NO JOKE: HEINLE IS PRO PROSPECT HE'S CENTER OF ATTENTION AT CSUN.

Byline: Jill Painter Staff Writer

Blood was gushing down Brian Heinle's face. He had just hit his head while jumping up and down in the locker room during a postgame celebration after Cal State Northridge upset Oregon last year.

Coaches and players were obviously concerned, but they couldn't help but laugh. Heinle had everyone, including paramedics, in stitches: ``Oh, the carnage! The carnage!'' he screamed.

That's how Heinle, CSUN's star senior center, deals with stress. He makes people laugh.

For Heinle, it's as easy as scoring on a put-back or making a 3-pointer. Uncanny impressions of Bill Walton, broadcaster Keith Jackson or Sean Connery do the trick. He has one of CSUN coach Bobby Braswell, too. It makes even Braswell chuckle.

Now Heinle is getting attention from NBA scouts and not because of his stand-up routine. The 6-foot-9, 240-pound Oregon product has blossomed into a pro prospect. And he's learned when to say when with pranks.

``Goofy, that's the word I like to use but in a loving way,'' Braswell said. ``He's always been that way. He's got a wonderful heart. He just has a wonderful presence and personality about him.

``He's been that way forever and he'll always be that way. As a coach, he can sometimes drive you crazy because it's not always the appropriate time, in your mind as a coach, when you want a guy laughing. He usually does it when the tension is a little tight. I think in some ways it's a defense mechanism for Brian. It's a way to keep everybody loose, which is good.''

The one time Heinle retreats from his silly ways is when he's on the court. He's so serious and emotional that he's often crying after games - wins or losses. He's walked into many postgame interview sessions with red, swollen eyes.

``He's a silly guy and fun to be around,'' teammate Carl Holmes said. ``But on the other end, he's very sensitive. He's probably the only guy in the locker room crying after a loss. And he was crying after we won in Oregon. He just wants to win so bad.

``When I see him doing that, I know he's with us for the long haul. He just cares so much about this team.''

Heinle, who earned Big Sky player of the week honors for the fifth time on Monday, will play the most important game of his career Thursday when CSUN (17-9, 11-3), which leads the Big Sky Conference by one game, travels to play Eastern Washington (15-9, 10-4). If CSUN wins, it earns the right to hold the Big Sky Tournament, from which the winner receives an automatic NCAA Tournament berth.

Eastern Washington beat Northridge 88-75 at the Northridge gym last month - CSUN's only home loss this year - but CSUN has won seven of its last eight games. Without Heinle, the team's leading scorer and rebounder, CSUN wouldn't be in position to win the school's first Big Sky title. He figures he's just doing his job.

``I'm easygoing,'' Heinle said. ``I don't take things too seriously off the court. I just joke around. I try to have fun with whatever I do. I want to make sure guys are relaxed and not uptight or nervous. That's where I've changed this year. I know I'm a leader on the team, so I've tightened up my attitude a little bit and taken a more serious approach.''

Heinle returns to his home state for a game against Portland State on Saturday. When he left Oregon for California four years ago, people weren't sure what to think. He was a star at Eugene's Sheldon High and even though he was recruited by Division I schools, neither Oregon nor Oregon State wanted him.

Braswell was an assistant at Oregon before landing the job at CSUN and Heinle was one of his first recruits. Some in Oregon questioned his character. But Braswell didn't.

``There were probably some concerns by other people, but I was never concerned about that because I knew Brian better than anybody,'' Braswell said. ``He played with Carl (Braswell's nephew) and I've known Brian since he was in eighth grade. I've always seen him as a kid, a kid who made some mistakes.

``He's matured. There are probably some things in high school (that) people would've found offensive. It was just a high school kid doing dumb things and making dumb choices.''

According to one report, Heinle made an inappropriate gesture toward fans at a game. Heinle denies the incident. He reportedly threw a basketball into the crowd once and another time ran into the stands to high-five fans after a dunk.

``In high school you want to win and you're playing against guys living in your town,'' Heinle said. ``You want to win every game and when the competitive juices are flowing, sometimes it makes you do crazy things. I never did anything really crazy. I was just real fiery and wanted to win every game. This always comes up, but I don't know where it comes from.''

Braswell said he knew Heinle could play at the college level. Not that it was an easy transition. Heinle was booed by Northridge fans his freshman season for not battling inside for rebounds. Braswell can even remember hearing Heinle's dad, Gene, yelling at him to rebound.

Heinle has gained 35 pounds - he was a 205-pound freshman - and has made himself a threat inside and outside. He leads the Big Sky in scoring at 20.6 points per game, which makes him the country's highest-scoring center, and averages 9.4 rebounds and four assists. He's a virtual lock for the Big Sky's Most Valuable Player award.

``I think he's more focused now than he was in high school,'' Gene Heinle said. ``If you take a look at each year, to me, it's been a natural progression. A lot of it is natural growth and maturity that comes with being a person.''

Heinle became Northridge's all-time leading scorer this season with 1,548 points. Heinle has the most assists in one game (nine) by a center and is second in the nation for centers with 1.4 steals.

``He's a handful,'' Northern Arizona coach Mike Adras said. ``He can score from the outside and the inside. He puts a lot of pressure, single- handedly, on a defense.''

Extra tables have been added along press row for NBA scouts who critique Heinle on a regular basis. Being drafted into the league is a long shot, however. A more realistic route might take Heinle to an overseas pro league to hone his skills before potentially returning - a path he wouldn't reject.

But pressure to play well in front of scouts or against double- and triple-teams isn't nearly as much as the pressure he puts on himself.

``For us to be successful as a team, I have to play well,'' Heinle said. ``It seems like if I don't play well, we lose. I want to win every game, there's no question about that. I'm not used to losing and I never have been. It's just the way I am.''

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Photo: (color) no caption (Brian Heinle)