers include Jabe Mullins (10.3) and Max Agbonkpolo (10.1). As a team, Montana State is scoring 77.1 points per game and making 10.3 shots from 3-point range each game.

Series History: CSUN leads Montana State 12-7 in the all-time series after picking up an 82-70 victory over the Bobcats last December with De'Sean Allen-Eikens pouring in 23 points. The Matadors are making their first trip to Bozeman to take on Montana State since the Nov. 26, 2013 when the Bobcats prevailed 77-62.

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CSUN Completes Road Trip at Montana State

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Players Mentioned

Marcus Adams Jr.

De'Sean Allen-Eikens

Tyler Beard

PJ Fuller II

Keonte Jones

Grady Lewis

Scotty Washington