After what began as a tough battle, the CSUN Matadors cruised to a win over the UC Davis Aggies 94-78 on Thursday night at the Premier America Credit Union Arena.
With this win, the Matadors upped their odds of punching their ticket to the Big West Tournament in March. They improved to 5-5 in the Big West (12-10 overall). This loss for the Aggies also puts them at 5-5 in the Big West (12-9 Overall).
At the start of the game, both teams went at it, with the score remaining close for the majority of the first half.
Both teams were great in facebreak transitions throughout the first 15 minutes of the game, but the Matadors struggled to find the net in crucial moments when attempting to tie the game or retake the lead. Additionally, they were not able to stop the great shooting from beyond the arc for the Aggies in the first half.
The Aggies shot 55% from the field and 56% from three-point range. They then went on a small run towards the end of the first half until CSUN guard James Evans Jr hit a three from downtown at the buzzer, giving more life to the Matadors. This ultimately seemed to be a game changer, with the Aggies up 48-44.
To start the second half, Matador guard Larry Hughes II hit an impactful and-one three to cut the lead down to one. Hughes said he knew the second half had to start out strong for the Matadors.
“I knew I had to make an impact, whether it be shooting or [playing] defense,” said Hughes II after the game.
The Matadors started off the half with a 7-0 run and Hughes, who finished with 17 points, was one of the many Matadors who played well.
The leading scorer for CSUN in this game was forward Mahmoud Fofana, who had a double-double of 22 points off of 80 from the field and 10 rebounds. Fofana managed to get many defensive rebounds, bringing an impact in the paint offensively almost instantly throughout the game.
Other Matador players who impacted the game were guard Joshua O’Garro, who had 21 points off of 60% shooting. Evans came in clutch with 50% from three while guard Josiah Davis tied his own Matadors all-time assist record with 15 in last night’s game.
Last but not least, coming off the bench, forward Grady Lewis was victorious in the paint, scoring all five attempts with a total of 11 points in his 14 minutes of play.
“It feels pretty good,” Lewis said. “I really knew I had to step up today and get off that aggressiveness.”
The Matadors also improved defensively in the second half by slowing down the three-point shooting drastically for the Aggies and reducing to 34% from beyond the arc at the end of the game.
The leading scorers for the Aggies were guards Connor Sevilla with 15 points on 57% shooting, Nils Cooper with 12 points of 4-11 from the field and Marcus Wilson, who finished with 13 points on 44% shooting.
The Matadors next game is Saturday, Jan. 31, at 5 p.m., where they will host against the UC San Diego Tritons. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Head coach of the Matadors Andy Newman says he’s prepared to face the Tritons.
“They’re a really good team,” Newman said. “We’re going to have to match their energy, match their toughness and their physicality. If we come out and play like how we did tonight, I’d like us against anybody.”
