CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's basketball team closed out its brief two-game homestand Sunday afternoon, dropping a 70-65 contest to Wright State who sits at the top of the Horizon League standings. The Vikings are now 7-12 overall this season and own an even 4-4 record in league play.
Wright State 70, Cleveland State 65 PDF Box Score | Video Highlights
Starting Five
· Crockett, Slaney, Braxton, White, Miller
Quick Hits
· Savanna Crockett led three Vikings in double-digit points, tying her career-high with 18 points against the Raiders.
· Mariah White tallied 16 points on the day, while Mariah Miller posted 15 points for her 15th straight double-digit game.
· On the boards, Isabelle Gradwell tallied a team-high eight rebounds, while Mariah White and Mariah Miller both added seven.
· The Vikings finished with 10 assists on the game, including five from Mariah White who has now tallied three or more helpers in nine straight games.
The Game
Despite falling behind early on in the first quarter, and trailing by 12 points at the 16-8 mark after the first 10 minutes of play, Cleveland State was able to work its way back into the game during the second period. The Vikings were able to outscore Wright State 12-2 over the first 3:07, gaining their first lead of the contest at 20-18 on a Rachel Slaney layup.
The Vikings then went on to hold the advantage for the majority of the second quarter, until Wright State was able to force a turnover in the final seconds of the half, and then converted a layup as time expired to knot the score at 33-33 heading into the halftime break.
Although Wright State was able to quickly regain the lead during the first part of the third quarter, the Vikings responded with a 9-0 run midway through the frame, earning a 46-43 advantage at the 1:50 mark. The final two baskets during this run came from Mariah White following a pair of steals on the defensive end – also by White.
After trading baskets over the closing minutes of the quarter, Cleveland State went into the final 10 minutes of play with a slim one-point lead at 49-48.
The two teams then traded baskets – and leads – over the opening part of the final quarter, until eight straight points from the Raiders gave the advantage back to Wright State at 66-60 with just over one minute left on the clock.
A Mariah miller and-one on the next trip down the floor brought the Vikings back within three points at 66-63, but a WSU layup on the next possession put the Wright State lead back to five points at 68-63 with 17 seconds remaining.
The Vikings were once again able to trim the lead down to three points following a timeout to advance the ball when Savanna Crockett converted a jumper to tie her career-high, but a pair of free throws from the Raiders over the closing seconds of the game secured the 70-65 victory for Wright State.
Up Next
Cleveland State will close out the first half of Horizon League play next weekend, traveling to Youngstown State for a 1:00 p.m. contest on Saturday, January 26.
