CS Northridge Turns Up Heat in Opener, 103-55

To use a little basketball slang, it is entirely accurate to say that Cal State Northridge put its game Friday night against UC Davis in the refrigerator early.

The conditions in which the game was played bring the saying to mind.

Northridge shut off the heater in its gymnasium over the Thanksgiving holiday, leaving the temperature inside somewhere significantly lower than the 68 degrees Jimmy Carter once considered energy efficient.

What an odd time for Northridge to score in triple digits for the first time in 71 games.

The Matadors shot a sizzling 60.5% and 5 players scored in double figures in a 103-55 rout over UC Davis in the opener for both teams.

Coach Pete Cassidy credited Northridge’s intense play on defense for the scoring blitz.

“We came out and played hard right off the bat and never stopped,” Cassidy said. “Our defense was our best offense. We didn’t execute well on offense, but our effort carried us.”

Is this man never satisfied?

Cassidy was actually quite taken aback by the lopsided score.

“I was very surprised . . . but pleased,” he said. “We were very heads up and opportunistic.”

Northridge forced 21 Davis turnovers and converted them into 35 points.

CSUN’s hottest player did not start and was on the floor for only 8 minutes. Leroy McCullough, a reserve forward, scored 17 points on 8-of-8 shooting. Included was a two-handed slam off a fast break that one rather sarcastic witness swore drew ice.

Cassidy was able to substitute freely throughout the game. It took only 8 minutes for Northridge to open a 10-point lead. By the half, the Matadors had doubled the score, 52-26.

Perhaps it should be pointed out that Davis started only 1 senior, along with 2 sophomores and 2 freshmen. Perhaps, on this night anyway, it didn’t make much difference.

Northridge made 64.7% (22 of 34) of its shots in the first half.

Joining McCullough in double figures were Derrick Gathers (16), Darren Matsubara (15), Todd Bowser (14), Kris Brodowski (13) and Alan Fraser (10).

Karl Becker, a reserve guard, broke the century mark for CSUN with 52 seconds remaining, tossing in a 3-point shot.

The last time CSUN scored in triple digits was at home Dec. 21, 1985, when the Matadors defeated Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 106-92.