Thursday, January 23
Northridge, Calif.
7:00 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
vs
Long Beach State
Photo by: Chuck Marvel
CSUN Returns Home to Host Long Beach State, Travels to UCSD This Week
1/22/2025 12:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
GAME NOTES
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball continues Big West action this Thursday when it hosts Long Beach State at 7 p.m. inside Premier America Credit Union Arena. The Matadors close the weekend with a road test at UC San Diego on Saturday at 7 p.m. Both games will be broadcast at ESPN+. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister have the call at GoMatadors.com/Radio for both games.
FOR STARTERS
CSUN enters the week at 12-6 overall and 4-3 in Big West play. The Matadors are currently in a four-way tie for fourth place in the Big West standings as UC Santa Barbara, Hawai'i and UC Riverside have identical 4-3 conference records. Just ahead of the Matadors, UC San Diego sits in second place at 5-2 in league while UC Davis is in third place at 5-3. UC Irvine remains the Big West leader at a perfect 7-0 conference record. After this week's games, CSUN travels to UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, Jan. 30 before hosting Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday, Feb. 1.
ABOUT LAST WEEK
CSUN snapped a two-game losing streak with an 83-60 road win at Hawai'i last Thursday. The Matadors handed the Bows their biggest loss of the season while they claimed their first win in Hawai'i since March 2, 2019. Scotty Washington had a game-high 24 points on 9-of-15 shooting while Marcus Adams Jr. poured in 18 points and PJ Fuller II had 12 points. Senior Keonte Jones also recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. After trailing by six early in the contest, CSUN turned the tables with a 13-2 run. The Matadors led 38-29 at halftime before putting together a 9-0 run in the early stages of the second half to build a big lead. Hawai'i cut the deficit from 22 to 12 with under seven minutes to play, but Washington scored 13 of the next 15 points to help put the game out of reach.
FILLING UP THE STAT SHEET
After posting his ninth double-double of season, senior Keonte Jones has moved into eighth place nationally in the category. Jones is also first in the Big West in rebounds per game (9.1) along with second in blocks per game (1.6), third in assists per game (3.9), fourth in steals per game (1.8) and ninth in field goal percentage (49.7). On the team, Jones is third in scoring at 13.1 points over a team-high 30.2 minutes per game. Over the past two seasons with CSUN, Jones has accumulated 79 total blocks, which rank fifth-best in school history.
MAKING AN IMPACT
Sophomore Marcus Adams Jr. has made a splash in his first season at CSUN, leading the team in scoring at 15.7 points per game. Adams has also topped CSUN in scoring eight times as he ranks ninth overall in the Big West in points per game. In addition, Adams is shooting 53.1 percent from the floor, good enough for sixth-best in the conference while he is shooting 40.2 percent from 3-point range with a team-high 33 makes from distance. Speaking of long range shooters, junior Scotty Washington is second behind Adams in scoring at 13.9 points, which ranks 11th in the Big West. Washington has also made the second-most threes on the team with 30 and averaged 3.1 rebounds. Another top newcomer this season, senior PJ Fuller II checks in at fifth in the Big West in assists to turnover ratio (1.6) and seven in assists per game (3.3) to go with scoring 9.1 points per game. Senior Mahmoud Fofana has enjoyed career-best marks this season as he averages 8.1 points per game and 4.8 rebounds per game while he leads the team in shooting average at 62.9 percent.
CSUN IN THE BIG WEST AND NATIONALLY
The Matadors remain the Big West leaders in scoring and rebounding heading into week. CSUN is averaging a conference-best 81.4 points per game and 16.1 assists per game while the Matadors are first in rebounds per game (40.8) and rebounding margin (+8.8). The team's other season marks in steals per game (8.3), opponent field goal percentage (38.8) and defensive rebounds per game (28.4) are each second-best in the Big West. Nationally, the Matadors are up to 12th in rebounding margin, 14th in defensive rebounds per game, 15th in overall rebounds per game and 16th in opponent field goal percentage.
