CSUN Bounces Back with 94-78 Victory Over UC Davis

Thursday, January 29

Northridge, Calif.

7:00 p.m.

California State University at Northridge

12-10,5-5Big West

UC Davis

12-9,5-5Big West

UC Davis

CSUN

Photo by: Chuck Marvel

CSUN Bounces Back with 94-78 Victory Over UC Davis

1/29/2026 9:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---Behind five in double figures, CSUN Men's Basketball snapped a two-game skid with a 94-78 victory over UC Davis on Thursday at Premier America Credit Union Arena. Both finishing with double-doubles, Mahmoud Fofana had 22 points and 10 rebounds and Joshua O'Garro posted 21 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Larry Hughes II added 17 points while James Evans Jr. notched 13 points and Grady Lewis scored 11 points on 5-of-5 shooting off the bench. CSUN erased a seven-point halftime deficit and outscored UC Davis 50-30 in the second half.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams came out fast at the outset of the game with the Aggies making seven of their eight shots while the Matadors were no slouch, making five of their first six. Still, UC Davis led 20-13 through the first five minutes of action. Lewis would give CSUN a big lift off the bench throughout the night as he threw down a dunk at the 14:54 mark to cut into the deficit. After UC Davis hit a three moments later, Fofana scored the next seven CSUN points to cut the deficit to 23-22. The Matadors would take the lead near the halfway point of the first half on a O'Garro layup, set up by Josiah Davis, but the Aggies quickly took the lead right back on another three from Isaiah Chappell. The teams exchanged leads four times until the Aggies regained control near the two-minute mark. UC Davis broke a 41-41 tie with a 7-0 run, capped by a layup from Chappell. CSUN though went into halftime with a bit of momentum as O'Garro made a block on a Marcus Wilson drive to the hoop before finding Evans on a buzzer-beating three to trim the deficit to 48-44.

WOW ??

An incredible end to the first half as O'Garro gets the block and launches it to Evans Jr. who beats the buzzer.#GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/ihPLmRTep8
— CSUN Men's Basketball (@CSUNMBB) January 30, 2026

The Aggies would shoot 55.2 percent in the first half, but CSUN flipped the script and turned to its defense over the final 20 minutes. Out of the break, Hughes drilled a three, plus a foul to tie the game up. Fofana scored a three-point play of his own for a 52-48 lead as CSUN held UC Davis scoreless for nearly the first three minutes. UC Davis would not record a field goal until the 15:09 mark, giving CSUN a chance to go on a 13-2 with Lewis closing the run on a bucket inside. The CSUN lead would slip to 57-56 with 14:05 to go, but the Matadors scored the next nine points. Moments later, the lead grew to 15 points at 78-63 when O'Garro scored on a drive to the basket to close a 9-3 spurt. From then on, CSUN never let its lead slip less than 14 points while the Matadors extended their lead to 21 when O'Garro threw down a dunk off a feed from Davis with two minutes to go. The Matadors would hold the Aggies to 29.4 percent shooting in the period in picking up the victory.

Josiah Davis matches the CSUN record for assists in a game AGAIN with 15.

The last one may have been the best on the cross-court pass to O'Garro. #GoMatadors pic.twitter.com/1W2LOekvY2
— CSUN Men's Basketball (@CSUNMBB) January 30, 2026

NOTES OF THE GAME

CSUN improves to 12-10 overall and 5-5 in Big West play while UC Davis slips to 12-9 overall and 5-5 in conference.
The Matadors shot 52.9 percent from the floor overall while going 10-of-29 from three (34.5 percent) and 12-of-23 at the free throw line (52.2 percent). UC Davis finished at 41.3 percent shooting, making 10-of-26 threes (38.5 percent) and 16-of-25 free throws (64.0 percent).
In the rebounding department, CSUN held a 43-39 advantage. Points in the paint also belonged to the Matadors who led 52-26 on the night.
Davis matched the school record for assists in a game for the second time this season, posting 15 on the night. He previously had 15 helpers on Jan. 8 against Cal Poly. The CSUN assist record was set by Keith Gibbs in 1990 and matched twice by Markus Carr in the 2000-01 season.
O'Garro notched his 11th double-double of the season while Fofana recorded his fourth. Flirting with a triple-double on the night, O'Garro also had eight assists and three steals.
From 3-point range, Hughes finished 4-of-7 while Evans made 3-of-6 attempts.

ACCORDING TO COACH ANDY NEWMAN
"We really rallied by our leadership in the locker room at halftime. I could tell these guys were really fired up to defend in the second half, and they did it. A great effort and I'm really proud of them."

UP NEXT
CSUN stays at home to take on UC San Diego on Saturday at 5 p.m. Ghizal Hasan and Alan Zinsmeister have the call on ESPN+.

#GoMatadors