How can someone describe the women’s basketball games over the Winter break? The games were actually like most movies. They had a joyful beginning but a heartbreaking middle. Just like ever ending the Matadors were celebrating.
The Matadors came out of finals week flying high by beating down Miami of Ohio, 68-50 (Dec. 20).
“We played really good defense, and we scouted really well,” Analee Viena-Lota said after beating the RedHawks.
CSUN held the RedHawks to 31 percent from the field and recorded 12 steals.
Also, the Matadors team captain Katrina Thompson played a huge role by filling up the stat sheet.
“The energy was led by Thompson and her stat line showed it. She had seven assists and seven steals,” head coach Staci Schulz said.
However, the great game the Matadors played was not a sign for future games. Northridge had plenty of dark days; as they went on to lose six straight games. Two of which were heart breakers against South Dakota and Pacific.
Northridge could have won both games, but key mistakes hurt them down the stretch. CSUN had 28-21 lead going into halftime against South Dakota. However, in the second half the Matadors poor free throw shooting let Coyotes back into the game. They finished the game 1-of-11 for the charity stripe.
“The game was thrown away. Missing that many free throws shows a lack of focus,” Schulz said in a post-game interview after falling to the Coyotes (Jan. 2).
However, the Matadors still had a chance to win the game. With 0.4 seconds left in regulation they let South Dakota’s center Amber Hegge bank in the game-winning layup on an inbound pass.
Nevertheless, CSUN tried to move on and rebound in the next game. Little did they know that the next game would be an even tougher loss. They began Big West play against Pacific, losing 76-70 in overtime. They story of the game was again the poor free throw shooting.
The Matadors missed all of their free throws in overtime, while Pacific would go 11-of-16 from the charity stripe.
Saturday, CSUN closed out the winter break with huge win over Cal State Fullerton. The Titans were tied for first place in the Big West Conference heading into the game, while the Matadors were the little underdogs in last place.
Northridge was down 37-26 going into the half, but came back in the second half thanks to their defense.
CSUN held the Titans to 10.5 percent from the field in the second period as they went on to rout the Titans, 66-53.
“It was amazing. Our Coaches say that are defense leads to our offense. We did well on defense and our offense came easy,” said forward Thompson.
Center Jasmine Erving chipped in with a game-high 20 points and eight rebounds. The Matadors dominated the paint, outscoring the Titans 18-2.
It will be interesting to see what CSUN has in store for the second part of the season.
The next game is January 23 and tip is planned for 4 p.m. at the Matadome against Cal Poly.
