GAME #18
vs. Oakland
7 p.m. | Thurs., Jan. 23
Wolstein Center - Cleveland, Ohio
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SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will begin one of its busiest stretches of the season this Thursday (Jan. 23), playing three games over a five-day span. The Vikings will kick off this stretch by hosting Oakland at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday evening. Entering this stretch the Vikings stand at 8-9 overall and 3-1 in league play, while the Golden Grizzlies are 7-10 overall and 2-2 in the league. Thursday's contest will be just the second between the two teams, and the first in Horizon League action as Oakland joined the league at the beginning of the 2013-14 academic year.
LAST TIME OUT
The Vikings dropped their first Horizon League contest of the season last Saturday, falling to perennial powerhouse Green Bay, 90-72. The Phoenix controlled the contest from beginning to end, allowing the Vikings to close the gap to just six points once during the second half. Despite the outcome, CSU still had three players score in double-figures, including Khayla Livingston with a career-high 18.
A WIN THURSDAY WOULD…
Mark the fourth win out of the last five contests for the Vikings…Put CSU at .500 for the season (9-9)…Be Cleveland State's first Horizon League win over Oakland…Mark head coach Kate Peterson Abiad's 140th victory of her career.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIZZLIES
Oakland enters Thursday's contest with a 7-10 overall record and a 2-2 mark in league play…The 2013-14 season marks Oakland's first in the Horizon League…Oakland's first two league victories came against Detroit (78-63) and Valparaiso (88-55)…As a team, the Grizzlies lead the league with 3.7 blocked shots, and rank second in rebounding (40.2), assists (15.0), and steals (9.6)…Individually, Bethany Watterworth leads the league with a .531 field goal percentage (60-for-130), while Kim Bee is tops in the league averaging 2.1 blocks per game…Oakland has four players averaging double-digit points this season; Elena Popkey (12.9), Olivia Nash (12.4), Watterworth (11.8), and Bee (10.3)…Nash (132 rbs) and Bee (114) have both eclipsed the 100-rebound mark this year, while Popkey (94) is closing in on the mark.
LIVINGSTON SHINES AGAINST PHOENIX
Khayla Livingston had her best offensive performance of the year last time out, posting a career-high 18 points – just her second double-digit scoring effort of her career. Livingston was 7-for-10 from the field and a perfect 4-for-4 from three-point, marking career-bests in both categories. Entering last Saturday's contest against Green Bay Livingston was averaging just 4.0 points per game, and had converted just seven three-pointers through the first 16 contests.
VIKINGS FROM BEHIND-THE-ARC
For the eighth time this season the Vikings knocked down at least 10 three-pointers, ending right on the number against Green Bay. CSU has converted 144 three-pointers through 17 games this season, and leads the league shooting 35-percent from behind-the-arc. The Vikings also lead the league averaging 8.5 three-pointers per game, and are on track to finish the season with a top-five mark in program history.
…AND HAVE BALANCED ATTACK FROM 3-POINT
So far this season the Vikings have had a balanced attack from three-point range, with four players converting 19 or more three-pointers throughout the first 17 contests. This group has been led by Kiersten Green who has notched 37 three-pointers on the season, and ranks second in the league with a .435 clip from behind-the-arc (37-for-85). Cori Coleman (33 3-ptrs), Haley Schmitt (19), and Adesuwa Aideyman (19) round out this group, while Schmitt (3rd - .432) and Coleman (8th - .379) also rank in the top-10 in three-point field goal percentage among league players.
GORDON IN LEAGUE GAMES ONLY
Imani Gordon has picked up her play on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor over the past four games, averaging a double-double in league games only with 23.5 points per game and 10.0 rebounds per game. Gordon leads the league with her 23.5 ppg, while she ranks second with her 10.0 rpg – the only player to average 20 points and 10 rebounds in league games only. Gordon, who has been CSU's leading scorer in three of the four league contests, is shooting 50-percent from the floor during this stretch (27-for-53) ranking 10th among league players.
VIKINGS TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
The Vikings committed a season-low six turnovers against Green Bay last Saturday, including just two during the first 20 minutes of action. The six turnovers marks the second lowest total among league schools this season, and just the fifth time that the Vikings have committed less than 10 turnovers in the past seven years.
…AND AIDEYMAN IS DOING HER PART
For the second straight week, sophomore Adesuwa Aideyman made her way onto the assist/turnover ratio rankings - entering Thursday's contest ranked fifth with a 1.5 assist/turnover ratio. Aideyman, who is now averaging 3.1 assists per contest (11th in HL), has recorded more assists than turnovers in all but three games so far this season, including a season-best mark of 5-to-1 against Miami (Dec. 29).
COLEMAN EDGES CLOSER TO 3-POINT TOP-10 LIST
With 33 three-point field goals through the first 17 games of the season, Cori Coleman is closing in on the career top-10 list at CSU, entering today's contest with 118 career three-pointers. Coleman, who has notched a three-pointer in all but two games this season, is just four three-pointers shy of cracking the top-10 list. For the year, Coleman is shooting 38-percent from three-point (33-for-87), ranking eighth among league players.