COACH'S TALK SPARKS MILLS : CSUN 70, MONTANA STATE 65.

Byline: Rizza Yap Daily News Staff Writer

Throughout the season, Cal State Northridge senior guard Tammie Mills has been consistent.

But before the Matadors' 70-65 victory at home Saturday night over Montana State, and after a pregame speech by Northridge coach Michael Abraham that urged the seniors to produce more, Mills decided consistent wasn't enough.

Mills entered the game averaging 7.1 points and finished with a game-high 21. She made 3 of 4 shots from beyond the 3-point line, her best performance at Northridge.

Mills has only six 3-pointers this season - the only six she has recorded in her three-year career with the Matadors.

Mills' effort, along with 17 points from freshman guard Edniesha Curry and 13 by redshirt freshman Neda Milic, led Northridge to its second victory over Montana State, which it had defeated 67-65 on the road early last month.

``Some of the (players) laughed at me, but I told them that this was our biggest game in the program's history,'' said Abraham, CSUN's third-year coach. ``For a (rebuilding) program, it's important to beat the teams that we've already beaten and move on. The other team didn't lose. We won.''

Much like the teams' first-round Big Sky Conference matchup at Montana State, the game was a static, close-knit battle from start to finish. The lead changed hands 13 times in the first half, and the score was tied on nine occasions. In that period, neither team led by more than the five-point advantage the Lady Cats held once, when they opened the game with a 5-0 run.

Northridge was down by two near halftime, when Mills scored her second 3-pointer of the game with five seconds left to help the Matadors (10-10, 6-4) establish a 37-36 lead at the break.

The first half already was productive for both teams, with three players scoring in double figures. Montana State junior forward Tennyson Ballek, who had 59 points combined in her previous three games, had 12 of her team-high 19 in the first half.

For Northridge, Mills and Curry, who both went 2-for-2 from 3-point range, each had 10 at halftime. Milic also had eight rebounds en route to a game total of 13.

Offsetting a slow start this season, Milic has become a key contributor in conference games. She entered the week averaging 5.4 points and 2.5 rebounds, but she has registered 23 points and 21 rebounds in the past two contests.

Prior to this season, Milic underwent knee surgery twice - once in Serbia before signing with the Matadors and the second at the start of the 1996-97 season. Abraham said the first operation was determined ineffective and had to be redone.

Saturday's win also became a record-setting night for Curry, who grabbed eight rebounds and had six assists. In her first season at Northridge, the Palmdale High graduate sank three 3-pointers to give her 50 for the season, which ties the single-season record set by Carrie Dormire in 1996.

Curry, who began the season averaging three 3-pointers per game, has recently slipped in that category, making just four in three games prior to Saturday.

``With this game, I came in thinking that I need to make a statement,'' Curry said. ``When I made my first (3-pointer), it was a relief. After the second one, I was like, `Oh, is my stroke back?' '' Northridge begins a five-game road trip, starting with a Thursday night contest against Weber State. The Matadors return to the Northridge gymnasium on Feb. 28 for their final regular-season game, against Big Sky opponent Idaho State.