Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.) tied his season high with 17 points, shooting 7-of-13 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line, plus he pulled down five rebounds and dished out three assists. Despite foul trouble, Charles Garcia (Los Angeles, Calif.) notched his ninth double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds, including seven offensive rebounds.
Cal State Northridge (7-11) held a six-point lead early in the second half before layups by Burrell and Garcia cut the margin to two at 33-31. After two free throws by Kenny Daniels, a layup by Chris Gweth (Beaverton, Ore.) and a dunk from Gavin Gilmore (Pasco, Wash.) tied the game at 35-35. The two teams exchanged baskets for the next three and a half minutes before consecutive three-pointers from Taylor Olson (Seattle, Wash.) and Alex Jones (Phoenix, Ariz.) gave the Redhawks the lead for good.
Down 51-43 with 9:20 remaining in the second half, the Matadors went on an 8-1 run, capped by a three-pointer from Vinnie McGhee, to pull within one at 52-51 less than two minutes later. Burrell stopped the run with a layup, and SeattleU scored seven unanswered points, five of them by Aaron Broussard (Federal Way, Wash.), late in the half to put the game away.
Gweth reached double figures in scoring for the 12th straight game, finishing with 12 points, five rebounds, and two assists. Broussard also scored 12 points along with seven rebounds, while Gilmore contributed six points and six rebounds, Jones added six points and four rebounds, and Olson collected five points in the game.
Daniels led all players with 21 points, hitting 8-of-16 shots from the field and 4-of-5 attempts from the free throw line. Kevin Menner came off the bench and went 6-of-7 from the field for 12 points, while McGhee and Lenny Daniel each finished with 10 points and six rebounds for the Matadors, with McGhee also earning a game-high four steals.
SeattleU won the rebounding battle, 52-38, and finished the night shooting 43.5 percent (27-of-62) from the field and 56.7 percent (17-of-30) from the free throw line. Meanwhile, Cal State Northridge shot 39.1 percent (25-of-64) from the field, including just 3-of-17 from behind the three-point line, and 50 percent (11-of-22) from the free throw line.
Seattle University (9-11) will have a week to prepare for the renewal of the crosstown rivalry, as the Redhawks head to Bank of America Arena next Tuesday, Jan. 26, to face Washington beginning at 7 p.m. The game will be televised by FSN Northwest, and Dave Grosby and Gary Hill, Jr., will be courtside with all the action on 710 ESPN Seattle, starting with the pregame show at 6:45 p.m.