QUICK HITS:
- The Vikings scored their 87 points on 31-56 (.556) shooting from the floor, including a 17-22 (.773) mark from the charity stripe.
- Cleveland State dished out a season-high 20 assists in Saturday's win over Youngstown State, while committing only eight turnovers.
- The Vikings had three players post 10-or-more points: Torrey Patton (17), D'Moi Hodge (14), Chris Greene (13).
- Cleveland State held advantages in points in the paint (44-24), fast break points (24-8) and bench points (33-25).
- In the second half of Saturday's league contest, the Vikings shot 17-25 (.680) from the floor, including a 6-10 (.600) clip from three-point territory.
- Torrey Patton poured in a season-high, and game-high tying, 17 points on 7-12 (.583) shooting from the field, including a 2-4 (.500) mark from deep, to go along with a team-high tying six rebounds and two assists in 23.1 minutes of play.
- D'Moi Hodge notched 14 points on 5-9 (.556) shooting, five rebounds, two assists and a team-high two blocks in 20.4 minutes.
- Chris Greene scored a career-high 13 points in Saturday's win on 4-6 (.667) shooting from the field, to go along with three rebounds and two steals in 17.3 minutes as a reserve.
- Junior forward Deante Johnson chipped in six points on 3-4 (.750) shooting, a team-high tying six rebounds, one assist and two steals in 20.2 minutes of action.
RECAP
CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State Vikings took down Horizon League, and in-state, rival Youngstown State, 87-69, inside the Wolstein Center during Saturday's home opener. Saturday's contest marked the latest home opener since the 1969-70 season when the Vikes faced off against Eastern Montana State on Dec. 27, 1969 (91-81, win).
Youngstown State opened Saturday's contest with an eight-point lead, 19-11, with 9:44 left to play in the first half. Cleveland State responded by going on a 10-0 run, taking a 21-19 advantage, capped off by a Torrey Patton bucket.
After being knotted up, 22-22, the Vikes ended the opening half on a 16-6 run to hold a 10-point, 38-28, advantage at the intermission.
Just like the first half, the Penguins had the hot hand to start the final 20 minutes of play, scoring the first seven points and cutting their deficit to just three points (38-35). Junior forward Deante Johnson ended the Vikings' scoring drought emphatically, slamming home a two-handed dunk.
Northeast Ohio product Yahel Hill buried a three-pointer at the 14:04 mark of the second half, giving the Vikings their double-digit advantage back, 48-38. CSU would lead by at least 10 points for the remainder of the contest.
Cleveland State would extend its lead past 20 points on a Chris Greene layup with 9:58 left to play in regulation, taking a 61-41 advantage.
Cleveland State notched its largest lead of 22 points on multiple occasions, the first of which came after a pair of D'Moi Hodge free throws, which gave the Vikings a 72-50 edge with 7:34 to play.
Patton led three Vikings in double figures by tying for game-high honors with 17 points while also tying for the team lead with six rebounds. Hodge added 14 points while Greene contributed 13 for Cleveland State.
Cleveland State shot 31-56 (.554) from the field while holding Youngstown State to a 21-63 (.333) mark.
With Saturday's win, the Vikings are off to their best Horizon League start in the last six seasons, owning a perfect 3-0 record in league play.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State and Youngstown State will face off again on Sunday at 1 p.m. inside the Wolstein Center. Fans can watch live on ESPN3 or listen on the radio at 1420-WHK, 102.5 FM or www.whkradio.com
PRESS CONFERENCE
