Matadors Miss Morris in Boise

Inch for inch and pound for pound, Northridge guard James Morris has to be one of the nation’s toughest college basketball players.

An off guard at 5-foot-8, Morris routinely gives away more than six inches in height to opposing players. But more often than not, Morris wins the battle. He is the Matadors’ most tenacious defender and averages 10.8 points, second-best on the team.

So when Morris stayed in street clothes for Northridge’s game Tuesday against Boise State, it was obvious that he was in a lot of pain.

During Sunday’s game at Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Morris’ legs were cut out from under him and he landed heavily on his back and neck. He stayed motionless for minutes.

Morris said his back and right side were numb for some time. Tuesday night, he reported that he had been unable to sleep soundly and that both sides of his neck were still sore.

“Even when I yawn it hurts,” Morris said.

Watching Northridge flounder during a seven-minute, 14-2 Boise run midway through the first half didn’t help matters. The Matadors seemed tentative on offense and were not as intense as usual on defense.

“We need to be more aggressive,” Morris said. But instead of providing an example with his own play, he was reduced to pleading with his teammates from the bench.

“It hurts, too, watching them struggle like this,” he said.

MILWAUKEE MISERIES

Morris can be excused if he locks himself in a closet and doesn’t come out on Feb. 18 when Wisconsin-Milwaukee is in town to play Northridge.

The Panthers, he will tell you, have brought him nothing but heartache--and a couple of backaches, too.

On Northridge’s trip to Milwaukee last season, Morris was sidelined because of pericarditis, an inflammation of the tissue surrounding the heart. Then, when the Panthers visited Northridge later in the season, Morris slipped on some water residue on the hardwood and injured his back.

Northridge has played Milwaukee-Wisconsin three times since Morris transferred from Imperial Valley College as a junior. He has been injured every time.

“I guess that team itself just isn’t good for me,” Morris said.

DON’T THINK SO MUCH

Boise’s hustling man-to-man defense threw Northridge’s offensive attack out of sync, forcing 13 first-half turnovers.

In the second half, the Matadors played better, shooting 50%--compared to 35% in the opening 20 minutes--and committing only five turnovers. But Northridge never was able to trim the Broncos’ 16-point halftime advantage to fewer than 11.

Peter Micelli, who scored 10 points for Northridge, said the Matadors never settled into a pattern. At first Northridge rushed, then, reacting to Coach Pete Cassidy’s orders to move the ball around more, it may have slowed too much.

“You get to the point where you’re a little hesitant,” Micelli said. “You hesitate and you start to think about it. Basketball is a reaction game. You start thinking about things and analyzing and not reacting immediately, you’re going to be a step behind.”

Northridge was.

HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE?

Ventura Coach Philip Mathews is still trying to figure it out.

The Pirates are drawing 1,400 to 1,500 fans a home game--huge by junior college standards in California--yet the team has struggled more at home than on the road.

On Jan. 9, No. 1-ranked Ventura (24-1 entering Wednesday night’s game against Cuesta) struggled to a 69-59 victory over visiting Canyons, and Saturday, the Pirates sputtered to a 68-58 victory against visiting West L.A. (3-14).

“I just don’t think the players have been focused for the last few games,” Mathews said after the West L.A. game. “I think they think they can come out here, see the crowd and just chalk up another win. They don’t seem to realize that other teams see our crowd and they get excited. They treat it like a playoff game.”

Canyons Coach Lee Smelser and West L.A. Coach Charles Sands agreed with Mathews.

“This is a great place to play,” Smelser said after Canyons’ loss to Ventura. “The players come in here and see the size of the crowd and they really get up for the game.”

Said Sands: “This is a great atmosphere to play in. It’s hard for the players not to get excited about playing here.”

ON THE REBOUND

For a program that was 21-10 and advanced to the second round of the Southern California regionals in the 1990-91 season, Pierce’s 6-11 record in women’s basketball might seem disappointing. First-year Coach Kevin Keller knows better.

Keller took over a program that had disbanded after seven games last season after injuries and academic problems left the team short of players.

“We’re hanging in there,” Keller said. “Most of the games we’ve managed to stay competitive in. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t pleased with the way the girls have worked this season.”

Yolanda Davidian, a 5-foot-9 sophomore forward from La Canada High, and Shani Samuel, a 5-6 freshman guard from Thousand Oaks, have been the mainstays for the Brahmas.

Davidian leads the Western State Conference in scoring (23.5) and rebounding (13.7), and Samuel is averaging 17.9 points and 5.3 rebounds a game.

Despite Davidian’s statistics, Keller said she has not received much interest from college recruiters.

“She’s an excellent student and an excellent kid,” Keller said. “And her numbers speak for themselves. I don’t understand why she has not received more attention.”

GONE FOR GOOD?

Hugo Allan Garcia’s running career might be over at Glendale.

The gregarious Guatemalan, who won the 1990 state cross-country title for the Vaqueros, has one season of junior college track eligibility remaining. However, Glendale cross-country Coach Eddie Lopez doubts that he will use it.

After placing second in the 10,000 meters at the state track championships and eighth in the state cross-country finals in 1991, Garcia returned home to train in an attempt to qualify for the Guatemalan Olympic marathon team.

At that time, he hoped to return to Glendale in the fall to attend classes and run track for the Vaqueros this season, but that never happened.

“I’m not sure if he’ll be back next year or not,” Lopez said last month. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

TIME LTD.

If she played in a different system, Valley guard Rosa Mendez could boast even better statistics than she has.

Mendez, a 5-foot-7 sophomore from Roosevelt High, averages 15.3 points and 5.2 assists for the Monarchs, who were 19-4, 5-1 in Western State Conference play and ranked eighth in the state heading into Wednesday night’s game.

But because Mendez, who starts in the backcourt with former high school teammate Angie Quezada, is part of a 10-player rotation implemented by Coach Doug Michelson, her opportunities are limited.

“She’s only playing 20 to 24 minutes a game, and that’s basically early in the game,” Michelson said. “She’s probably the best scoring guard in the Southern California area.”

Because Valley generally has the game in hand by the final minutes, Mendez doesn’t see much action late in the games. That might be costing her some baskets and assists.

“Figuring you can usually get more free throws at the end of the game, she could almost double her numbers,” Michelson said.

RAIN OR SHINE

Like postal carriers, the Cal State Northridge baseball team delivers--rain or shine. Despite the deluge of rain, the Matadors worked outdoors since practice began Jan. 11.

To preserve their field, the players have practiced on a blacktop parking lot, in outdoor batting cages and in a parking structure. The team also has continued to hit off the pitching machine by covering it with tarps.

“You hope you try to get their bodies in some condition, but there’s no way you can simulate field conditions on a blacktop,” Coach Bill Kernen said. “The pitching hurts, especially, because they are throwing off a parking structure.”

Moreover, the rain prevented the Matadors from holding a live batting practice session until Tuesday.

However, the Matadors, ranked 25th in Collegiate Baseball Magazine’s preseason poll, have not necessarily fallen behind because their season opener is not until Feb. 9 at UC Santa Barbara, two weeks later than last season’s opener.

Before the opener, the Matadors will play two practice games, Saturday at 11 a.m. against visiting San Bernadino Valley College and Jan. 30 at 11 a.m. at Pierce College.

Staff writers Fernando Dominguez, Mike Hiserman, Theresa Munoz and John Ortega contributed to this notebook.