CSUN Rallies Late to Beat UC Davis for Seventh Win in a Row

DAVIS, Calif.---CSUN Men's Basketball notched its 20th win of the season in dramatic fashion, rallying to defeat UC Davis late for a 65-62 win on Saturday afternoon at the University Credit Union Center. The Matadors outscored the Aggies 19-4 to end the game, erasing a 12-point deficit. Senior Mahmoud Fofana finished with a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds while sophomore Marcus Adams Jr. had 19 points and seven rebounds and junior Scotty Washington chipped in with 14 points.

The Matadors have now won 20 games in a season for the first time since 2007-08 while they secured their first win at UC Davis since 2009.

HOW IT HAPPENED
CSUN grabbed an early 6-2 lead at the start, but would have to play from behind for most of the afternoon. A TY Johnson jumper at the 13:49 mark gave the Aggies a 10-9 advantage, a lead they would not relinquish until the latter stages of the ballgame. Adams drilled a jumper to pull CSUN to within 13-12 before a 9-0 UC Davis run put the home team ahead 22-12. The Matadors would get a late 6-0 run with Adams scoring four of those points, cutting a nine-point deficit to 24-21. CSUN though struggled offensively in the first half, shooting just 32 percent as the Matadors not close the gap and went into the break trailing 27-24.

Out of intermission, the Aggies completed an 8-2 run with Connor Sevilla pushing the lead back to nine at 35-26. The Matadors would answer with a 6-0 run of their own, but Johnson though scored back-to-back baskets to swing the momentum back to the Aggies. UC Davis capped an 8-0 run at the 12:11 mark, putting the Matadors in a 43-32 deficit. CSUN kept on chipping away, pulling to within six on a Fofana layup, but Johnson again answered with two straight field goals. UC Davis then extended to a 58-46 lead on a three from Carl Daughtery Jr. with 6:54 to play.

Trailing by double digits, CSUN would turn the game around on the defensive end. Beginning with a missed three from Daugherty at the 5:49 mark, the Matadors completed five consecutive defensive stops. During that stretch, CSUN made four-straight shots with Washington making a pair and Adams drilling a three to suddenly pull the Matadors to within 58-57 with 3:24 to go. Out of a timeout, UC Davis ended the dry spell with a Tamba jumper. Undeterred, CSUN scored on its next possession via a Fofana basket off a feed from Keonte Jones. Another CSUN defensive stand led to Washington draining a jumper to give the Matadors their first lead since the first half. Washington followed moments later with another clutch hoop for a CSUN 63-60 lead with 1:20 to play.

In a wild final minute of action, CSUN committed a turnover with 26 seconds to go leading to UC Davis scoring on the other end to pull to within 63-62. Moments later, a second CSUN turnover in the back court led to the Aggies getting a quality look from Johnson in the paint, but the shot went off the mark with four seconds left. A missed tip in from Tamba led to Fofana picking up the defensive rebound and hitting two timely free throws for a 65-62 lead. The Aggies were unable to get a shot up on their final possession as time expired.

NOTES OF THE GAME

CSUN improves to 20-7 overall and 12-4 in Big West play while UC Davis drops to 15-13 overall and 9-8 in conference.
Shooting 15-of-21 in the second half (71.4 percent), CSUN finished at an even 50.0 percent for the night while making 3-of-13 threes (23.1 percent) and 16-of-20 free throws (16-of-20). UC Davis shot 38.6 percent overall while hitting 8-of-24 threes (33.3 percent) and 10-of-12 free throws (83.3 percent).
On the glass, the Matadors out-rebounded the Aggies 37-23. CSUN also led 34-12 in points in the paint.
Fofana recorded his second double-double of the season. He also made 6-of-8 field goals and 8-of-10 free throws.
CSUN has won 20 games in a season for the fourth time in its Division I history and for the seventh time overall in school history.

ACCORDING TO COACH ANDY NEWMAN
"It was fun. What a gritty win these guys had. I can't tell you how proud I am of this group that they never quit. When it was winning time, they defended and rebounded. I wish they would have done this for 40 minutes and it wouldn't have been this close, but they did it when it mattered."

UP NEXT
CSUN returns home to face first-place UC San Diego on Thursday, Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister have the call on ESPN+ and GoMatadors.com/Radio.

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CSUN Rallies Late to Beat UC Davis for Seventh Win in a Row

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Team Stats

Mahmoud Fofana

Marcus Adams Jr.

Scotty Washington

Keonte Jones

Players Mentioned

Marcus Adams Jr.

Mahmoud Fofana

Keonte Jones

Scotty Washington

Players Mentioned

Marcus Adams Jr.

Mahmoud Fofana

Keonte Jones

Scotty Washington