CSUN Beats Clock, Long Beach

Anthony Moten’s only field-goal of the game--a three-point attempt with three seconds left in overtime--gave Cal State Northridge an 81-78 nonference victory Friday night over Cal State Long Beach.

Yes, that’s the same Cal State Long Beach that earlier this season knocked off Nevada Las Vegas and Kansas, then ranked No. 1 in the nation.

No wonder CSUN point guard Andre Chevalier called the game the Matadors’ “biggest win ever.”

Seth Greenberg, Long Beach’s coach, seconded the motion.

“They did to us what we did to Kansas,” he said.

Long Beach fell to 17-8. Northridge, which had lost three in a row, improved to 10-16 before a standing-room only crowd of 2,078 in Matador Gym.

Chevalier set up the game-winning play by drawing three defenders to him with a driving dribble to the basket. He then threw a long, one-hop pass to Moten, who was standing just beyond the three-point stripe on the baseline.

“I just happened to be standing on that side, waiting for Andre to penetrate,” said Moten, who had missed his only other field-goal try.

Ryan Martin gave Northridge the opportunity it needed by striping the ball from Long Beach’s Rod Hannibal with the 49ers up, 78-77. Hannibal was called for intentionally fouling Martin, sending the CSUN sophomore to the free-throw line for a pair of shots with 36 seconds left.

Martin missed the first, but made the second, tying the score. Because Hannibal’s foul was ruled intentional, the Matadors retained possession. On the in-bounds play, Northridge spread the floor, allowing Chevalier to pick out a seam to drive through.

Earlier, a buzzer-beater by Chevalier forced the overtime.

With Long Beach up, 67-64, he took off from beyond the three-point line and hit a running, off-balance, one-handed bank shot with one second to play in regulation.

At least that’s the way the officiating crew saw it. Greenberg, from his vantage point at the other end of the floor, was convinced Chevalier went airborne inside the three-point line.

“They can go home and sleep and I can go home and not sleep because they can’t look at a video of the play,” Greenberg said of the officials.

Chevalier said he made sure his foot touched down outside of the three-point line before going airborne, ducking under a defender, and letting the shot fly.

Lucious Harris, who was one year ahead of Chevalier at Cleveland High, scored 26 points for Long Beach. Harris’ eighth point, on a free-throw 10 minutes 13 seconds into the game, made him the Big West Conference’s career scoring leader, passing former Utah State star Greg Grant.

Harris, a senior, has 2,146 points.

Chevalier said he and Harris, who are close friends, were “talking trash the whole game.”

“He asked me why I had to hit that last shot (in regulation),” Chevalier said. “I said, ‘I just don’t want you to leave.’ ”

Peter Micelli scored a personal-high 27 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead Northridge. Chris Yard added 13 points.

“They were giving me the dribble, staying off me and not respecting my shot,” Micelli said. “I guess they didn’t think I could hurt them.”