Saturday, February 4, 2023

UCSB vs CSUN Game Preview, by gauchodan

Game 22 (BW Game 11)
UCSB at CSUN
Saturday, February 4, 2023, 7:00 pm PST
Northridge, Calif.
 
Quick Bite
The Gauchos (18-3, 9-1) looked like they were going to make quick work of Cal Poly on Thursday, but the Mustangs outscored UCSB in the 2nd half and denied Ajay Mitchell from controlling the game.  Ajay adjusted and piled up 8 assists once he touched the rock.  Rebounding was surprisingly an issue as Alimamy Koroma won the battle of the bigs.  Koroma also scored 13 points as he repeatedly posted up deep in the key.  UCSB bigs really need to get better at denying the opponents high-scoring spots on the floor.  Enough negativity: the Gauchos have won 5 straight games and 14 of their last 15.  The gauntlet of the Big West schedule commences next week.

Given UCSB's penchant for playing down to its opponents, it should be noted that the Matadors (4-18, 1-10) got off the snide with an overtime victory over Cal State Fullerton on Jan. 21.  CSUN is a 3-headed monster of Atin Wright, Dionte Bostick and De'Sean Allen-Eikens.  The consensus is that the Matadors are on the right track under head coach Trent Johnson, and teams like that start to come together in the latter half of a season.  Eeyore is definitely in my house right now.

Last meeting
Jan. 19: UCSB 72, CSUN 52
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- Ajay Mitchell scored 18 points and handed out 6 assists to spark the Gauchos to the win over the Matadors.  Miles Norris added 17 points as UCSB fired off 13 straight points to wipe out a small 2nd-half deficit.  Santa Barbara ended the game on a 36-14 run.  Atin Wright led Northridge with 19 points.

Last time out
Feb. 2: UC Santa Barbara 68, Cal Poly 62
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- Miles Norris scored 18 points and Ajay Mitchell added 16 as the Gauchos held off the Mustangs to remain in 1st place in the conference.  UCSB led by as many as 11 points but Cal Poly wouldn't go away, tying the game with 5:46 left and still down just 1 point with 1:41 remaining.  Alimamy Koroma had 13 points and 8 rebounds to lead the Mustangs, who have lost 10 in a row.

Jan. 28: UC Irvine 81, CSUN 56
IRVINE, Calif. -- Devin Tillis poured in 18 points, including a career-best 4-for-5 from three-point range, and the Anteaters used a strong 2nd half to rout the Matadors.  UC Irvine led 31-24 at halftime, but exploded out of the locker room on a 13-1 run over the first 3:20.  UCI led by as many as 34 points.

The Venue
Premier America Credit Union Arena
Capacity: 2,500
No, it's not a new arena.  It's just the rebranded Matadome, AKA Matador Gym.

CSUN Roster
Atin Wright #5 SO G, 6-1 160, Lakewood, CA -- 14.4 Pts, 2.6 Reb, 1.8 Ast
Dionte Bostick #0 SO G, 6-2 190, Clearwater, FL -- 12.4 Pts, 3.6 Reb, 2.7 Ast
De'Sean Allen-Eikens #25 JR G, 6-6 219, Williston, ND -- 10.4 Pts, 5.6 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Dearon Tucker #35 JR F, 6-10 240, Dallas, TX -- 5.4 Pts, 3.6 Reb, 0.2 Ast
Ethan Igbanugo #21 SR G, 6-3 191, Lakeville, MN -- 5.0 Pts, 2.6 Reb, 1.9 Ast
Fidelis Okereke #24 SO F, 6-6 240, Carson, CA -- 4.2 Pts, 4.8 Reb, 0.6 Ast
Marcel Stevens #12 SO G, 6-2 175, Beverly Hills, CA -- 4.1 Pts, 1.1 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Onyi Eyisi #13 SR F, 6-9 225, Napa Valley, CA -- 4.1 Pts, 4.5 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Cam Slaymaker #3 FR G, 6-4 180, Coquitlam, Canada -- 2.2 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.2 Ast
Adam Afifi #23 JR F, 6-9 235, San Jose, CA -- 4.0 Pts, 2.8 Reb, 0.2 Ast
Arman Pezeshkian #22 JR G, 5-10 170, Glendale, CA -- 2.3 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.5 Ast
John Wade #1 JR G, 6-5 175, Oakland, CA -- 1.5 Pts, 2.3 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Johnnie Walter #4 FR F, 6-9 210, Westlake Village, CA -- 0.8 Pts, 2.0 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Lamine Niang #34 FR F, 6-10 225, Thies, Senegal -- 1.3 Pts, 1.1 Reb, 0.5 Ast
Ben Starks #45 FR C, 7-0 235, San Clemente, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.5 Ast

