CS Northridge 78, No. 15 UCLA 74

By BETH HARRIS
AP Sports Writer

LOS ANGELES -- Jeff Parris scored a career-high 27 points as Cal State Northridge shocked No. 15 UCLA 78-74 Tuesday night in the Bruins' home opener.

UCLA (1-2) self-destructed with poor shooting down the stretch, while the Matadors (2-0) calmly put together a run when their double-digit lead shrank to two with 3:28 remaining.

John Burrell added 17 points for the Matadors, who are just 3-22 against Pacific-10 Conference teams. They upset Oregon on the road last season, while their only other win came when California forfeited its victory during the 1995-96 season.

The Matadors, who won 20 games last season and are favored to win the Big Sky Conference, had lost three previous games against UCLA by an average of 20.6 points.

The Matadors used a 19-9 run over the end of the first half and start of the second to erase most of a 13-point deficit and trail by three. They took their first lead since the opening minutes by outscoring UCLA 21-5, including 13 unanswered points, for a 59-48 lead with 7:35 remaining.

The Bruins got within two with a 12-3 run, including two 3-pointers by Ray Young and a goaltending call against Northridge.

But Parris steadied the Matadors with a wide-open basket, then Markus Carr hit a 3-pointer to stretch their lead to 67-60 with 2:27 left. UCLA never got that close the rest of the game.

Earl Watson and Young scored 15 points each for the Bruins, who were 12-of-31 shooting in the second half and committed 24 turnovers in the game.