A potential record-breaking shot by senior guard Amaurys Fermin fell short 62 seconds into the second half, but the undeterred Mustangs shot 53.6 percent overall and managed to extend their lead before the final buzzer sounded.
“We were joking around with Amaurys that he messed it up,” said sophomore guard Kyle Odister, who scored three of his four 3-pointers during the streak.
To his credit, Fermin went 3-of-3 from long range in the first half and nailed the record-tying 3-pointer as time expired. He finished the game with 10 points — one of five Mustangs in double figures.
Odister finished with a season-high 14 points in his best individual game since a 2010 foot injury kept him sidelined for 16 months.
“We all knew it was going to come, it was just a matter of when,“ Odister said of his breakout game. “Everything is feeling good and starting to get back to normal.”
Senior forward Will Taylor scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. The crowd of nearly 2,500 at Mott Gym was at its loudest as Taylor sank a free throw with 54 seconds remaining to give the Mustangs 100 points.
Cal Poly reached a triple-digit point total at home for the first time since November 2001, when they defeated Portland State 100-79. The 46-point point win marks the largest margin of victory under head coach Joe Callero, who joined the program in 2009.
Callero said he was proud of his team’s ability to yet again follow up a difficult loss with a dominant performance. After losing a second tough game to Big West heavyweight Long Beach State on Thursday, Callero said he made several offensive adjustments to counter its opponents’ defensive strategy.
“I always thought if we were going to be etched in the record books it would be for something defensively,” he said. “For those people who say Cal Poly is too defensively oriented, we’ve tied NCAA shooting record, so I guess those monkeys are off our back.”
Sophomore forward Chris Eversley added a career-high 19 points, and matched his career high in rebounds with nine. The transfer from Rice College, in Chicago, scored in double figures for the fifth straight game, and looks to be finding his rhythm as Big West Conference play progresses.
Eversley credits his teammates and coaches for the momentum he built individually.
“Everybody on the team is just encouraging me, from person one to person 13,” he said. “Everybody knows everybody’s abilities, and we can all just feed off that and everybody can get into a groove themselves.”
Senior forward David Hanson made all seven of his shots, including two 3-pointers and both of his free throws. Hanson’s 14-point performance was enough to surpass 1,100 career points as a Mustang — only the 15th player in school history to do so.
Only one Matadors player — senior forward Michael Lizarraga — reached double digits in points. Lizarraga sank two free throws with less than four minutes to earn his first double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
With the loss, Cal State Northridge drops to 5-12 on the season and 2-6 in Big West Conference play. They look to rebound against Cal State Fullerton at home on Thursday.
Cal Poly plays its next four games on the road, starting with Pacific on Thursday and UC Davis on Saturday.