CSUN Takes on Chicago State in Saturday Matinee

GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball opens a Saturday Matador doubleheader by facing Chicago State at 11 a.m. on ESPN+. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister have the call from Premier America Credit Union Arena. The men's game will precede the CSUN Women's Basketball team taking on Idaho in the afternoon game.

FOR STARTERS
CSUN wraps up the 2024 calendar year with its final two non-conference games before resuming Big West play to kick off 2025. After Saturday's game, the Matadors take a week off from competition before hosting La Sierra on Saturday, Dec. 28. The new year brings the return of conference play with the Matadors traveling to Cal State Fullerton on Jan. 2 before hosting UC Davis on Saturday, Jan. 4 in their Big West home opener.

LAST TIME OUT
The Matadors made the short drive to the Galen Center to take on USC last Wednesday. After a spirited first half where CSUN rallied from a double-digit deficit to take a late two-point lead, the Trojans hit a three to beat the halftime buzzer and went on to outscore the Matadors 50-30 in the second half en route to a 90-69 victory. USC posted an 8-0 run to open the second period before later registering a 16-4 run to break open the game. The Trojans would build their lead behind strong 3-point shooting, making 12-of-17 on the night. Keonte Jones registered a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds while PJ Fuller II recorded 17 points to go with 4-of-6 shooting from three.

KEONTE FILLING UP THE STAT SHEET
After notching his team-best sixth double-double of the season on Wednesday, senior Keonte Jones has moved into the team lead in scoring at 15.1 points per game. In fact, Jones is the team leader in several categories including rebounds per game (8.5), assists per game (3.9), blocks per game (2.0) and steals per game (2.0). Jones enters the weekend ranked tied for first in the Big West in blocks per game while he is second in rebounding, fourth in steals, fifth in assists and 10th in scoring. Nationally, Jones' double-double total ranks seventh-best in all of Division I basketball. Additionally, Jones is shooting an even 50.0 percent from the floor to go with a 50.0 percent efficiency from 3-point range (8-of-16).

ADAMS OFF THE BENCH
Marcus Adams Jr., a sophomore transfer from BYU, has made a splash in his first season with CSUN. Adams has come off the bench over the past 10 games and gone on to lead the team in scoring in six of those contests. On the season, Adams has averaged 14.2 points per game, good enough for second-best on the team and 12th-best in the Big West. His scoring average has come on 51.6 percent shooting while he has pulled down 4.9 rebounds per game. From deep, Adams has converted on the second-most treys with 17 on 37.0 percent. Adams is tied with Scotty Washington with a team-high three 20-point games on the year.

NEWCOMERS MAKING AN IMPACT
Many new faces on the team have already made a significant impact this season. Among the array of new faces is Scotty Washington who leads CSUN in 3-point field goals made with 18 on 37.5 percent shooting while he is third in scoring at 13.2 points per game. Senior PJ Fuller II is right behind in scoring, averaging 9.7 points to go with 3.1 assists per game. Other contributing newcomers include junior Grady Lewis who is averaging 6.7 points and 4.1 rebounds. Seniors Judson Martindale and Tyler Beard have helped shoulder the load offensively, averaging 4.9 points and 4.2 points, respectively.

CSUN'S CALLING CARD
Much like last season, CSUN's success has relied on its defense and rebounding thus far in 2024-25. The Matadors top the Big West in both opponent field goal percentage (38.2) and rebounds per game (40.9). Additionally, CSUN is second in rebounding margin (+8.1) and blocks per game (3.7). CSUN's defensive field goal percentage ranks 19th-best in the nation while the team is ranked 21st in defensive rebounds per game (28.6) and 31st in overall rebounds per game.

SCOUTING CHICAGO STATE
The Cougars are seeking their first win of the season on Saturday when they take on the Matadors. Chicago State is 0-13 on the campaign but has played a challenging schedule with 11 games away from home against the likes of Texas, Loyola Chicago, San Francisco, Indiana State and Wisconsin. CSU is coming off a 74-51 loss at Grand Canyon on Thursday. This season represents the first season playing in the Northeast Conference for Chicago State after playing the past two seasons as a Division I independent. As a team, the Cougars average 59.8 points per game while they rack up 7.5 steals per game. Jalen Forrest tops the Cougars in scoring at 9.3 points and in rebounds at 4.6. Other top scorers on the team include Noble Crawford (8.8) and Troy McKoy Jr. (8.1).

Series History: CSUN leads Chicago State 3-1 in the all-time series, which dates back to 1978. The Matadors claimed a 74-64 victory last season in Chicago, led by Dionte Bostick's 20 points while Keonte Jones had 13 points. CSUN has not hosted Chicago State since Nov. 10, 2007 when the Matadors prevailed 96-85.

#GoMatadors

CSUN Takes on Chicago State in Saturday Matinee

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Marcus Adams Jr.

Tyler Beard

Dionte Bostick

PJ Fuller II

Keonte Jones

Grady Lewis

Judson Martindale

Scotty Washington