UCSB Roster
Ajay Mitchell #13 SO G, 6-4 180, Sainte Marie Namur (Belgium) -- 15.5 Pts, 2.6 Reb, 4.7 Ast
Miles Norris #5 SR F, 6-10 220, San Diego, CA -- 13.9 Pts, 6.4 Reb, 1.6 Ast
Andre Kelly #2 SR F, 6-8 255, Stockton, CA -- 9.2 Pts, 6.3 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Josh Pierre-Louis #1 SR G, 6-4 185, Plainfield, NJ -- 9.6 Pts, 3.7 Reb, 2.1 Ast
Cole Anderson #4 SO G, 6-4 185, Fresno, CA -- 6.9 Pts, 1.3 Reb, 0.8 Ast
Calvin Wishart #10 SR G, 6-1 180, Delano, MN -- 6.6 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 2.7 Ast
Ajare Sanni #3 SR G, 6-3 170, Houston, TX -- 6.7 Pts, 2.4 Reb, 1.1 Ast
Koat Keat Tong #00 FR F, 6-9 215, Bentiu, South Sudan -- 1.5 Pts, 3.7 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Jakov Kukic #14 JR F, 6-10 230, Split, Croatia -- 1.5 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Evans Kipruto #12 JR F, 6-8 250, Nairobi, Kenya -- 1.0 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Matija Belic #32 FR G, 6-7 205, Belgrade, Serbia -- 0.5 Pts, 0.9 Reb, 0.3 Ast
David Pickles #40 SO F, 6-10 235, Seattle, WA -- 1.5 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Gage Gomez #50 JR G, 6-3 190, Arroyo Grande, CA -- 0.4 Pts, 0.4 Reb, 0.4 Ast
Ariel Bland #23 SO F, 6-7 215, Eden Prairie, MN -- 0.0 Pts, 1.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Henry Hartwell #51 FR G, 6-5 180, Oceanside, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Max Sheldon #53 SO G, 5-11 180, Santa Barbara, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.0 Reb, 0.0 Ast
 
CSUN National Ranking Outliers
Team

  • Assist/Turnover Ratio: 315 (0.83)
  • Assists per game: 346 (9.9)
  • Effective Field Goal percentage: 345 (.445)
  • Field Goal percentage: 343 (.394)
  • Fouls per game: 297 (18.7)
  • Rebounds (Defensive) per game: 286 (23.45)
  • Scoring Margin: 297 (-4.2)
  • Scoring Offense: 335 (63.3)
  • Three Point Attempts per game: 297 (18.6)
  • Three Point percentage: 304 (.312)
  • Three Pointers per game: 318 (5.8)
  • Turnovers per game: 99 (11.9)
  • Winning percentage: 342 (.182)

Players

  • Atin Wright -- Field Goal Attempts: 271 (254), Free Throw Attempts: 290 (88), Free Throw percentage: 28 (.875), Free Throws: 168 (77), Minutes per game: 283 (32:20), Points: 292 (321), Points per game: 276 (14.6), Steals: 256 (31), Steals per game: 262 (1.41), Three Point Attempts: 190 (131), Three Pointers per game: 310 (1.91), Three Pointers: 311 (42)
  • Dionte Bostick -- Field Goal Attempts: 313 (245), Free Throw Attempts: 333 (84)
  • De'Sean Allen-Eikens -- Rebounds (Offensive) per game: 311 (1.95)

UCSB National Ranking Outliers
Team

  • Effective FG percentage: 29 (.548)
  • Field Goal percentage: 6 (.496)
  • Rebound Margin: 46 (+4.8)
  • Rebounds (Offensive) per game: 280 (8.67)
  • Scoring Defense: 18 (62.0)
  • Scoring Margin: 53 (+8.7)
  • Three Point Attempts per game: 343 (15.8)
  • Three Pointers per game: 328 (5.5)
  • Winning percentage: 7 (.857)

Players

  • Ajay Mitchell -- Assist/Turnover ratio: 106 (1.96), Assists: 84 (100), Assists per game: 57 (4.8), Field Goal percentage: 89 (.516), Field Goals: 269 (115), Free Throw attempts: 98 (114), Free Throw percentage: 184 (.798), Free Throws: 73 (91), Minutes per game: 308 (32:09), Points: 240 (334), Points per game: 172 (15.9), Steals: 225 (32), Steals per game: 191 (1.52)
  • Miles Norris -- Blocks: 225 (21), Blocks per game: 207 (1.00), Double Doubles: 199 (3), Minutes per game: 234 (32:37), Field Goal percentage: 104 (.505), Minutes per game: 301 (32:12), Rebounds: 329 (132), Rebounds (Offensive) per game: 263 (2.05), Rebounds per game: 271 (6.3)
  • Andre Kelly -- Blocks: 256 (20), Blocks per game: 249 (0.95), Double Doubles: 199 (3), Rebounds: 347 (130), Rebounds (Defensive) per game: 167 (5.00), Rebounds per game: 282 (6.2)
  • Josh Pierre-Louis -- Steals: 225 (32), Steals per game: 146 (1.63)

Prediction
I keep waiting for that blowout game where the team just clicks on all cylinders.  Some good conversation on the board this week about the 2020-21 team.  It had its scary moments as well against the dregs of the conference, but caught fire at the right time...the BWT.  Today, I think we eventually pull away.  UCSB 69, CSUN 54

Official Site:  https://gomatadors.com/sports/mens-basketball
Hey Guys!:  https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/bigwest ... etball-f9/
How to Watch:  https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/ ... 706f95cb9f
Live stats:  https://gomatadors.com/sidearmstats/mbball/media

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