After being on the road and taking a loss to North Dakota State, the Matadors returned to Premier America Credit Union Arena this past Sunday to play against the Troy University Trojans in a very physical matchup.
The Matadors proved their physical identity is not one that should not be questioned after forcing 25 turnovers and beating the Trojans 94-85, pushing the Matadors to 3-2 overall.
The game began with a three-pointer from both teams, tying the game up within the first minute. CSUN forward Davius Loury was given a foul, which gave Troy free throw attempts that allowed them to be up 4-3.
Loury and company quickly rallied back, hitting a three shortly after CSUN guard Joshua O’Garro made a layup and giving the Matadors a 10-7 lead.
Layups continued to be the focus of the game for the Matadors as they were not afraid to get active in the paint and show the Trojans the physical nature of the team. The two teams continued to score, tying up the game with neither team holding a lead for a significant period of time.
After some successful defense and high scoring offense, the Matadors brought the score to 29-20. CSUN went on to score 13 making back to back layups.
The Matadors found major success and brought the score to 35-21 and finished the half at 51-49.
The second half was much of the same from the two teams, with lots of battling going on within the paint. With a very hard fought first half, the Matadors never faltered, continuing to press on the gas. This led to an upperhand over the Trojans.
O’Garro hit a three pointer to bring the score to 90-85 with only 1:19 left to go. CSUN guard Josiah Davis hit yet another layup for the team, putting the score at 92-85. With only seconds to go, the Matadors played keep away leading to a final score of 94-85.
O’Garro led the team with 23 points scored, while Davis followed close behind. O’Garro emphasised defense was the primary focus this week and how building upon that playstyle was the key to their success against the Trojans.
“All we did in practice was defense, emphasized defense, defense, defense. We really got hyped about playing defense and secondly rebounds,” O’Garro said. “We have a ways to go but we did a good job today and pulled out a win against a good Troy team.”
Head coach Andy Newman was proud of his team and gave insight into the coming weeks, which will be on the road for the Matadors.
“Our practices are set in a way that is very physical. Our guys know that one of our core principles is that we are gonna be tougher than the other team,” Newman said. “I’m super proud of them. You know, it says a lot about their character. … You saw an inspired effort tonight against a really good Troy team. Proud of who they are as people and as competitors.”
The Matadors will be back on the road for their next game against the Idaho Vandals. The game will take place at 6 p.m. on Nov. 26 at the Idaho Central Arena in the Holiday Hoops Classic and broadcast on ESPN+.
