Missouri Gets Past Northridge
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Chris Heller scored all 10 of his points during the second half to help Missouri shake off a sluggish start and defeat Cal State Northridge, 65-54, Wednesday night.
The victory was the last nonconference game of the season for the Tigers (14-6). It was the fifth consecutive loss for the Matadors (7-12), with all five losses on the road.
Missouri trailed Northridge for much of the first half but closed the period with a 28-27 lead before slowly pulling away from the smaller Matadors during the second half.
Missouri didn’t relinquish its lead during the second half, but the Matadors trailed only 42-41 with 14:23 to play.
From there, the Tigers used a 10-2 run to take a 52-43 advantage. Melvin Booker, who had a game-high 19 points and five steals, scored five points in the streak and Heller picked up a pair of baskets.
The closest Northridge came was 56-50 with 3:14 to play. But the Tigers then put it away by making nine of 10 free throws to avoid the upset.
Northridge was led by Andre Chevalier with 17 points.
Jevon Crudup had 11 points and 10 rebounds for Missouri.
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
