GAME #9
Cleveland State vs. Niagara
Wednesday, December 6 | 7:00 p.m. | Wolstein Center
Live Stats | Live Video | CSU Game Notes
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will return to non-league play this week, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. contest against Niagara on Wednesday, December 6. Entering Wednesday's matchup, the Vikings stand at 7-1 overall this season, while the Purple Eagles are currently 3-5 on the year.
A WIN ON WEDNESDAY WOULD…
Extend Cleveland State's current win streak to eight straight games…Put the Vikings at 6-0 at home this season…Keep Cleveland State perfect during the month of December.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/NIAGARA SERIES
Wednesday's game will be the 27th meeting between the two teams, with Cleveland State holding a slight 15-11 edge in the all-time series. After last year's meeting was cancelled due to weather, this will mark the first matchup since the 2017-18 season.
SCOUTING THE PURPLE EAGLES
Niagara enters Wednesday's game with a 3-5 record on the season, picking up wins against St. Bonaventure (75-51), Stonehill (71-69) and Radford (64-53)…Wednesday's game will mark the first of four straight road games for the Purple Eagles, who stand at 0-4 when playing away from home this season…Through the first eight games, Niagara has faced tough competition, taking on No. 7 LSU, No. 2 UCLA and RV Maryland…Earlier this year, Niagara was picked to win the MAAC, while Aaliyah Parker was named the MAAC Preseason Player of the Year and Angel Parker was named to the Preseason First Team.
LAST TIME OUT…
Cleveland State improved to 2-0 in #HLWBB play after picking up a 72-60 win at Northern Kentucky. Three Vikings finished the game with double-digit points, while Cleveland State shot 50-percent from the floor for the third straight game (.510). For the fourth time this season the Vikings finished with 10+ assists (12), while they also posted seven steals and three blocked shots against the Norse.
VIKINGS EXTEND WIN STREAK TO SEVEN
With Saturday's 72-60 victory at Northern Kentucky, the Vikings extended their current win streak to seven straight games. After dropping the season opener at Bowling Green, Cleveland State has rattled off wins in each of its last seven contests to lead all league teams with a seven-game win streak. This marks the fifth straight season that the Vikings have notched a win streak of seven+ games.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Cleveland State enters Wednesday's game with a perfect 5-0 record when playing at home this season. Under Chris Kielsmeier the Vikings have combined for a 55-18 record when playing at home, and have won 11 straight home contests dating back to February 2 of last season.
MAPLES NAMED #HLWBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After helping Cleveland State to a 2-0 start to #HLWBB play, junior Colbi Maples was named the Horizon League Player of the Week. Through the two games, Maples averaged 24.0 points per game on a .577 field goal percentage (15-for-26), finishing with 25 points against RMU and 23 points against Northern Kentucky. In addition, Maples went 6-for-8 from three-point while adding four steals and four assists on the two games.
…MAPLES NOTCHES BACK-TO-BACK 20-POINT GAMES
Last time out, Colbi Maples tallied her fourth 20-point game of the season, finishing with 23 points in the win at Northern Kentucky. Maples went 7-for-13 from the floor on the game, including 4-for-6 from behind-the-arc, to notch her second straight 20-point performance and third over the last five games. For the season, Maples is averaging 17.6 points per game, and is also one of the most efficient shooters in the Horizon League, posting a .536 field goal percentage through eight games played.
CLEVELAND STATE ON THE OFFENSIVE END
Entering Wednesday's game against Niagara, Cleveland State has been one of the most efficient teams on the offensive end, leading the Horizon League with a .479 field goal percentage on the season. Last time out, the Vikings shot 51-percent from the field, marking the third straight game that they have posted a .500+ clip. Cleveland State also owns a league-best +19.4 scoring margin through the first eight games of the 2023-24 campaign.
CSU ON THE BOARDS
After the first eight games of the 2023-24 season, the Vikings are outrebounding their opponents 311-256, which is tied for the league lead in rebounding margin (+6.9). Cleveland State is averaging 38.9 rebounds per game, and has outrebounded its opponents in six of the first eight games. So far this season, the Vikings have recorded a pair of 50-rebound performances, finishing with 52 boards against Central Michigan and Chicago State.
…VILLALOBOS STRONG ON THE BOARDS
Individually, Carmen Villalobos has been Cleveland State's top rebounder this season, averaging 7.1 boards per game. Villalobos has combined for 57 total rebounds through the first eight games, including 21 offensive boards. Villalobos tallied her first double-digit rebounding effort of the season with 10 boards against RMU last week, becoming one of five Vikings with a double-digit rebounding effort so far this season.
REISMA ON THE BLOCK
Eight games into the 2023-24 campaign, sophomore Jordana Reisma already has 12 blocked shots on the year and 55 for her career. Reisma, who is one of four #HLWBB players with 12+ blocks on the year, has posted a block in all but one game this year, including a season-high three blocked shots against Central Michigan and Austin Peay.
VIKINGS IN THE MID-MAJOR RANKINGS
Entering the week, Cleveland State is ranked 11th in the latest College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top-25 Poll. The Vikings are one of two Horizon League teams to be ranked, as Green Bay also entered the week in the top-25.
VIKING DUO NAMED TO ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Following a pair of standout performances at the Holiday Inn Express Cleveland Downtown Viking Invitational, Colbi Maples and Mickayla Perdue both earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Maples led the Vikings averaging 14.0 points per game on the week, while shooting 54-percent from the floor. Perdue added 9.7 points per game along with five steals and five assists throughout the three games.
HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings are under the direction of sixth-year head coach Chris Kielsmeier, who owns a career head coaching record of 519-171. Through six seasons at Cleveland State, Kielsmeier has led the Vikings to a 103-55 overall record, including a trio of 20-win seasons. Last year, Kielsmeier guided the Vikings to their third #HLWBB Tournament Championship, while he led the Vikings to their first-ever postseason title in 2021 when Cleveland State captured the WBI championship.
…KIELSMEIER NAMED TO PRESEASON WATCH LIST
Chris Kielsmeier was named to the Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Preseason Watch List last week - one of 20 coaches named to the inaugural watch list. Under Kielsmeier, the Vikings have advanced to the postseason in three straight years, and have tallied 20-win campaigns three times over the last four seasons.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will close out its December home slate on Sunday, December 10, hosting Akron at 2:00 p.m. inside the Wolstein Center.
