Game of Attrition for Matadors : Preview: A season that appeared to be a promising one now is filled with questions because of the loss of players to injuries and academics.

Cal State Northridge’s relatively promising building project in men’s basketball has, over the course of the past few months, become a reclamation operation.

After 10 consecutive losses at the start of last season, its second against NCAA Division I competition, Northridge finished 11-17.

Teams such as Montana State, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, Cal State Sacramento (twice) and Loyola Marymount were among those that fell to the Matadors, who also played Washington close, losing, 61-57, at Seattle.

In finishing strong, Northridge believed it had laid the foundation for a bright future. The Loyola victory, which was played prominently in the sports segments of local network newscasts, was perceived as particularly important for morale and recruiting.

Coach Pete Cassidy thought he had cashed in.

“With the recruiting we did this year, the kids we signed to come here and the players we had coming back, we had a chance to be very competitive with a lot of people, including some people we weren’t supposed to be competitive with,” Cassidy said.

Indeed, he meant had--as in past tense. Northridge’s best hopes were swept away along with its original cast of front-court recruits.

The Matadors’ string of misfortune started when Geoff Gorham, a 6-foot-7 swingman from Riverside City College, renounced his scholarship to allow his broken leg to mend.

Then John Flowers, a 6-5 swingman from Phoenix who was the Matadors’ top recruit, lost both legs in a car accident on Aug. 9 in Kansas City.

The roster has continued to dwindle this fall.

Victor Camper, a 6-8 recruit who was expected to start at forward or center, is academically ineligible until he completes a junior college math course.

Camper’s absence has been compounded because Percy Fisher, a 6-7 three-year letterman, quitthe team to concentrate on his studies.

Cassidy has adjusted his expectations accordingly.

“We’re going to be competitive with a lot of people on our schedule,” he said. “Others weshouldn’t be very competitive with.”

Those significant others include UCLA on Dec. 22 at Pauley Pavilion; Alabama Birmingham on Jan. 25 in Birmingham; Missouri on Feb. 3 in Columbia, and Cal on Feb. 10 in Berkeley.

Northridge, which opens Tuesday at Fresno State, has six remaining front-court players. Among them, Jason Stewart, a 6-9 sophomore, and Robert Biggs, a 6-5 senior, are walk-ons with no collegiate experience. Another, Anthony Moten, a 6-5 senior, made the team as a walk-on last season, when he played only 10 minutes in four games and did not score. Josh Willis, a 6-6 freshman from Crescenta Valley High, was signed last spring, only after Gorham’s injury.

The starting center is Peter Micelli, a 6-8 sophomore who sat out a year as a redshirt last season after averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds in 1990-91. Chris Yard, a 6-6 transfer from Lassen JC, is the power forward. Cassidy describes both players as “physical, hard-working, blue collar-type guys.”

They are also guys who had best be building their stamina.

“Fatigue and foul trouble are the only reasons Peter and Chris will come off the floor,” Cassidy said. “We need them out there as long as possible.”

Northridge will rely heavily on guards Andre Chevalier and James Morris, its most experienced players.

Chevalier, a 6-0 junior, averaged 10.3 points and four assists last season. Morris, a 5-8 senior, averaged 7.9 points. Brooklyn McLinn (6.4 points) and Ryan Martin (5.1 points), reserves last season, also are likely to play a lot in the Matadors’ three-guard scheme.

“Our strength was our guards to begin with,” Cassidy said.

Since opening drills Nov. 2, injuries to Moten and Martin, combined with few sporadic bouts of illness, have occasionally left the Matadors thin on the practice court. Moten has a fractured hand and Martin a sprained ankle.

Keith Gibbs, Brian Kilian and Shelton Boykin, former players who completed their eligibilitylast season, have been filling in.

“We’re trying hard to put our troubles behind us, but it’s hard when you’re so short of people that you can’t run a normal practice,” Cassidy said. “But we don’t want to dwell on the negative. We need to work as hard was we can with what we’ve got and not waste time concentrating on things we don’t control.

“We have some pretty tough guys. We still believe we’re going to surprise some people.”