Northridge Upends Cal State Fullerton, 77-76

It was a game of streaks, but it came down to a free throw by Ruben Oronoz with 19 seconds left that gave Cal State Northridge a 77-76 basketball victory over Cal State Fullerton Saturday night.

Oronoz missed the second of the two free throws, and the Titans had a chance in the final seconds, but a shot by Chris Dade was blocked by Matt Andrews, and a desperation attempt by Brian Thomas also missed.

A quick foul by Chuck Overton put Oronoz on the free-throw line after Trenton Cross missed a second free throw with 25 seconds left, and Oronoz grabbed the rebound.

Fullerton Coach Bob Hawking said Overton fouled quickly because he thought the Titans were down by a point, rather than tied at that stage.

“Those things happen sometimes in the heat of battle,” Hawking said. “But we still had a chance at the end.”

The defeat left the Titans 0-2 for the season while Northridge improved to 1-2. It left Hawking 1-1 as a head coach against his alma mater.

Fullerton led by 14 points at 52-38 five minutes into the second half, but Northridge battled back to tie the score at 60-60 with nine minutes to play and took a 71-65 lead with slightly more than four minutes left.

Fullerton got back into the game when Dirk Rassloff and Overton hit key baskets, and Thomas, a reserve guard, stole the ball and scored to tie the score at 74-74 with 1:50 to play.

A basket by freshman center Mark Richardson gave the Titans a 76-75 lead with a minute left. The free throw by Cross produced a 76-76 tie.

Oronoz, a former Rancho Santiago College player, finished with a game-high 19 points, including the crucial free throw. He also had a team-leading six rebounds. Oronoz’s career has been troubled by injuries. He missed 11 of the team’s final 15 games last season with ankle problems.

Point guard Ali Nayab led the Titans with 15 points despite sitting out the final four minutes with five fouls. Overton finished with 13 points, John Williams had 12 and Richardson and Thomas each had 11.

“We made Williams really work for every point he got,” Northridge Coach Pete Cassidy said. “We did a better job of minimizing their second shots in the second half. They had to work a lot harder for their shots.”

The Matadors played without Damian Morbley, who was suspended for one game for missing a practice. Morbley, the top career rebounder and second-leading scorer at Orange Coast College, was Northridge’s top scorer in its first two games, averaging 20 points.

The Titans fell behind early, trailing 13-10 before Dirk Rassloff came off the bench to score six consecutive points. Two three-point shots and a rebound basket by Oronoz brought the Matadors back to a 29-28 lead, but Fullerton had another surge. Strong defensive play by Nayab sparked it. His two consecutive steals for layups gave the Titans a 40-29 lead and they finished the first half on top, 40-31.

“The important thing was that we didn’t quit after they got ahead of us,” Cassidy said. “Fullerton is very quick and physical, but we had a lot of tenacity in this game.”

Hawking said he was concerned the team might be off a little after opening the season against defending national champion UCLA.

“But we played a solid first half and were emotionally ready,” Hawking said. “They really got hot in the second half, and they got a couple of cheap put-back baskets. But we were down by nine late and didn’t give up.”

Northridge shot 45.5% from the floor compared to the Titans’ 42.9%.