Matadors Hold Off Hawai'i to Advance in Big West Tournament

FULLERTON, Calif.---Channon Fluker scored a team-high 24 points to go with eight rebounds and Tessa Boagni finished with 19 points and eight rebounds as CSUN Women's Basketball held off a late rally from Hawai'i to post a 62-57 victory in the opening round of the Big West Conference Tournament on Tuesday. With her 19 points, Boagni surpassed 1,000 career points with the Matadors.

The Matadors will face No. 4 seed UC Santa Barbara in the second round of the Big West Tournament on Wednesday evening at Titan Gym.

"First off, hats off to Laura [Beeman], her team and her staff. Obviously we talked about it on the phone prior to the game, we expected it to be a battle and it was a battle," said head coach Jason Flowers. "I thought we were loose but focused. They were talkative coming into the game but I thought they were okay in the moment, and that's important for this part of the season. Everyone knows what's at stake. Being comfortable in your own skin around this time makes a difference."

CSUN finished shooting 39.3 percent from the field and 77.3 percent from the free throw line (17-for-22) while the Rainbow Wahine shot 32.7 percent and 84.2 percent (16-for-19) from the charity stripe. The Matadors feasted in the paint, scoring 28 points to Hawai'i's 18. CSUN also scored 23 points off turnovers for the night.

In the first quarter, the Matadors got off to a quick start as they raced out to an 11-1 lead behind six early points from Fluker. Sarah Toeaina scored the Rainbow Wahine's final seven points to bring her team within two points but Lauren Shymkewicz hit the final shot of the quarter to give CSUN a 14-10 lead after 10 minutes.

The Rainbow Warriors would draw even at 14-14 early on in the second quarter but the Matadors would remain in front. Fluker gave the Matadors the lead right back at the 8:05 mark, and Meghann Henderson added to the lead with a driving layup. Hawai'i pulled to within 22-19 on a 3-pointer from Lahni Salanoa but the Matadors would go on an 11-2 run to end the half. The combination of Fluker and Boagni gave the Rainbow Wahine problems, scoring nine points during the stretch. Hayley Tanabe capped off the run with a running layup that beat the halftime buzzer, giving the Matadors a 33-21 advantage.

The Matadors would stretch their lead to 41-25 on a Boagni jumper at the 7:27 mark of the third period. Fluker was called for two quick fouls early in the period and would have to go to the bench. Despite the setback, the Matadors led by double digits for nearly the entire quarter. Boagni scored seven points in the period, and her traditional 3-point play gave the Matadors a 46-32 with five minutes to play. Hawai'i scored six-straight points to pull within eight but the Matadors took a 52-40 lead into the final quarter.

Shymkewicz put CSUN on top 56-44 but the Rainbow Wahine answered with a 7-0 run to pull within five. Sitting out most of the fourth with four fouls, Fluker returned at the 4:19 mark and promptly hit her first shot. The Matadors stepped up their defense down the stretch, getting four-straight defensive stops to remain in front by eight with a minute to play. Tia Kanoa nailed a 3-pointer to trim the deficit to 59-54 but Fluker would hit a free throw on the other end. With 46 seconds to play, Julissa Tago was fouled on a 3-point attempt, and hit all three free throws to make it a three point game (60-57).

The Matadors though would not let the Rainbow Wahine have many offensive looks down the stretch as two key offensive rebounds ran down the clock to nine seconds left. Hawai'i eventually got the ball with a few ticks left but Boagni was able to get a timely steal. Boagni hit two free throws with four seconds left to ice the game.

"She kept it about the team which she should," said Flowers about Boagni. "Tessa scoring 1,000 points, obviously that's a benchmark for a player as far as scoring. If you score 1,000 points you've left your mark on the program. I say it all the time, only the people in the locker room know the story of each team. At times, only the coach knows the story about a player, but for her, to have that accomplishment, she'll have it forever. Being in the history books at CSUN is big time."

CSUN takes on the Gauchos on Wednesday with a trip to the Honda Center at stake. The winner of the game will advance to the semifinals of the Big West Tournament on Friday in Anaheim. Tip off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. The game will be aired live on ESPN3.

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Team Stats

Channon Fluker

Tessa Boagni

Destiny Brooks

Hayley Tanabe

Players Mentioned

Tessa Boagni

Channon Fluker

Meghann Henderson

Lauren Shymkewicz

Hayley Tanabe