CHICAGO, Ill. – The Cleveland State women's basketball team picked up its first overtime win of the 2022-23 campaign Tuesday, capturing a 90-83 victory at DePaul. With the win, the Vikings improved to 2-1 on the young season.
GAME STATS
· Destiny Leo led the Viking offense with 22 points, while Barbara Zieniewska added 14, Deja Williams tallied 14 and Brittni Moore added 15 points.
· Barbara Zieniewska led the Vikings on the boards, grabbing 12 rebounds, while Jordana Reisma tallied nine.
· The Vikings recorded 21 assists on 32 made field goals, including eight from Deja Williams and five from Destiny Leo.
· Cleveland State combined for nine blocked shots, with three from Jordana Reisma and two from Barbara Zieniewska.
· The Vikings shot 48.5-percent from the floor on the game, including a .600 clip during overtime.
GAME NOTES
· Tuesday's game marked the first meeting between the two teams in nearly 30 years, and just the third win for the Vikings in the series history.
· Barbara Zieniewska recorded Cleveland State's second double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds on the game.
· This marked the third straight game that Cleveland State has tallied four or more blocked shots.
· The eight assists from Deja Williams marked a career-high for the junior.
· This marked the first overtime game of the 2022-23 campaign for the Vikings.
THE GAME
After DePaul was able to open the game with a 15-2 run, the Vikings battled back throughout the second part of the first quarter, as a Deja Williams three-pointer at the 5:28 mark stopped the DePaul scoring run, and a Jordana Reisma layup 30 seconds later closed the gap to single digits.
The Vikings were then able to chip away at the lead over the final five minutes of the quarter, with a pair of three-pointers from Barbara Zieniewksa late in the frame brining the Vikings within two points at 23-21, and a pair of Destiny Leo free throws knotting the score at 23-23 after the first 10 minutes of action.
The two teams then traded baskets throughout the second frame, with a 6-0 scoring run that ended with a pair of Brittni Moore free throws, giving the Vikings their first lead of the game at 31-29 with just under four minutes left in the quarter. The two teams then traded leads once more during the frame, as an Aminata Ly layup put the score at 35-35 heading into the halftime break.
Although DePaul was able to extend its advantage to double-digits during the third quarter, the Vikings were able to trim the lead to single digits with a Deja Williams layup, heading into the fourth quarter with the score at 60-51 DePaul.
Midway through the fourth quarter the Vikings used a 5-0 run to trim the lead to just three points on a Williams and-one play, while back-to-back baskets from Jordana Reisma and Brittni Moore closed the gap to just one point at 65-64 with 4:52 left on the clock.
The two teams traded baskets over the next few plays then, with another Zieniewska three-pointer bringing the Vikings within three points at 74-71, before a Destiny Leo layup brought the Vikings within one point at 74-73 with just 40 seconds left.
A pair of free throws for DePaul a few plays later gave the Blue Demons a three-point lead at 76-73, but a Carmen Villalobos three-pointer as time was expiring knotted the contest at 76-76 to force overtime.
Even though DePaul was able to put the first points on the board during the extra five minutes, the Vikings answered with a 5-0 run to gain a three-point lead at 81-78 that Cleveland State would go on to hold for the rest of the contest.
Late in the overtime period, the Vikings went on another 7-0 scoring run, extending their lead to nine points at 88-79, before coming away with the 90-83 victory.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will travel to Niagara for a 2:00 p.m. contest on Saturday, November 19.