Northridge Out of Luck in Ohio

As luck would have it, Lucky Grundy held Cal State Northridge’s fortunes in his hands.

But the reserve guard’s flailing shot from the key in the final second wasn’t close enough even to benefit from a lucky bounce, and the Matadors lost their fifth consecutive road game, 79-77, to Ohio on Wednesday night in front of 4,000 at the Convocation Center.

The Matadors had battled back from a discouraging number of fouls and, trailing by two with 15 seconds to play, took possession on a rebound by Jabari Simmons. Grundy, who averages 3.2 points, took an outlet pass from Simmons, dribbled into the frontcourt, hesitated at the top of the key, then penetrated the lane before unleashing his luckless shot.

Learning more lessons about life on the road, the Matadors (2-5) were called for 35 fouls, their highest total in 29 years. No one fouled out, but five players had four fouls and four had three.

Ohio (2-5), which snapped a five-game losing streak, made 28 of 43 free throws, including 11 of 12 by freshman Dustin Ford. Northridge made 17 of 25.

Ford, playing the point because Corey Reed injured a knee last week and is lost for the season, scored 25 points. Northridge answered with its own hot-shooting freshman, Carl Holmes, who scored 20 on the heels of his 21-point performance against Ohio State.

A layup by Simmons, who had 19 points and 12 rebounds, had given Northridge a 77-76 lead with 1:15 to play, but Ohio guard Jim Peterson made a three-point basket 13 seconds later for the final points.