CSUN Tumbles After Bowser Takes a Spill

Cal State Northridge sustained a loss on the basketball court Thursday night, the sting of which presumably will soon go away.

But another loss, one that took place in the second row of CSUN bleachers behind the Chapman College bench, may well plague the Matadors for a longer time.

It was there that Matador center Todd Bowser lay after crashing into the stands while chasing a loose ball in the first half.

Through the chairs along the sideline he roared before coming to a sudden stop when his shoulder and left hip slammed hard into the wooden bleachers. The 6-8, 280-pound junior stayed down for several minutes before being helped into the locker room, proving once and for all what CSUN Coach Pete Cassidy has claimed all along--some things hurt no matter how big you are.

A 79-74 California Collegiate Athletic Assn. loss to Chapman hurt plenty. But not as much as the loss of personnel should Bowser, a 3-year starter, be out for any length of time.

Bowser will be X-rayed at CSUN at 9:30 this morning. The extent of the damage is not known, Cassidy said after conferring with trainers, but it appeared that Bowser’s left hip temporarily had been dislocated, then popped back into place.

Bowser was walking gingerly on crutches after the game. The Matadors were already playing shorthanded--Leroy McCullough is at best temporarily academically ineligible.

Northridge missed Bowser’s productivity--he came in averaging 14.2 points and 8.3 rebounds a game--but most of all his imposing presence inside the key on defense.

Chapman center Mark Hilton, who came in averaging all of 3.9 points a game, led the Panthers with 20--making 7 of 10 field-goal attempts and 6 of 8 free throws.

Offensively, Northridge resorted to dialing long distance, which meant Derrick Gathers was fairly arm weary afterward.

The 6-3 junior scored a game-high 25 points, making half of his 16 field-goal attempts, including 6 of 11 from 3-point range.

Gathers’ 6 3-point baskets tied a school mark and the Matadors attempted 24 and made 12, both school records.

“That’s indicative of not working hard to get the ball inside,” Cassidy said of the abundance of 3-point baskets. “The three-point shot is a double-edged sword.”

Northridge and Chapman both are 2-2 in CCAA play. CSUN is 11-6 overall; Chapman is 9-8.

Gathers, who had been fighting the flu, equaled his season high, but in the last 12 minutes he scored only 6 points on 2 3-point baskets.

“I felt good tonight,” he said. “I just didn’t get it done when we needed it.”

Gathers had 16 in the first half, including 11 in a row in a stretch of less than 2 minutes.

The teams exchanged the lead several times in the second half with Chapman holding the biggest edge, 43-37, early in the period.

Cassidy shuffled his lineup often as he was forced to try combinations that had not played together this season.

At one stage in the second half, the 5 players the Matadors had on the floor were averaging only 21.7 points a game combined.

The score was tied, 66-66, with 3 minutes left when Hilton broke free for a layup that put Chapman in the lead for good.

The Panthers stretched their advantage to 72-66 with a minute left, then made the front end of 5 consecutive 1-and-1 free-throw situations.