CSUN took on the UC Irvine Anteaters on Friday night in the semifinals of the 2026 Credit Union 1 Big West Men’s Basketball Championship. In a highly anticipated rematch at the Lee’s Family Forum in Henderson, Nevada, the Matadors were boat-raced, ending their season 93-78.
Head coach Andy Newman reflected on the team’s season.
“Out of the 365 days of the year, this is my least favorite day of the year. I think the reason why I hate this day is because of that group you don’t get to coach anymore,” Newman said. “This group will always be special, pulling out 20 wins is an incredible thing in college basketball to be able to do.”
When the game tipped off, the Matadors were not the team they were the night before against UC San Diego. The offense looked stagnant against the Big West’s best statistical defense. In the blink of an eye, it was 15-2 Anteaters lead six minutes in, with guard Jurian Dixon scoring 10 of the first 15 points.
Newman called a timeout to talk to his team and make adjustments. The timeout was efficient as the offense came alive, cutting the lead to just seven at one point.
“That was a tough start for us. It was a combination of us being a little flat; I didn’t do a phenomenal job of getting our guys ready to play, apparently. I need to be better in that,” Newman said. “You can’t give a team like UC Irvine a 13-point lead and that was tough.”
That was the closest CSUN trailed the rest of the first half, falling behind by as much as 16 points. After a couple of last-minute baskets, the Matadors saw themselves down 12 at the half, 49-37.
UCI dominated the boards, outrebounding CSUN 18-6. That wasn’t the biggest story of the half; it was the shooting of the Anteaters, as they shot 58.1% from the field. The Matadors shot just 40% from the field.
Senior guard Larry Hughes II was held scoreless on just two shot attempts, a far cry from his previous performance. Freshman guard James Evans Jr. and senior guard Joshua O’Garro held CSUN together, each scoring 11 points in the first half.
Once the second half got underway, the Matadors were unable to cut into the deficit, trading buckets back and forth with the Anteaters. It didn’t take long for CSUN to cut the lead in half, using a 6-0 surge to make it 62-56 in favor of UCI.
The Anteaters consistently hit timely shots all night, halting any momentum CSUN could gain. UCI used an 8-0 run, with five minutes to go in this one, really propelling themselves to a cushioned 18-point lead, 82-64.
Although the offense was on par for most of the second half, it was the defense’s inability to get stops and UCI’s shot-making allowing the Anteaters to maintain their double-digit lead.
CSUN led the Big West in rebounding margin, but was ultimately dominated, 44-26. This was the third time in Newman’s tenure that the team was outrebounded by double digits, two of which came by UCI.
Senior guard Josiah Davis came alive once again in the second half, scoring 16 points, finishing with 26 points overall. Evans and O’Garro ended the game combining for 39 points.
Hughes II finished with just two points, marking the first time this season he did not record a field goal.
Newman discussed the Anteaters’ approach to take away Hughes II.
“Everybody did a really good job of face guarding him. That took him out of his comfort zone. But to Larry’s credit, he played his butt off defensively,” Newman said. “Larry had an incredibly unselfish game tonight, where he worked hard to get his teammates open. It’s something that won’t show up on the stat sheet. Of our 78 points, Larry was a big part of 35 to 40 of those points.”
The Matadors finish the season with an overall record of 20-14 and for the first time since 2001, CSUN has finished with back-to-back 20-win seasons
