Mathews Is Upbeat After Loss : College basketball: Ventura coach, whose team’s 29-game winning streak was broken improbably by Cuesta, would rather take defeat now than in the playoffs.

The morning after is never easy for a coach whose team inexplicably drops a game it had no business losing, but Ventura College’s Philip Mathews was surprisingly upbeat Thursday, only hours after his Pirates absorbed perhaps their most improbable defeat.

Ventura, ranked No. 1 in the state, saw its school-record 29-game winning streak snapped, 72-71, by Cuesta in a Western State Conference North Division game Wednesday at Ventura. Mathews assumed a philosophical stance in the aftermath.

“No loss is ever good, but this one might be good for us,” said Mathews, whose team had a 21-game winning streak last season. “Better now than in the playoffs.”

The Pirates (29-2, 5-1 in conference play) hadn’t lost since a season-opening setback to Kings River, 63-61, and they had never lost to Cuesta (20-8, 2-3) since Mathews took over the program in the 1985-86 season. In fact, Ventura hammered the Cougars, 105-62, nine days earlier.

After that game at Cuesta, second-year Cougar Coach Rusty Blair called the Ventura coaches, the players and even their fans “arrogant.” The comments, Blair said, fueled the rematch Wednesday.

“We were very high for the game and so were they,” Blair said. “Our kids played the best game of their lives.”

The same apparently could not be said for Ventura.

The Pirates, playing without injured point guard Joey Ramirez, trailed by as many as 17 points and committed 20 turnovers. They had opportunities to win at the buzzer but failed to convert several tip attempts after a missed shot.

“We had second chances to win,” Mathews said. “We missed shots. We didn’t rebound. It was a total collapse.”

Blair noted that Ramirez’s absence contributed to the ragged play. The sophomore from Santa Paula High underwent arthroscopic surgery Monday for damaged cartilage in his right knee and probably won’t return until the Southern California regionals Feb. 26.

“Last time we played, we went to a box-and-one (defense) with Ramirez,” Blair said. “With him out, we could go back to our normal man to man and not have to worry about his ballhandling.”

Despite the loss, Blair said Ventura should be ranked No. 1 in the state in the next poll. “In my estimation, they are still the best team in the state,” he said.