Charles Garcia (Los Angeles, Calif.), playing close to his hometown, notched his eighth double-double of the season with 34 points and 14 rebounds. Aaron Broussard (Federal Way, Wash.) tied his career high with 18 points, and Chris Gweth (Beaverton, Ore.) scored 13 points, 10 of them in the second half.
Cal State Northridge (5-10) extended its advantage early in the second half, outscoring SeattleU 10-2 in the first three minutes after halftime to take its biggest lead at the time, 50-36. A three-pointer by Broussard capped a 9-1 Redhawk run that cut the Matador lead to six at 51-45, but back-to-back three-pointers from Vinnie McGhee reestablished a double-digit lead for Cal State Northridge.
Seattle University made one final push, as a three-pointer by Alex Jones (Phoenix, Ariz.) started an 11-0 run that cut the Cal State Northridge lead to six at 77-71. Back-to-back three-pointers by Broussard and Taylor Olson (Seattle, Wash.) brought the Redhawks within four at 83-79, but the Matadors scored their final 21 points on free throws as they held off SeattleU to snap a seven-game losing streak.
Olson earned a season-high eight points as he played 24 minutes off the bench, while Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.) finished with seven points, four rebounds, eight assists, and four steals. As a team, Seattle University shot 40.5 percent (30-of-74) from the field, including 28 percent (7-of-25) from behind the three-point line, and 67.6 percent (23-of-34) from the free throw line.
After SeattleU took a 4-1 lead on two fastbreak baskets, Cal State Northridge went on a 17-5 run over a five-minute span to pull ahead, 18-9, midway through the first half. The Redhawks put together an 8-2 run to pull within three at 20-17, but the Matadors was able to keep SeattleU at arm's length, going into halftime ahead, 40-34.
McGhee led the Matadors with 22 points, hitting three long distance shots during the game and shooting 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Kenny Daniels scored 19 points, Rashaun McLemore collected 14 points, six rebounds, and four assists, and Lenny Daniel earned a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Cal State Northridge shot 56 percent from the field in the second half to finish the game at 43.8 percent (28-of-64), plus the team was successful on 34-of-49 attempts from the free throw line. The Matadors won the rebounding battle, 54-41, overcoming 21 turnovers.
Seattle University (7-11) starts a stretch in which they will play six of the next eight games at home Saturday, Jan. 16, against Utah Valley beginning at 7:10 p.m. at KeyArena at Seattle Center. The Redhawks will face Cal State Northridge again in eight days, as the Matadors travel to Seattle for a contest at KeyArena Tuesday, Jan. 19, also starting at 7:10 p.m.