CSUN Hosts UC Davis, Visits Fullerton in Key Big West Matchups

FULL GAME NOTES

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball opens this week's action at home on Thursday against UC Davis at 7 p.m. The Matadors then hit the road to face Cal State Fullerton on Saturday night at 6 p.m. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+ while Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister are on the call at GoMatadors.com/Radio.

ABOUT LAST WEEK
CSUN began last week with its fourth win in a row with a wire-to-wire 76-71 triumph over Cal State Bakersfield on the road. Dionte Bostick scored a season-high 27 points to go with four steals while De'Sean Allen-Eikens had 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting. The Matadors led by as many as 13 points before holding off the Roadrunners down the stretch. CSUN shot over 57 percent from the field and held CSUB to 36 percent shooting for the night.

The Matadors would have their win streak snapped against Long Beach State at home last Saturday, 87-73. CSUN led for the entire first half and took a slim 36-35 lead into halftime. However, the Beach took control in the second half, outscoring the Matadors 52-37. Allen-Eikens had a team-high 21 points while Bostick added 18 points and Bryan Ndjonga tied a season-high with 11 points.

BIG PICTURE
With five games remaining in the regular season, CSUN (17-10, 8-7 Big West) is looking to clinch a spot and a possible first-round bye at the 2024 Big West Championship, which begins on March 13. The top eight seeds advance to the conference tournament while the top four secure a bye in the quarterfinal round and the top two earn a double bye into the semifinals. The Matadors hold the No. 4 seed in the tournament race with an 8-7 league record. CSUN is two games back of the No. 2 seed, currently occupied by UC Davis, and one game ahead of the No. 5 seed, held by UC Santa Barbara, Hawai'i and UC Riverside. At the moment, CSUN's magic number to punch its ticket to the Big West Championship is three.

CSUN has already posted its most wins in 10 seasons and its most conference wins in four seasons. The team is inching closer to 20 wins, a benchmark only achieved three times in its Division I history and not since 2007-08. Earlier this season, CSUN won seven-straight games and tied the school D-1 record for consecutive wins, which was first achieved by the 2000-01 team.

THEIR BREAD BUTTER
Andy Newman has instituted a focus on rebounding and defense in his first season as head coach. As a result, CSUN has vaulted near the top in several rebounding and defensive categories in The Big West. The Matadors lead the conference in rebounds per game (40.6), defensive rebounds per game (28.7) and rebounding margin (+6.7) while nationally, CSUN is 12th in all of Division I in overall rebounds per game. CSUN has out-rebounded its opponents in 19 of 27 games on the year while going 15-4 in those 19 games. On the defensive side, CSUN is first in the conference and 18th nationally in opponent field goal percentage (40.0) while CSUN is third in The Big West in defensive 3-point field goal percentage (31.9). The Matadors are also second in the conference in steals per game (7.8). Overall, the Matadors have held opponents under 40 percent shooting in 15 games.

BIG WEST LEADERBOARDS
De'Sean Allen-Eikens enters the week third in The Big West in scoring at a career-high 18.3 points while he ranks ninth in field goal percentage (49.4) and 14th in rebounds per game (5.3). Dionte Bostick is ranked 10th in points per game at 15.0 points and tied for fifth with Keonte Jones in steals per game at 1.7. Jones is CSUN's leader in rebounding this season as he is third in the conference in th category (7.0) while he is ranked third in blocks per game (1.4) and sixth in field goal percentage (54.6). As a team, the Matadors are third in points per game (76.4), field goal percentage (46.2) and assists per game (13.9).

SCOUTING UC DAVIS
The Aggies come in with a 15-11 overall record and 10-5 conference mark. UC Davis holds a half-game edge on Long Beach State for the No. 2 seed in The Big West Championship race. In last week's action, the Aggies fell at home to Long Beach State (78-74) and UC Riverside (67-61). Elijah Pepper leads the conference in scoring at 21.1 points per game while Ty Johnson is seventh at 16.8 points. Johnson (1.9) and Pepper (1.8) are also first and second, respectively, in the conference in steals per game. Niko Rocak tops the squad in rebounds per game (5.5). The Aggies are 5-5 on the road this season. As a team, the Aggies are second in The Big West in fewest points per game allowed (67.8).

Series History: UC Davis leads CSUN 30-21 in the all-time series with wins in six-straight games. The Aggies prevailed 95-75 over the Matadors in the teams' first meeting in Davis on Jan. 11. CSUN's last win in the series was on Feb. 5, 2021 in an 80-77 victory at home.

SCOUTING CAL STATE FULLERTON
The Titans are 11-15 overall and 4-10 in conference action. Fullerton holds the ninth spot in The Big West, but the team is just one-half game back of the top eight. Last week, Fullerton dropped an 81-73 decision to UC Riverside and a 76-69 game to UC San Diego. Max Jones is ranked ninth in the conference in scoring at 15.3 points per game. DJ Brewton is second on the team in scoring at 14.9 points while he tops the team in rebounds per game (4.7) and assists per game (2.3). The Titans hold an even 5-5 record at home on the year.

Series History: Fullerton leads the all-time series 51-38, but the Matadors have won the last two meetings, both played at CSUN. Earlier this season, the Matadors prevailed 76-71 at Premier America Credit Union Arena. CSUN looks to snap a three-game skid at Titan Gym.

#GoMatadors

CSUN Hosts UC Davis, Visits Fullerton in Key Big West Matchups

Next Event

Players Mentioned

De'Sean Allen-Eikens

Dionte Bostick

Keonte Jones

Bryan Ndjonga