Maxime Raynaud brought his double-double magic to the postseason with 22 points and 11 rebounds Tuesday night, lifting host Stanford to an 87-70 victory over Cal State Northridge in the opening round of the NIT.
Oziyah Sellers chipped in with 20 points, while Benny Gealer had 13 off the bench and Jaylen Blakes had 11 for the Cardinal (21-13), who move on to host Kent State, which upset St. Bonaventure in its tournament opener, on either Saturday or Sunday.
Raynaud had 15 of his game-high point total in the first half, when Stanford used a 9-0 start as the springboard to a 46-29 lead at the break. Raynaud had six of the nine points in the game-opening run.
Northridge (22-11), seeking a school-record 23rd win but coming off a first-round loss to UC Santa Barbara in the Big West Conference tournament, got no closer than 13 in the second half.
Raynaud’s double-double was his 24th of the season, tops in the nation.
The 20/10 game was the senior’s 14th of the season.
Seven of the big man’s 22 points resulted from eight free throws. Stanford got five more opportunities than Northridge (23-18) and converted nine more (19-10).
Sellers and Gealer drilled three 3-pointers each, helping Stanford go 12-for-31 from deep and outscore the visitors 36-12 from beyond the arc.
Keonte Jones had 18 points, Scotty Washington 17, Grady Lewis 12 and Tyler Beard 10 for Northridge, which shot just 4-for-17 on 3-pointers.
Lewis was the Matadors’ leading rebounder with seven, while Beard had a team-high four of the club’s nine assists.
–Field Level Media
