CS Northridge Posts Its 1st Win of Season, 78-72 : College basketball: Matadors end 13-game losing streak. Andre Chevalier leads charge against Eastern Washington with 21 points.

Cal State Northridge, winless in its 10 previous games this season and closing in on a school-record futility streak, finally had the shots and breaks fall its way Saturday in a 78-72 nonconference victory over Eastern Washington before 592 at Matador Gym.

Northridge, which entered the game with a 38% shooting averaged, used a consistent outside shooting attack and a 2-2-1 trapping zone defense to win its first game since last February.

“This is the first time we’ve smiled after a game in a long time,” said Northridge point guard Andre Chevalier, who scored a career-high 21 points, including 11 free throws without a miss. “We’re going to look at this as the start of a new season.”

Northridge (1-10), which ended a 13-game losing skid dating to last season--two short of the school record--reversed a pair of trends that have plagued the team.

The Matadors outshot their opponents, 47% to 45%, and finished with fewer turnovers than the Eagles--15 to EWU’s 20.

Chevalier was supported primarily by senior wing Keith Gibbs, who finished with 14 points, eight assists, six rebounds and four steals.

Gibbs also had one block, a key swat of Miguel Johnson’s shot with just over two minutes to play that led to a Ryan Martin free throw on the other end and quelled any EWU comeback aspirations.

“Because of that blocked shot we probably gained 45 seconds,” Northridge Coach Pete Cassidy said. “(Gibbs) had a big game.”

Tied, 32-32, at the half, Northridge bucked tradition in the second half and proceeded to build a double-figure advantage instead of succumbing to one.

CSUN scored the first six points of the second half en route to taking its first 10-point lead with 6 minutes 25 seconds to play, 63-53.

Eastern Washington, which connected on 11 of 24 three-point shots, managed to cut the lead to 67-63 with 2:52 left, but the Matadors held off the charge with inspired defense and five Chevalier free throws in the final 39 seconds.

CSUN scored its last 11 points at the free-throw line.

“You watched it, they wanted the game more than we did,” Eastern Washington Coach John Wade said. “The game overall was (that) they kicked our butt.”

EWU’s Carren Wilson led all players with 23 points and former Simi Valley High standout Shawn DeLaittre added 15.

CSUN’s Percy Fisher, back from a two-game suspension, had nine points and six rebounds off the bench and Shelton Boykin added eight points and six rebounds.

In an entertaining first half that featured CSUN’s new 2-2-1 full-court zone defense, the two teams wound up deadlocked at the break.

CSUN opened a 28-25 lead with five minutes left in the half when Gibbs slammed home back-to-back dunks with the latter coming on an alley-oop pass from Chevalier.

But the Eagles overcame a brief turnover problem (10 in the first half) and managed to tie the game, 32-32, on a three-point shot by DeLaittre with 1:03 remaining in the half.

Northridge, which entered the game shooting 38%, hit on 14 of 28 shots in the first half but was outrebounded by the Eagles, 16-12.