Feb. 9, 2008

Final Stats

DAVIS, Calif. - Cal State Northridge used a 20-5 run midway through the second half to defeat UC Davis, 77-57, Saturday night in a Big West game at The Pavilion. Tremaine Townsend led the Matadors with 21 points and 22 rebounds. Dominic Calegari led UC Davis with a season-high 18 points behind a career-high four three-pointers. David Carter finished with 17 points for the third straight game.

UC Davis (8-15, 2-8 Big West) played to a virtual deadlock with 11 minutes to play as it pushed the Big West co-leaders through the midway point of the second half. Entering the day, CSUN (16-6, 8-2 Big West) was second in the conference in scoring but struggled against an active UC Davis defense. The Aggies scored the first six points of the night and led 12-5 with 12:14 left in the half.

The Matadors responded with a 12-2 run and led 16-14 at the 7:15 mark. Four minutes later, the Aggies regained the lead as Nathan Clark connected from the left baseline to give UC Davis a 23-22 lead. The final scoring of the half came on two free throws by Mark Payne as CSUN led 26-25 at the break.

"Our guys had a great commitment to the defensive end," said UC Davis head coach Gary Stewart of his team's play in the first half. "We were aggressive, and we know Northridge is extremely aggressive. If you're going to play them and have any success, you're going to have to fight and we fought in the first half."

The game continued to be a seesaw affair in the first nine minutes of the second half as neither team led by more than six during the stretch. Calegari opened the Aggies' scoring with a three-pointer and would score the team's first seven points of the half. His free throws with 17:35 left tied the game at 32.

A Shane Hanson trey with 16 minutes remaining put UC Davis in front 37-36, but that would turn out to be the last lead of the night for the hosts. With the game tied at 40, Cal State Northridge went on a 6-0 run and led 46-40 with just over 13 minutes to play. A Carter three-pointer from the top of the key made it 46-43 less than a minute later. A layup by CSUN's Rodrigue Mels was followed by another Calegari trey, and UC Davis trailed 48-46 at the 11:17 mark.

That would be as close as the Aggies would get as the Matadors began their 20-5 run. By the time it was over, CSUN led 68-51 with 5:56 remaining.

"What hurt us were the turnovers that led to some easy opportunities," said Stewart. "They had several of those in the second half, and that was to our detriment."

Hanson and Payne each finished with eight points, and Payne led UC Davis with nine rebounds. Calvin Chitwood and Deon Tresvant also finished in double figures for Cal State Northridge. Chitwood scored 13, and Tresvant posted 12.

The Matadors shot 53 percent, including 65 percent in the second half, and held UC Davis to 32 percent. Despite Townsend's 22 rebounds, CSUN only outrebounded UC Davis, 36-30. The Matadors committed 17 turnovers and forced the Aggies into 22.

UC Davis is next in action Thursday when it plays at Cal State Fullerton.