SCOUTING LONG BEACH STATE
The Beach, last season's Big West tournament champion, come in with a 7-12 overall record with a 3-4 record in Big West play. In last week's action, the Beach suffered losses to UC San Diego (80-54) and Cal State Fullerton (83-67). On the season, the Beach are 4-4 in true road games this season with conference wins at Fullerton and UC Davis. As a team, the Beach average 66.9 points per game and rank third in the Big West in 3-point percentage (35.1). Devin Askew, the Beach's top scorer, ranks fifth in the Big West in points per game at 17.8 while he is tied for first in assists per game at 4.4. TJ Wainwright is also scoring in double figures at 12.4 points. Derrick Michael Xzavierro tops the team in rebounding at 6.0.
Series History: The Beach lead the Matadors 48-28 in the all-time series with wins in six of the last seven meetings. The teams split the season series last year with each side winning on the opponent's home court. CSUN has dropped three consecutive home meetings with its last win in Northridge coming on Jan. 8, 2020.
SCOUTING UC SAN DIEGO
The Tritons are an impressive 15-4 this season with a 5-2 league record. Last week, UCSD collected a road win at Long Beach State (80-54) before falling at UC Riverside (85-81). On the year, the Tritons are 6-2 at LionTree Arena with their only losses coming to Seattle U and UC Irvine. As a team, the Tritons are first in the Big West in fewest points per game allowed (62.8) and second in scoring average (80.3). The team has also made the second-most threes in the league with 193. Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones ranks third in the Big West in scoring (18.7) and fourth in field goal percentage (57.3) while teammate Tyler McGhie is fourth in the conference in 3-point percentage (40.2) and seventh in scoring (17.2). In steals, Hayden Gray paces the Big West at 3.6 per game, followed by Chris Howell in third place at 2.0.
Series History: UC San Diego is 6-2 against CSUN in the all-time series including a perfect 6-0 since joining the Big West. Last season, the Tritons posted two double-digit wins to sweep the season series.
#GoMatadors
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NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball continues Big West action this Thursday when it hosts Long Beach State at 7 p.m. inside Premier America Credit Union Arena. The Matadors close the weekend with a road test at UC San Diego on Saturday at 7 p.m. Both games will be broadcast at ESPN+. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister have the call at GoMatadors.com/Radio for both games.
FOR STARTERS
CSUN enters the week at 12-6 overall and 4-3 in Big West play. The Matadors are currently in a four-way tie for fourth place in the Big West standings as UC Santa Barbara, Hawai'i and UC Riverside have identical 4-3 conference records. Just ahead of the Matadors, UC San Diego sits in second place at 5-2 in league while UC Davis is in third place at 5-3. UC Irvine remains the Big West leader at a perfect 7-0 conference record. After this week's games, CSUN travels to UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, Jan. 30 before hosting Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday, Feb. 1.
ABOUT LAST WEEK
CSUN snapped a two-game losing streak with an 83-60 road win at Hawai'i last Thursday. The Matadors handed the Bows their biggest loss of the season while they claimed their first win in Hawai'i since March 2, 2019. Scotty Washington had a game-high 24 points on 9-of-15 shooting while Marcus Adams Jr. poured in 18 points and PJ Fuller II had 12 points. Senior Keonte Jones also recorded a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. After trailing by six early in the contest, CSUN turned the tables with a 13-2 run. The Matadors led 38-29 at halftime before putting together a 9-0 run in the early stages of the second half to build a big lead. Hawai'i cut the deficit from 22 to 12 with under seven minutes to play, but Washington scored 13 of the next 15 points to help put the game out of reach.
