GAME #27
Cleveland State vs. Milwaukee
Saturday, February 17 | 1:00 p.m. | Wolstein Center
Live Stats | Live Video
CLEVELAND STATE vs. MILWAUKEE GAME NOTES
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will play its final game in the Wolstein Center during the 2017-18 season on Saturday, February 17, hosting the Milwaukee Panthers in a 1:00 p.m. contest. Entering Saturday's Senior Day contest, the Vikings stand at 17-8 overall and 9-5 in Horizon League play, while Milwaukee is 17-9 on the season and 8-6 in league action.
A WIN SATURDAY WOULD…
Give the Vikings back-to-back wins for the fifth time this season…Mark Cleveland State's seventh win out of its last eight games…Give the Vikings an 11-3 record at home for the 2017-18 season…Mark the sixth time under head coach Kate Peterson Abiad that the Vikings have reached the 19-win mark…Give the Vikings a win on Senior Day.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/MILWAUKEE SERIES
This will mark the 54th meeting between the two teams, with Milwaukee owning a 30-23 advantage in the overall series. Entering Saturday's game, the Panthers have won six straight, with Cleveland State's last win coming as a 67-58 decision during the 2014-15 season.
…THE FIRST TIME AROUND
In the first meeting between the two teams, Cleveland State dropped a 79-72 decision in Milwaukee's annual Field Trip Day Game. The Vikings were paced by 24 points from Khayla Livingston, while Olivia Voskuhl added 17 and Ashanti Abshaw chipped in 15 points. The Vikings recorded 11 steals on the game and forced Milwaukee into 22 turnovers.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Milwaukee enters Saturday's game with a 17-9 overall record this season and an 8-6 mark against Horizon League opponents…The Panthers are currently on a three-game losing skid, most recently falling at Youngstown State, 86-85…Saturday's game at Cleveland State will be the second of a three-game roadswing for Milwaukee this weekend, while the Panthers will close out the regular season with a pair of home games next weekend…Milwaukee currently sits in sixth place in the league standings…As a team, the Panthers lead the league in free throw percentage (.772) and defensive rebounds (27.8).
LAST TIME OUT…
The Vikings upset nationally ranked Green Bay, picking up a 71-60 victory over the Phoenix, giving them just their third loss on the season. Cleveland State snapped a 15-game losing skid against the Phoenix, and picked up its first win over Green Bay since the 2009-10 season. Cleveland State shot 52-percent from the field and recorded a .591 clip from behind-the-arc, while the Vikings held Green Bay to a .361 clip from the field - one of its lowest shooting percentages of the season.
#THINKPINK
For the final homestand of the 2017-18 season, the Vikings will be trading in their normal green & white jerseys and wearing special pink uniforms in honor of the team's annual #ThinkPink initiative. Each year, Cleveland State participates in the national Play4Kay initiative to help raise awareness for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
2018 SENIOR DAY
Saturday's game against Milwaukee will serve as Senior Day for Cleveland State, as the Vikings will be honoring the group of Sierra Davidson, Khayla Livingston, Olivia Voskuhl, Mercedes Hobbs, and Shadae Bosley prior to tipoff. This group has been instrumental in the Vikings' success on and off the court this season, leading Cleveland State to one of it's best season in recent history during the 2017-18 campaign.
VOSKUHL NOTCHES 1,000TH POINT AGAINST GREEN BAY
Following her 21-point performance against the Phoenix last time out, redshirt senior Olivia Voskuhl eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for her career, ending the game with 1,008 points. Voskuhl, who is the 29th Viking all-time to reach the milestone, is the 13th to do so under head coach Kate Peterson Abiad. Voskuhl was playing in her 118th game in a Viking uniform, a mark that is tied for ninth in the CSU Career Record Book.
