Cal State Northridge Captures Big West Regular Season and Tourney Titles
Cal State Northridge overcame adversity and a competitive conference field to claim the Big West regular season and tournament titles in 2008-09.
The Matadors won eight of their last 10 Big West games and 11 of their last 15 games overall to persevere through a number of struggles. CSUN endured a six-game losing streak early in the season and began Big West play just 3-3 as the preseason favorite to win the league. Throw in the loss of all-conference caliber guards Deon Tresvant and Josh Jenkins, and no one would have blamed the Matadors for folding.
But fold they did not.
A deep bench stepped in for the void in the starting backcourt, and players such as Rodrigue Mels and Mark Hill stemmed the leakage in production. Mels was especially key as he scored 51 points in two games against UC Santa Barbara and Pacific to capture Big West Tournament Most Valuable Player honors. The senior guard led the team in scoring in six of the last nine games as he stepped out of his normal reserve duty.
CSUN (17-14 overall) finished 11-5 in Big West play to secure its first outright regular season championship in their eighth year as a league member, coming on the heels of its 2007-08 tri-regular season title with Cal State Fullerton and UC Santa Barbara.
The Big West Tournament championship was CSUN's first, and earned the Matadors an automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament. The Matadors received the No. 15 seed in the West Regional and faced the formidable task of battling No. 2 seed Memphis in Kansas City, Mo. CSUN thrilled the Sprint Center crowd, leading the Tigers by six points with 10 minutes to play. The Matadors were unable to sustain the lead and eventually fell, 81-70, but their play reflected the toughness and perseverance they had displayed all season.
Big West News and Notes
PACIFIC REACHES SEMIS OF COLLEGEINSIDER.COM TOURNEY: The Pacific men's basketball team participated in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament and reached the semifinals of the 16-team field. The Tigers hosted and defeated Portland (82-76) and Idaho (69-59) in the first two rounds to advance to the semifinals on the road against Bradley. The Braves were too much on their home court, defeating the Tigers 59-49. Pacific concluded the season 21-13, marking the fifth time in the last six seasons that the program accumulated 20 wins. Head Coach Bob Thomason has led the Tigers to at least 20 wins in eight of the last 13 seasons.
UC RIVERSIDE EXPERIENCES MAJOR TURNAROUND: It was a record setting year for UC Riverside men's basketball. The Highlanders set school Division I records for most overall wins (17), most Big West wins (8) and best conference finish (t-4th). In addition, the 17 wins represented a plus-eight turnaround in the win column from the 2007-08 season. Head Coach Jim Wooldridge's Highlanders led the conference in scoring defense for the first time in school history, allowing opponents only 60.6 points per game.
ANDERSON ACCOMPLISHES RARE FRESHMAN FEAT: Long Beach State guard Larry Anderson became just the second freshman in league history, and the first in 35 years, to make the All-Big West First Team. He joined fellow 49er Clifton Pondexter on that list. Anderson averaged 10.8 points and 4.0 rebounds in 30 games, making 13 starts. He averaged 12.3 points to rank No. 13 in Big West play, and was fourth-best in field goal accuracy at 51.1% (71 of 139).
THREE-POINT FEVER FOR CAL STATE FULLERTON'S AKOGNON: Cal State Fullerton senior guard Josh Akognon, a 5-11 transfer from Washington State, made 136 three-pointers to achieve the second-highest single-season total in Big West history. In addition, his 252 career three-pointers tied for the seventh-most in Big West annals. His 4.3 three-pointers made per game placed him second in the nation.
DEVINE STELLAR IN SENIOR SEASON: UC Santa Barbara senior Chris Devine capped off a prolific career with his name dispersed throughout the school record book. The 6-8 forward finished third in career scoring (1,607), fifth in rebounding (723), third in field goals made (592), second in free throws made (400) and third in steals (130). He averaged 15.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in 2008-09 en route to his first All-Big West First Team award.
AKOGNON PILES UP POSTSEASON AWARDS: Cal State Fullerton senior Josh Akognon wrapped up a stellar two-year Titan career with numerous accolades. In addition to being named the 2008-09 Big West Player of the Year, Akognon also received Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American recognition and a spot on the National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District 9 First Team. Akognon became only the fourth Titan to earn All-American honorable mention by the Associated Press, joining Leon Wood (1984), Cedric Ceballos (1990) and Scott Cutley (2008) on the list. He was also the only Big West player to be included on any of the 24 all-district first and second units. The 5-11 guard, who finished sixth in the nation with 23.9 points per game, joined John Bryant of Santa Clara, Patrick Mills of Saint Mary's, and Matt Bouldin and Josh Heytvelt of Gonzaga on the District 9 first team.
AKOGNON SETS BIG WEST TOURNAMENT MARK: Cal State Fullerton senior Josh Akognon established a Big West Tournament single-game record when he scored 37 points in a first round win against UC Riverside. The previous record of 36 points was held by three other players. Akognon also hit nine three-pointers, the second-most in a tournament contest. Akognon was selected to the Big West All-Tournament Team.
THOMASON BIG WEST WINS KING: Pacific's Bob Thomason took the mantle of all-time winningest head coach in Big West games when he won his 206th career conference contest on Valentine's Day against UC Irvine. With the win, he surpassed the 205 Big West victories that Jerry Tarkanian accumulated at Long Beach State (1970-73) and UNLV (1983-92). Thomason and Tarkanian are the only two coaches in Big West history to eclipse the 200-win mark in conference games. Thomason owns a conference career record of 209-147 (.587).