CSUN HAS SURPRISE FOR UCSB MATADORS END LOSING STREAK TO GAUCHOS CSUN 80, UCSB 71.

Byline: Gideon Rubin Staff Writer

Eto Onyenegecha got to play in front of a childhood mentor, Ian Boylan reached a significant milestone and Cal State Northridge defeated a longtime nemesis in a game as emotional as its outcome was improbable.

``Everything came together for us,'' Onyenegecha, a junior forward, said after CSUN defeated UC Santa Barbara 80-71 in a televised Big West Conference game at Northridge Gym on Saturday.

The Matadors (11-12, 7-8) had lost three consecutive home games going into Saturday, and had lost five consecutive games to Santa Barbara (13-10, 7-7).

Onyenegecha, a Nigerian who transferred to CSUN from City College of San Francisco, said the victory was especially emotional because it was the first time he played for CSUN in front of Joe Hill, who helped raise him. Onyenegecha's mother died when he was 13.

``This game meant a lot because he's the one that sent me here,'' Onyenegecha said. ``He told me to come to Northridge.''

Onyenegecha had 16 points, including a put-back with 1:13 left in a one-point game.

Boylan, a junior forward, scored a game-high 21 points and became the 13th player in school history to surpass the 1,000-point mark.

``I don't know if you guys realize it but Ian Boylan is sometimes facing double teams and triple teams every time he touches the ball,'' CSUN coach Bobby Braswell said. ``It's amazing the things that he does.''

Northridge, which is ranked ninth in the conference in 3-point shooting, was 8 of 9 from behind the arc in the second half, and at one stretch hit seven consecutive 3-pointers.

Davin White had 16 points and made 3 of 7 3-point attempts, and freshman walk-on Terrell Jones was 3 of 5 from beyond the arc and had 13 points. Boylan made 3 of 6 3-point attempts.

All eight second-half 3-pointers were scored during a stretch that started with CSUN trailing 49-45 midway through the second half and ended with a White bank shot from beyond the arc that gave the Matadors a 72-68 lead with 3:41 remaining.

``That's amazing,'' Santa Barbara coach Bob Williams said. ``There's no doubt they came out and got in a great rhythm in the second half. Their confidence level was sky-high. They were shooting the ball extremely well and they buried us.''

CSUN held UCSB scoreless the final 2:42, after Branduinn Fullove (Simi Valley High) hit a 12-foot baseline jumper that closed the Gauchos to within 72-71.

Nick Jones led Santa Barbara with 14 points, and Fullove, last year's conference MVP, scored 12 points.

``I'm blessed to have these guys,'' Braswell said. ``They've just gotten tougher, tougher and tougher. Through all the adversity and all the things they've been through this season, these guys could have just given up a long time ago.''

Gideon Rubin [phone]

gideon.rubin(at)dailynews.com