…TRIO OF VIKINGS NOW IN THE 1,000-POINT CLUB
For just the second time in program history, three Vikings on the same roster have recorded 1,000 career points, as the trio of Ashanti Abshaw, Khayla Livingston and Olivia Voskuhl have all achieved the feat. Abshaw, who recorded her 1,000th career point as a redshirt sophomore, ranks seventh on the all-time scoring list with 1,538 points, while Livingston ranks 10th with 1,396 points after reaching the 1,000-point milestone earlier this year.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
The Vikings are playing in the friendly confines of the Wolstein Center for the final time during the 2017-18 season this week, picking up a 71-60 victory over Green Bay on Thursday and hosting Milwaukee on Saturday. So far this season the Vikings own a 10-3 record when playing at home, including a 6-2 mark against league opponents. This week's games mark the only homestand for the Vikings over the final month of regular season play, as they are closing out #HLWBB play with six of their final eight games on the road.
VIKINGS REACH DOUBLE-DIGIT WINS IN #HLWBB PLAY
Thursday's 71-60 victory over Green Bay marked Cleveland State's 10th Horizon League win of the season, giving the Vikings double-digit league wins for the sixth time under head coach Kate Peterson Abiad and the first time since the 2014-15 campaign. With three regular season games left to play, the Vikings have a chance to set a program record for league wins which currently stands at 12 - which was set during the 2008-09 and 2010-11 seasons.
LIVINGSTON SETS CAREER-HIGH AGAINST PHOENIX
Last time out, Khayla Livingston recorded her first-ever double-digit assist game, as she tallied a career-high 10 assists against Green Bay. Livingston, who ranks fifth among league players averaging 4.2 helpers per game, has 108 total assists this year. For her career, Livingston is the only Viking to eclipse 1,350 points and 375 assists, as she ranks 10th in the CSU Career Record Book with 1,396 points and fifth with 382 assists.
VOSKUHL CRACKS TOP-15 ON CSU REBOUNDING CHART
After combining for 10 rebounds at UIC and IUPUI last week, Olivia Voskuhl moved into 15th place on the CSU Rebounding Chart, and enters her final home game ranked 15th with 629 boards. Voskuhl, who leads Cleveland State and ranks seventh among league players averaging 7.1 rebounds per game this season, is the 15th Viking all-time to record 1,000 career points and 600 career rebounds.
VIKINGS RETURN TO ORIGINAL STARTING FIVE
After using an alternate starting lineup for the last seven games due to injuries, Cleveland State returned to its usual starting five against Green Bay last time out, with Ashanti Abshaw, Khayla Livingston, Olivia Voskuhl, Jade Ely, and Shadae Bosley on the court for tipoff. This group has been on the court for 19 starts this season, while they have combined for 335 individual starts on their careers.
LIVINGSTON SETS CSU THREE-POINT RECORD
After converting five three-pointers at UIC last Thursday, redshirt senior Khayla Livingston became the program record holder in three-pointers, and enters her final home game with 223 shots from behind-the-arc. Livingston, who is one of just two Vikings all-time to eclipse 200 three-pointers, broke the previous record of 217 set by Cori Coleman in 2015. So far this season, Livingston is averaging a league-best 3.1 three-pointers per game and has 80 total conversions from behind-the-arc on the year - a mark that ranks second in the CSU Single-Season Record Book.
ABSHAW SURPASSES 1,500-POINT MARK
Following her 19-point game at IUPUI last Saturday, redshirt junior Ashanti Abshaw surpassed 1,500 points for her career, and enters Saturday's game with 1,538 total points. Abshaw, who is one of just two Vikings all-time to reach the 1,500-point mark as a junior (Kailey Klein 2006-10), currently ranks second in the Horizon League averaging 19.5 points per game. With at least four games left to play this season, Abshaw ranks seventh on the CSU Scoring Chart and needs 46 more points to move into sixth place.
HEAD COACH KATE PETERSON ABIAD
With the 71-70 overtime victory against Wright State earlier this year, Kate Peterson Abiad picked up the 200th win of her career, eclipsing the coaching milestone on her birthday. Peterson Abiad, who is in her 15th season at the helm of the Vikings, became the fourth active Horizon League coach to record 200 career wins, and just the second to eclipse the milestone at their current school (Kevin Borseth, Green Bay).
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will close out the regular season on the road next week, traveling to Wright State (Monday, February 19) and Youngstown State (Saturday, February 24).