Bright Spots Give Winless Northridge Ray of Hope : College basketball: After three losses, Matadors take solace in defense, rebounding and play of newcomers.

The results are the same as a year ago: After a season-opening, three-game trip, Cal State Northridge’s basketball team is 0-3.

Record aside, the Matadors, who will meet Northern Arizona tonight at 7 at Matador Gymnasium, insist they are improved.

“I can just tell,” senior forward Keith Gibbs said. “There’s a difference between the first games last year and this year.”

Certainly, the margin of defeat is much smaller. Northridge lost to Butler, Southern Illinois and Evansville by an average of 12.3 points. Last season, Colorado, Colorado State and New Mexico State won by an average of 35.6 points.

Of course, last season’s opening opponents were stronger--Butler being a possible exception.

Also, the Matadors played at a breakneck pace last season when they gave up more than 100 points in each of their first three games. On the Midwestern swing, the 82 points by Butler were the most Northridge allowed.

The defense, particularly in the 60-44 loss to Evansville, and rebounding were the bright spots on the trip. So too was the play of newcomers Ryan Martin, James Morris and Brooklyn McLinn.

Martin, a freshman from Ocean View High, led Northridge with an average of 9.3 points per game despite being held scoreless against Evansville.

Morris, a junior transfer from Imperial Valley College, is second in scoring with an 8.3 average. He scored 15 points on six-of-seven shooting against Southern Illinois despite playing with a bruised knee.

“It bothered me, but I put it to the side,” said Morris, who is also hampered by a groin pull that kept him out of preseason drills.

McLinn, a sophomore walk-on, scored 15 points in 14 minutes in the opener. His playing time was limited to 10 minutes and four minutes, respectively, in the next two games, but he is still tied for third in scoring average at 7.0 points and his 53.3 shooting percentage is the team’s best.

Coach Pete Cassidy said he would like to play McLinn more, but the Matadors are overloaded at shooting guard.

“Brooklyn McLinn can shoot the ball, but he doesn’t play defense as well as (Martin and Morris),” Cassidy said. “He’s less experienced than they are, even though Ryan is a freshman.”

The shooting percentages of the newcomers are well above the team average of 37% from the field and 61.8% from the free-throw line. Abysmal shooting and a turnover rate of 23.3 per game were the low points of the trip.

Some of Northridge’s miscues can be attributed to the relentless pressure of its opponents, who allowed few uncontested shots. But the Matadors also missed easy chances.

Center Percy Fisher was off target on nine of 12 attempts against Evansville and is shooting 29.6% from the field, primarily from close range. Gibbs, forward Shelton Boykin and reserve center Brian Kilian also are getting high-percentage shots but each is shooting less than 34%.

These misses can be demoralizing. Point guard Andre Chevalier drove the lane against Evansville and whipped a behind-the-back pass to Boykin, who then missed the wide-open two-footer. Later, Gibbs penetrated and fed Kilian for an easy try, but Kilian missed.

Northridge endured several scoring droughts in each game. Some lasted as long as six minutes. During these periods, Martin was often the only pure shooter the Matadors had on the floor.

Chevalier is a capable shooter, but he has the responsibility of running the offense. Gibbs has the athletic ability to drive to the basket, but he has yet to display a consistent scoring touch.

Boykin often has open shots from 15 feet, but that is out of his range. And Fisher could be a go-to man on offense, but he has to stay out of foul trouble.

McLinn and swingman David Swanson might be the ones to provide instant offense off the bench, as Swanson did in the late stages of the Evansville game.

Better ballhandling also would help Northridge’s shooting. If the Matadors knew they were going to have more opportunities to shoot, they might not freeze up as much when they do get the chance.

As it is, their chances have been limited because of turnovers. Many of the poor passes were the result of tight defensive pressure.

“Pressure defense does that early in the season,” Cassidy said. “It is a coach’s nightmare. We had 27 turnovers against Butler, but how many did they have? Twenty-three.”

There also was a flurry of traveling calls.

“We make foolish and hurried mistakes and the players know it,” Cassidy said. “They point to themselves (after the mistake).”

Chevalier, who has a team-high 12 turnovers, blamed his five against Butler on lack of mental preparation.

Fisher and Boykin, who do not handle the ball nearly as much, each have 10 turnovers. Fisher occasionally gets too excited, which caused two critical traveling violations in the Evansville game.

Boykin often is careless when passing and, like Fisher, he sometimes drops passes.

For the Matadors to improve, Fisher and Gibbs need to shoot more accurately. Fisher also needs to contribute more on the defensive end and in rebounding.

To accomplish either, he must stay out of foul trouble.