Northridge Goes Blank Against Irvine’s Zone : College basketball: McLinn’s career-high 18 points aren’t enough for Matadors, whose second-half swoon results in 93-82 defeat.

The sign of the times was held by a Cal State Northridge cheerleader.

During a break in UC Irvine’s 93-82 nonconference victory Saturday night over the Matadors, cheerleaders executed a perfectly choreographed routine before one hoisted a sign that read, in large, red letters: “Go”--upside down.

The team followed suit.

After leading by as many as eight points four minutes into the second half, Northridge (1-6) stalled, allowing Irvine (2-2) to rally for a victory at Matador gym.

“We played our defense tonight in the second half as good as we can play it,” Irvine Coach Rod Baker said.

Brooklyn McLinn, who equaled a career-high by scoring 18 points for Northridge, apparently wasn’t as impressed.

He compared Irvine’s defensive effort to “a high school zone.”

Asked if the Anteaters, who substituted in waves, wore down the Matadors, McLinn replied, “I think the pressure wore on us mentally. We were rushing, and for no reason.”

McLinn was the only Northridge player who appeared happy with the pace. He scored 15 points in the second half, making five of seven three-point shots.

During a 15-3 run by Irvine that brought the Anteaters back from a 56-48 deficit, the Matadors’ only points were scored on a basket by McLinn, who has made 14 of 25 from long distance in the last four games.

Two free throws by Shane O’Doherty gave Northridge its eight-point bulge a little more than three minutes into the second half. In the next 11 minutes, the Matadors’ only points came on a trio of three-point shots by McLinn, a 10-foot jumper by Peter Micelli and a free throw by Chris Yard.

“We didn’t execute well against their zone in the second half,” Northridge Coach Pete Cassidy said.

Five Northridge players scored in double figures, but the Matadors shot only 36.4% in the second half when Irvine tightened the seams on its zone.

“If you could paint the picture, this is what you would want it to be,” Baker said of his team’s most impressive outing of the season.

The Irvine coach wasn’t only referring to the Anteaters’ defense.

Shooting only slightly better than 40% coming in, Irvine sank 51% of its shots against Northridge, including eight of 16 from three-point range.

“That doesn’t happen too many other nights,” Baker said. Irvine also made 27 of 39 free-throw attempts, including 15 of 19 in the second half.

“We’re doing some things on defense more gambling than solid,” Cassidy said.

It figured that the Anteaters might beat Northridge at the post, using the height and size advantage provided by DeForrest Boyers, a 6-foot-10, 250-pound center, and Jermaine Avie, a 6-7 forward.

Instead, Irvine got career-high scoring performances from reserve forward Todd Whitehead and guard Zuri Williams as the Anteaters earned their first Division I victory of the season.

Whitehead, a sophomore from Los Angeles Fremont High, had 21 points in only 17 minutes. Williams, a junior from Oakland, had 16 points, marking the first time he has scored in double figures.

Micelli had 14 points for Northridge, Andre Chevalier and Robert Hill each scored 13 and Chris Yard added 11. Chevalier’s final point, on a free throw with 56 seconds left, made him the ninth player in Northridge history to score 1,000 points.

“It’s no big deal,” Chevalier said of the milestone. “We lost the game. It gets lost because we lost the game.”

Lloyd Mumford scored 15 points for Irvine. LaDay Smith added 11.