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Cal State Northridge|
RECORD: 22-10 REGION: Midwest SEED: 13 COACH: Bobby Braswell CONFERENCE: Big Sky |
Road to the Final Four.............................................................................................
| PREVIOUS GAMES | LEADERS | ||||
| OPPONENT | ROUND | RESULT | POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS |
| Kansas | 1st Round | L 99 - 75 | |||
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 The Matadors have to get the ball to Brian Heinle. A lot of NBA scouts love his low-post game. Averaging nearly 21 points a game, he can really cause some matchup problems for the Northridge's first-round opponent. Coach Bobby Braswell does a good job defensively. They can use a player like Jeff Parris to get after the opposing guards. Combining Parris and Heinle, the Matadors have a pretty decent 1-2 punch. Remember, Northridge beat UCLA early in the season, which really gave them the confidence to make a run for the Big Sky title. UCLA would probably be the first team to say you can't take Northridge lightly. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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At least the Big Sky won't have to worry about beating the Matadors next season. Northridge is taking its first conference title with them to the Big West in 2001-02. As a farewell to the league, the Matadors rolled through the conference tournament and into the NCAAs for the first time. Now another big boy will have to play 'em. Northridge made its rep early this season, knocking off UCLA in its second game of the season -- at Pauley, no less. Wins over NCAA-bound teams like Kent State prove the win over the Bruins wasn't a fluke. Northridge also lost to UNLV by one; Marquette by three; Hawaii by six; and USC by nine. To say the schedule got Northridge ready for March is an understatement. Kansas had better break out the tapes of Northridge-UCLA on Nov. 21.Player to Watch
Brian Heinle stands 6-10 and will be eager to match up with any center the Matadors draw. He'll also take them out of the middle because he can shoot from deep (48 of 108 on 3-pointers). Heinle didn't have much competition in the Big Sky, averaging 20.7 ppg over the course of the season. But he also flexed against UCLA (27 points) and Kent State (32 points). With the Ball
Northridge returned four seniors and each stepped up as leaders. Heinle, John Burrell and Jeff Parris each averaged double figures. The Matadors simply ran over, through and around the Big Sky on most nights, averaging 83.4 ppg. Heinle's ability to step outside and shoot the 3-pointer adds a dimension to the Matadors most teams don't enjoy.Defending the Ball
Defense isn't on the Matadors' list of priorities, but that's because they are usually getting ready to score on the other end. Allowing 75 ppg in the Big Sky isn't a good sign. But a good offense is a good defense at time, as the Matadors won nine games in which they scored 90 or more points -- eclipsing 100 twice. They also allowed NCAA-bound Georgia Tech and USC to surpass 90 points in losses.Seed Analysis
Exceding the Seed:
None Playing to Expectations:
None Falling Short:
None Bracketology Report
1985-2000: Cal State Northridge makes its first trip to the NCAAs this year and will try to salvage some pride for the Big Sky Conference. The Big Sky has won only three tournament games since 1979, the most recent being the Weber State shocker over North Carolina in 1999. The only other Big Sky win in the 64-team era also involved Weber State (1995) over Michigan State. Roster
| NO | NAME | P | HT | WT | YR | PPG | RPG | APG | MPG | FG% | FT% | 3PT% |
| 31 | Brian Heinle | C | 225 | Sr. | 20.7 | 9.4 | 4.0 | 31.9 | .515 | .665 | .445 | |
| 12 | Markus Carr | G | 180 | Jr. | 8.7 | 2.4 | 8.9 | 30.9 | .455 | .814 | .321 | |
| 20 | Carl Holmes | G | 170 | Sr. | 7.5 | 3.8 | 0.7 | 25.7 | .479 | .704 | .492 | |
| 5 | Marco McCain | G | 185 | Sr. | 8.3 | 2.7 | 1.6 | 25.5 | .483 | .720 | .417 | |
| 25 | John Burrell | G | 185 | Sr. | 14.6 | 2.7 | 1.0 | 25.1 | .438 | .859 | .392 | |
| 42 | Jeff Parris | F | 223 | Sr. | 13.7 | 4.6 | 1.3 | 21.6 | .614 | .637 | .133 | |
| 34 | Joey Busch | F | 235 | Jr. | 3.5 | 3.0 | 0.4 | 12.2 | .488 | .667 | .000 | |
| 10 | Lionel Benjamin | G | 205 | So. | 2.5 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 9.3 | .759 | .545 | .000 | |
| 21 | Jermar Welch | F | 215 | Sr. | 2.9 | 2.1 | 0.0 | 8.8 | .558 | .636 | .000 | |
| 44 | Dan Read | C | 220 | So. | 1.1 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 7.9 | .476 | .750 | .250 | |
| 4 | Craig Calloway | G | 185 | Jr. | 0.7 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 6.7 | .364 | .800 | .333 | |
| 3 | Denny Ogden | G | 180 | Sr. | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 5.5 | .348 | 1.000 | .300 | |
| 24 | Keith Jackson | G | 160 | Fr. | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 2.3 | .000 | .500 | .000 |
| VS TOURNEY TEAMS (2-3) | LEADERS | |||
| OPPONENT | RESULT | POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS |
| @ UCLA | ||||
| Kent State | ||||
| @ USC | ||||
| @ Hawaii | ||||
| @ Georgia St | ||||
| LAST 5 GAMES | LEADERS | |||
| OPPONENT | RESULT | POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS |
| Eastern Wash | ||||
| Weber St | ||||
| @ Portland St | ||||
| @ Eastern Wash | ||||
| Montana St | ||||
NCAA Basketball Championship Week
It's March, which means the madness has started and invitations are being reserved throughout Championship Week.
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