The CSUN women’s basketball team couldn’t bounce back against the University of Hawai’i, falling 75-47 on Thursday night at Premier America Credit Union Arena.
For the Matadors, it marks back-to-back losses and puts them at a 3-13 record on the season. CSUN’s only conference win came from a Jan. 2 win over Cal State Fullerton.
The Rainbow Warriors had a distinct size advantage going into the contest, led by UH 6-foot-4 junior forward Imani Perez and 6-foot-5 freshman center Ritorya Tamilo. Perez led all scorers with 19 points, adding six rebounds and three blocks. Tamilo ended the night with 11 points. The size disadvantage became an issue for the Matadors as Hawai’i viciously pounded the paint all game and out-rebounded CSUN 44-35.
CSUN head coach Angie Ned made it a point to try and shut Hawai’i down low in the post.
“Being physical and making the bigs catch the ball outside of the paint,” Ned said.
The biggest setback for CSUN was the Rainbow Warriors’ three-point shooting in the first half. Hawai’i shot 44.4% from behind the arc, compared to 23.5% from the Matadors, allowing the Rainbow Warriors’ to head into halftime with a 45-24 lead.
Hawaii’s first half shooting dug the Matadors into a deep hole going into the second half. CSUN had nine of their 16 turnovers in the second half. It’s a trend CSUN would like to buck, as they lead the conference in overall turnovers with 337.
A bright spot for the Matadors was the excellent play from their starting backcourt. CSUN junior guard Erika Aspajo finished with a team-high of 14 points. Aspajo added five assists as she was in control of the offensive flow for the Matadors. Fellow junior guard Morgan Edwards also finished with double-digit points, ending her night off with 10 points for CSUN. Edwards showed off her prowess on the boards, despite being listed as a guard as she finished with four rebounds.
The guard tandem is having good seasons statistically. Aspajo, the team’s leading scorer, has been averaging 11 points, five assists and four rebounds. Meanwhile, Edwards has been averaging nine points, four rebounds and one assist per game.
Rebounding has been the Matadors’ calling card for the team this season. CSUN was able to create 12 second chance points off of their 35 rebounds against Hawai’i and are posting the third highest rebounds per game in the conference. Freshman center Yves Cox has been a huge contributor to the team’s rebounding, she’s currently ranked seventh amongst all Big West players.
The Matadors will hope to bounce back from this loss, with their next game coming Jan. 23 at Long Beach State. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+, with tipoff at 6 p.m.
