Men’s Basketball: ‘Eaters alone at top

NORTHRIDGE — In an effort to enhance the spectator experience, the sidewalk leading to Cal State Northridge’s men’s basketball arena is lined by a long swath of red carpet.

Things were far less inviting for Matadors players when it came to attacking visiting UC Irvine in the Anteaters’ 73-63 Big West Conference victory Wednesday.

UCI’s 7-foot-6 junior center Mamadou Ndiaye was seven for seven from the field, while 7-2 junior backup Ioannes Dimakopoulos was six for eight from the field to have their way offensively.

Even more important, Dimakopoulos had six blocks, and Ndiaye added another, while 6-10 freshman Jonathan Galloway also contributed to establishing a consistent road block to frequent Matador drives.

UCI (17-5, 6-0 in conference) was credited with only seven blocked shots, but had at least a handful more, while altering many more shots on its way to building a 24-point second-half lead.

Dimakopoulos, who dislocated his right little finger in practice on Tuesday, finished with 13 points and five rebounds. Ndiaye had 14 points and seven boards, while junior guard Luke Nelson had 14 points and eight assists, the latter almost exclusively via deliveries to the post.

“I liked the way our 7-footers dominated the game tonight,” UCI Coach Russell Turner said. “We see a lot of performances like that out of Mamadou, but I was really happy for Ioannes, who asserted himself tonight in a different kind of way.”

Even when Northridge (7-14, 2-5), which lost for the second straight time at home to UCI for the first time in 31 seasons, did manage to defeat UCI defenders at the rim, it managed to energize the Anteaters.

Matadors 6-9 senior Tre Hale-Edmerson launched himself from the baseline and dunked over Ndiaye to pull the hosts within 25-22 and ignite the crowd with 45 seconds left in the first half.

But Hale-Edmerson received a technical for verbally taunting Ndiaye on his way up the court and Matadors Coach Reggie Theus immediately received a technical voicing his displeasure as well.

Nelson netted three of the four technical foul shots and Ndiaye punctuated the five-point possession with a dunk to further dilute the impact of Hale-Edmerson’s rainmaker.

Adding to the sudden momentum surge back toward the visitors, senior Alex Young banked in a three-pointer from just more than half court at the halftime buzzer to create a 33-22 intermission lead.

“It was a huge play, a turning point in this game, because they lost their composure,” Turner said of the hosts’ inability to parlay any momentum gained by the resounding dunk. “We made three free throws, then got a dunk, and we threw in a lucky one to end the half and finish on an 8-0 run.”

Added Dimakopoulos: “[Hale-Edmerson’s dunk] energized us more than it did them, because we scored eight quick points. Everyone is OK with getting dunked on once, if you protect the rim nine of 10 times. [Protecting the rim] has been our No. 1 goal since training camp in August. I was in the right spot at the right time and I was able to get most of my blocks tonight without jumping.”

UCI used a 19-3 run that ended with an 11-0 spurt to break the game open early in the second half, then cruised to the finish to win their seventh straight, their 10th in their last 11 games.

UCI, which assumes sole possession of first place in the Big West since Hawaii (16-2, 5-0 was idle) shot 51.8% from the field.

Northridge was 15 for 45 from the field midway through the second half, before using some easy buckets in the final moments to finish at 41.3% for the game. The Matadors made just one of 12 three-point attempts against a UCI team that entered the week ranked No. 7 in the nation in field-goal percentage defense (.374).

UCI, ranked No, 13 in the CollegeInsider.com mid-major poll, plays host to UC Santa Barbara on Saturday at 7 p.m.

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Big West Conference

UC Irvine 73, Cal State Northridge 63

UCI – Best 10, Smith 2, Ndiaye 14, Nelson 14, Young 3, Dimakopoulos 13, Martin 8, Wright 7, Dunning 2.

3-pt. goals – Nelson 1, Young 1, Wright 1, Dimakopoulos 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – Ndiaye 1.

CSUN – Hale-Edmerson 11, Ajayi 0, Parks 17, Warren 9, Smith 5, Richardson 7, Wilbut 6, Dawson 6, Douglas 2.

3-pt. goals – Smith 1.

Fouled out – Hale-Edmerson.

Technicals – Hale-Edmerson 1, Coach Theus 1.

Halftime – 33-22, UCI.