by By Wendell Barnhouse Special to the Post-Dispatch , St. Louis Post-Dispatch

A dominating 25-8 end-game spurt by second-seeded Memphis prevented a bracket-spoiling upset. The 81-70 loss Thursday won't send Northridge into therapy. The Matadors endured a season in which Dr. Phil would have been a handy assistant. Northridge has one player from the French Caribbean who could barely speak English three years ago. One of its reserves is deaf. The season started with nine transfers trying to mix in. And halfway through the season, the Matadors lost their top two scorers. Deon Tresvant was arrested and charged with felony theft (a legal issue that also ensnared the son of coach Bobby Braswell). Then point guard Josh Jenkins suffered internal injuries in a car accident. Kenny Daniels, a junior forward from Vashon High, is one of the transfers. "We are family," said Daniels, who finished with 14 points in 29 minutes. "What we've been through this year, we've become as close as we've ever been. We've had fights and such earlier in the year but today, we're like brothers." The brotherhood was broken only because Memphis received an unexpected and outstanding game from Roburt Sallie. The 6-5 sophomore guard had a career-high 17 points - at halftime. He finished with 35. His 10 3-pointers (in 15 attempts) set an NCAA Tournament first-round record. Sallie's teammates were one of 13 on 3-pointers. "That's something I don't think my teammates would have expected of me, breaking a record like that," said Sallie, who came into the game averaging 4.5 points per game. "I'm just a shooter. I just found out I made 10 3-pointers. I don't think I've ever done that before." Matador defense is not a complimentary term, but the Matadors' 1-2-2 zone flustered Memphis. Junior Sean Taggart, the Tigers' main inside threat, attempted just four shots. With Memphis struggling to score, Cal State Northridge continued to gain confidence. And that spunk fueled a shooting spree that almost made the Tigers lose their stripes. Rodrigue Mels (team-high 15 points) started it with a 3-pointer that tied it 40-40 with 15:09 remaining. When the smoke cleared five minutes later, the Matadors had a 62-56 lead with 10:02 left. They made nine straight shots, five of those 3-pointers. Any hopes of becoming the fifth No. 15 seed to upset a No. 2 faded as Northridge's shots stopped falling. Its last 15 possessions produced more turnovers (four) than field goals as the Matadors were just three of 15 over the last 8:45. "We wanted to show the whole world that we weren't afraid to play," Daniels said. "We should have won the game."

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