Militant Matadors Start Optimistically : College basketball: Northridge, with four returning starters plus depth, no longer content with moral victories.

Pete Cassidy’s speeches about underfunded, unloved, undersized, underdog Cal State Northridge teams used to include passages from children’s stories such as The Little Engine That Could.

The Matadors were young, they were small, they were unwanted, but . . . they thought they could, they thought they could, and . . .

They usually didn’t.

Times have changed.

When the Northridge basketball coach discusses the potential of his latest team, he employs terms that would make a Navy man proud.

His guards are “like P.T. boats,” quick, sneaky, daring and reliable. Recruit Shawn Stone, who actually served in the military, is so tough you would want him “on your side in any kind of a scrap.”

Sure, Pete. And how about Shane O’Doherty, at 6-foot-11 the tallest player in Northridge history? Is he an aircraft carrier, or what?

For the three seasons they have been competing on the NCAA Division I level, the Matadors have been cannon fodder. The team’s record is 29-54.

A few of those losses have been documented as moral victories.

“Three years of those is enough,” said Andre Chevalier, Northridge’s senior point guard. “Saying we only lost by seven doesn’t get us anywhere. It’s still a loss, and we’re tired of losing.”

Although its 10-17 record last season might not reflect it, Northridge has improved since moving to Division I, playing tighter games against better opponents.

During the campaign that begins tonight against Stanford in the first round of the Stanford Invitational, the Matadors will play four games against top teams from the Pacific 10 Conference, as many as five against schools from the Big West Conference, plus Notre Dame, Alabama Birmingham and Colorado, among others.

But of 27 scheduled games, only nine are at home.

Yet, they think they can, they think they can. . . .

The reason? Experience.

Four starters return, with guard Brooklyn McLinn and postmen Peter Micelli and Chris Yard joining Chevalier. The Matadors also have a trio of top reserves returning in swingman Josh Willis and guards Robert Hill and Ryan Martin.

And now, finally, has come a healthy crew of additional reinforcements.

Stone, a 6-3 swingman, has earned the starting nod at small forward. He averaged 16.5 points and 9.2 rebounds last season for MiraCosta College.

Providing depth in the front court are O’Doherty, the team’s first true center in a decade, plus forwards Brent Lofton (6-5) and Tom Samson (6-7).

Last season, after injuries and academic ineligibility wiped out virtually all of Cassidy’s recruiting class, the only reserves Northridge used in its front court were walk-ons.

Fatigue became a factor during games, and there was a pronounced lack of competition during practice.

“This year Shane, Brent and Tom all think they’re capable of starting and they work that way in practice,” said Micelli, a 6-8 junior. “I have something they want, and they’re coming after it every day.”

Micelli averaged 10.8 points per game clip last season, his first as a starter, and a position change should enable him to boost those numbers.

Instead of playing with his back to the basket, Micelli has been moved out near the free-throw line to take advantage of his shooting range.

Yard, a muscular 6-6 senior who possesses nifty inside moves and can score with either hand, has replaced Micelli on baseline patrol.

In the backcourt, Northridge is in a pleasant predicament, with a wealth of guards. “It’s hard to play them all,” Cassidy said.

Chevalier, a former Cleveland High star who has been a starter since the sixth game of his freshman season, is the school’s all-time leader with 346 assists and 129 steals.

McLinn, a senior, started alongside Chevalier last season in what was surely one of the nation’s shortest three-guard lineups.

Chevalier and McLinn, both 6-feet tall, teamed with 5-8 James Morris, who is now the Matadors’ undergraduate assistant.

Stone, at 6-3, gives Northridge some added height at guard, but the backcourt’s strength is in its strength.

Chevalier, McLinn, Stone and Martin all bench-press 300 pounds or more.

Said Stone, pound for pound the strongest player on the team: “Basketball is a contact sport and when your man knows you can dominate him it shows up on both ends of the floor.”

Added Cassidy: “Our intent last year was not to let anyone play pretty and run their plays and get into a flow with their offense,” Cassidy said. “Our goal then, as it is now, was to make it ugly. We’re going to try to scramble people.”