Game 14 - Oakland vs. Cleveland State
Oakland Game Notes | Cleveland State Game Notes
December 28, 2023
Wolstein Center - Cleveland, OH
7:00 p.m.
All-Time vs. Oakland: 12-14
Last Meeting: 2/4/23 92-89 L(OT)
Tickets: csuvikings.com
Radio: Fox Sports 1350 AM
Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski, Pat Vuyancih, Ed Daugherty(Host)
TV: ESPN+
Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski, Pat Vuyancih
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State Men's Basketball team returns to Horizon League play on Thursday night, playing host to Oakland in a matchup of two teams looking to move back above .500 in league play. The Vikings closed the non-conference portion of the schedule on a two-game win streak, defeating Bradley on the road and Western Michigan at home. Oakland has dropped its last two coming into Thursday's game, falling on the road at Michigan State and at Dayton.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/OAKLAND SERIES
Thursday's matchup will be the 27th in the history of the series between Oakland and Cleveland State. The Golden Grizzlies hold a slim 14-12 advantage. The two teams split the two regular season meetings last season, with each team winning on its home floor. Cleveland State defeated OU 80-64 at the Wolstein Center on December 1, 2022. Drew Lowder, Jayson Woodrich, Tristan Enaruna and Tae Williams all scored in double figures in the win for the Vikings. Oakland returned the favor by claiming a 92-89 overtime victory at the O'Rena this past February. The Vikings led by as many as 16 in the second half before Oakland rallied to tie the score and send the game to overtime.
CLEVELAND STATE CLOSES NON-CONFERENCE SLATE WITH WIN OVER WESTERN MICHIGAN
Cleveland State defeated Western Michigan on Thursday night to close the non-conference portion of its scchedule with a 90-77 victory. The Vikings finish the non-conference season with a 7-4 overall record and winning all six home games against non-conference foes. Tristan Enaruna and Jayson Woodrich each had career nights in the win, with Enaruna finishing with 32 points and Woodrich finishing with 21. Enaruna recorded a double-double finishing with 10 rebounds in the contest. Woodrich added six rebounds to go with his 21 points and finished a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
CLEVELAND STATE EARNS FIRST ROAD WIN OF THE SEASON AT BRADLEY
Cleveland State defeated Bradley on Friday night by a final score of 76-69 to earn the first road victory of the 2023-24 season. Drew Lowder and Tristan Enaruna combined for 49 points in leading the Vikings to a come-from-behind win over the Braves. Cleveland State trailed by five with under four minutes remaining before catching fire, posting a 12-0 run in the game's final minutes to seize control and earn the victory. Enaruna and Lowder combined for all 12 points in the scoring run, with each tallying a key three-pointer in the outburst. The game was close throughout with neither team holding more than a seven-point advantage.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIZZLIES
Oakland is 6-7 on the season and 1-1 in league play coming into Thursday night's game. The Golden Grizzlies were picked sixth in the Horizon League Preseason Poll. Oakland defeated Detroit Mercy in the "Metro Series" rivalry game to start league play before falling to Purdue Fort Wayne at home to finish 1-1 in the opening weekend. Preseason First-Team all league pick Trey Townsend leads a trio of OU student-athletes averaging in double figures. Townsend averages 16.3 points and 6.9 rebounds per contest. Greg Kampe is in his 40th season in charge of the program, making him the longest tenured head coach in Division I.
CLEVELAND STATE EARNS VIKING INVITATIONAL TITLE
Cleveland State posted a 2-0 week inside Woodling Gymnasium in claiming the Viking Invitational tournament championship over Thanksgiving Weekend. The host Vikings tallied wins over East Tennessee State and Alabama A&M in claiming the top spot. The Vikings defeated ETSU in a thriller to kick off the tournament, with Tristan Enaruna tallying the last four points, including the game winning bucket with under four seconds left which lifted the Vikings to a 72-70 win. Cleveland State rolled past Alabama A&M in the final game of the tournament, winning 86-59 to close out the weekend. Four Vikings finished in double figures and all but one of the ten players who saw action in the contest cracked the score sheet.
CLEVELAND STATE EARNS 82-78 WIN OVER OHIO
Cleveland State earned the program's third all-time victory in the series against Ohio and the first since 1998 with a strong performance Saturday at the Wolstein Center. The game was back and forth the entire way and featured 13 lead changes and 13 ties. Tristan Enaruna led the way for the Vikings with a season-high 22 points, six rebounds and a career-high six assists. Jayson Woodrich also finished in double figures with 14 points on 4-5 shooting from three-point range, including multiple critical makes down the stretch to push the Vikings in front.
DANIYAL ROBINSON ACHIEVES RECORD-SETTING FIRST SEASON
Cleveland State head coach Daniyal Robinson set a new school record in his first season in charge of the program. Robinson and the Vikings recorded 21 wins in 2022-23, which is the most wins of any first-year head coach in school history. Cleveland State finished as the runner-up in the Horizon League Tournament and made the program's third-straight postseason appearance, earning a trip to the CBI. Should the Vikings reach the postseason this year, it would be the first time in school history that CSU has reached the postseason four consecutive years.
VIKINGS PICKED FOURTH IN #HLMBB PRESEASON POLL
Cleveland State was picked to finish fourth in the Horizon League Men's Basketball Preseason Poll following a vote amongst league head coaches, media members and Sports Information Directors from the league's 11 participating schools. Cleveland State received one first-place vote and finished with 362 points. In addition, senior forward Tristan Enaruna was named to the all-league first team after averaging 15.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game last season.
ENARUNA EARNS SECOND #HLMBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Following a career-high 32 points against Western Michigan, Tristan Enaruna picked up his second Horizon League Player of the Week award, the league office announced Tuesday. Enaruna makes it back-to-back weekly awards for the Vikings after Drew Lowder earned the honor last week. Enaruna tied a career mark with 12 made field goals in the game and also finished with 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season. He finished 7-of-9 from the charity stripe and added four assists and four steals, each of which led the team.
DREW LOWDER NAMED #HLMBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Following a 26-point night against Bradley on Friday, senior guard Drew Lowder was named the Horizon League Men's Basketball Player of the Week, the league office announced on Monday. Lowder finished one point shy of his career high, set in the season opener at Duquesne, and tied his career best with six three-pointers in nine attempts. He also registered a career-high four steals. Lowder helped ignite the Vikings down the stretch, as he scored five points as part of the closing 12-0 run that secured the victory. Lowder hit the game-tying three-pointer with 3:23 remaining and the Vikings led for good after that point. This is Lowder's first league player of the week award.
WELCOME TO THE BLOCK PARTY
Through 13 games, Cleveland State has proven to be one of the best shot-blocking teams in the country. The Vikings average 4.5 blocked shots per game. This number ranks first in the Horizon League and among the top-50 in the nation.
ENARUNA EARNS #HLMBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Following a stellar week over Thanksgiving at the Viking Invitational, Tristan Enaruna was named as the Horizon League's Men's Basketball Player of the Week on Monday. Enaruna was named MVP of the tournament after averaging 20 points and seven rebounds over the two-game week. He finished with a career-high 28 points against East Tennessee State in the opening game, including scoring the final four points of the game to push the Vikings to a two-point win. He followed it up with a 12-point, seven rebound performance against Alabama A&M in the second game.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State hits the road for its final game of the 2023 calendar year. The Vikings travel to IUPUI on December 31 for a 2:00 p.m. tip against the Jaguars.