FILLING UP THE STAT SHEET
After posting his ninth double-double of season, senior Keonte Jones has moved into eighth place nationally in the category. Jones is also first in the Big West in rebounds per game (9.1) along with second in blocks per game (1.6), third in assists per game (3.9), fourth in steals per game (1.8) and ninth in field goal percentage (49.7). On the team, Jones is third in scoring at 13.1 points over a team-high 30.2 minutes per game. Over the past two seasons with CSUN, Jones has accumulated 79 total blocks, which rank fifth-best in school history.
MAKING AN IMPACT
Sophomore Marcus Adams Jr. has made a splash in his first season at CSUN, leading the team in scoring at 15.7 points per game. Adams has also topped CSUN in scoring eight times as he ranks ninth overall in the Big West in points per game. In addition, Adams is shooting 53.1 percent from the floor, good enough for sixth-best in the conference while he is shooting 40.2 percent from 3-point range with a team-high 33 makes from distance. Speaking of long range shooters, junior Scotty Washington is second behind Adams in scoring at 13.9 points, which ranks 11th in the Big West. Washington has also made the second-most threes on the team with 30 and averaged 3.1 rebounds. Another top newcomer this season, senior PJ Fuller II checks in at fifth in the Big West in assists to turnover ratio (1.6) and seven in assists per game (3.3) to go with scoring 9.1 points per game. Senior Mahmoud Fofana has enjoyed career-best marks this season as he averages 8.1 points per game and 4.8 rebounds per game while he leads the team in shooting average at 62.9 percent.
CSUN IN THE BIG WEST AND NATIONALLY
The Matadors remain the Big West leaders in scoring and rebounding heading into week. CSUN is averaging a conference-best 81.4 points per game and 16.1 assists per game while the Matadors are first in rebounds per game (40.8) and rebounding margin (+8.8). The team's other season marks in steals per game (8.3), opponent field goal percentage (38.8) and defensive rebounds per game (28.4) are each second-best in the Big West. Nationally, the Matadors are up to 12th in rebounding margin, 14th in defensive rebounds per game, 15th in overall rebounds per game and 16th in opponent field goal percentage.
SCOUTING LONG BEACH STATE
The Beach, last season's Big West tournament champion, come in with a 7-12 overall record with a 3-4 record in Big West play. In last week's action, the Beach suffered losses to UC San Diego (80-54) and Cal State Fullerton (83-67). On the season, the Beach are 4-4 in true road games this season with conference wins at Fullerton and UC Davis. As a team, the Beach average 66.9 points per game and rank third in the Big West in 3-point percentage (35.1). Devin Askew, the Beach's top scorer, ranks fifth in the Big West in points per game at 17.8 while he is tied for first in assists per game at 4.4. TJ Wainwright is also scoring in double figures at 12.4 points. Derrick Michael Xzavierro tops the team in rebounding at 6.0.
Series History: The Beach lead the Matadors 48-28 in the all-time series with wins in six of the last seven meetings. The teams split the season series last year with each side winning on the opponent's home court. CSUN has dropped three consecutive home meetings with its last win in Northridge coming on Jan. 8, 2020.
SCOUTING UC SAN DIEGO
The Tritons are an impressive 15-4 this season with a 5-2 league record. Last week, UCSD collected a road win at Long Beach State (80-54) before falling at UC Riverside (85-81). On the year, the Tritons are 6-2 at LionTree Arena with their only losses coming to Seattle U and UC Irvine. As a team, the Tritons are first in the Big West in fewest points per game allowed (62.8) and second in scoring average (80.3). The team has also made the second-most threes in the league with 193. Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones ranks third in the Big West in scoring (18.7) and fourth in field goal percentage (57.3) while teammate Tyler McGhie is fourth in the conference in 3-point percentage (40.2) and seventh in scoring (17.2). In steals, Hayden Gray paces the Big West at 3.6 per game, followed by Chris Howell in third place at 2.0.
Series History: UC San Diego is 6-2 against CSUN in the all-time series including a perfect 6-0 since joining the Big West. Last season, the Tritons posted two double-digit wins to sweep the season series.
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