COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Victory gives CSUN sole possession of first in Big West.

The showdown for first place in the BigWest Conference men's basketball race was no contest.

Senior Tremaine Townsend, playing in his final home game, scored 17 points to lead six Cal State Northridge players in double figures as the Matadors cruised to a 95-74 victory against Long Beach State before 1,529 at the Matadome.

CSUN (14-12, 10-4) took sole possession of first place, a game ahead of Long Beach State (14-13, 9-5).

"We were probably as efficient as we have been all season," CSUN coach Bobby Braswell said. "Long Beach State is a great team that has been in first place from the very beginning. ... The team knew what was on the line - two first-place teams going at it."

Mark Hill had a career-high 15 points and 11 assists for CSUN, which shot 62 percent from the field (36 of 58). Rob Haynes and Willie Galick each added 14 points, Kenny Daniels had 13 and Vincent Cordell scored 11.

The Matadors closed the first half with a 29-18 run to take a 49-36 halftime lead. They opened the second half with a 21-11 run to make it 70-47 with 13:34 to play. Long Beach State never got closer than 18 after that.

"This group has shown a lot of character," Braswell said of his team, which lost its leading scorer to a suspension and its point guard in an auto accident. "I couldn't be more happy for our seniors and our fans."