#REACHtheHORIZON Semifinal
Cleveland State vs. Milwaukee
Monday, March 8 | 6:30 p.m.
Indiana Farmers Coliseum | Indianapolis, Indiana
Presented by Cleveland Clinic Sports Medicine
Stream | Audio | Live Stats
Game Notes
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State men's basketball team continues #REACHtheHORIZON Tournament play with a semifinal matchup against Milwaukee at Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis. Cleveland State, which earned the top seed in the 12-team bracket, survived its quarterfinal matchup against 10th-seeded Purdue Fort Wayne in triple overtime, winning 108-104 thanks to late heroics by Torrey Patton (30 pts.), Tre Gomillion (22 pts.) and Algevon Eichelberger (20 pts.). Both Patton and Gomillion reocrded double-doubles, marking the first pair of Vikings teammates to accomplish the feat in the same game this season.
A WIN ON MONDAY WOULD…
...send the Vikings to their fourth-ever #HLMBB Championship Final and first since 2018. Cleveland State last won the tournament in 2009. A victory would also mark the Vikings' first-ever postseason win over Milwaukee. The two sides have met once previously in tournament play with the Vikings suffering an 82-75 defeat in the 2010 quarterfinals.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/MILWAUKEE SERIES
Cleveland State trails Milwaukee in the all-time series 25-31, but the two sides split their most recent series at the Wolstein Center on Jan. 22-23. Overall, the Vikings have won four of their last five games with the Panthers, including a four-game winning streak that matched a program-best against Milwaukee.
SURVIVE AND ADVANCE: VIKES MOVE ON
As part of an unpredictable and wild #HLMBB Championship Quarterfinal round, the Vikings threw the final punch in a back-and-forth triple overtime tilt against Purdue Fort Wayne, winning 108-104 in a historic game for the program. The victory came in Cleveland State's fourth triple OT contest all-time and the first since 2013. It also marked the first 100-plus point effort against a Horizon League opponent since 2000 and only the second time the Vikings have hit the century mark in postseason play (first since 1984) while snapping a two-year drought without a #HLMBB Tournament win. Cleveland State was able to overcome 16 made triples by PFW, the fourth-most by an opponent in a single game in program history.
IRON MEN
While playing career highs in minutes, Torrey Patton and Tre Gomillion became the first pair of Vikings teammates with double-doubles in the same postseason contest since at least 2002. Patton nearly matched his career high with 30 points and Gomillion tallied 22 in his second-highest scoring output of the season. For Patton, it marked the second 30-point game of his career while Gomillion topped the 20-point plateau for second time. Both players grabbed 13 boards, and Patton logged 50 minutes while Gomillion played 54 of 55 possible minutes.
REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS
The Vikings clinched a share of the regular season #HLMBB championship with a 67-55 win over Purdue Fort Wayne on Feb. 20, marking the first time Cleveland State finished atop the league standings since the 2010-11 campaign and the fifth time ever finishing No. 1. Announced after the victory, the Green and White entered the 2021 #REACHtheHORIZON Tournament as the overall top seed. Their 16 regular-season victories set an all-time program record for most wins in any conference/league.
TAKING HOME THE HARDWARE
Several Vikings picked up honors when the Horizon League announced its postseason awards, headlined by head coach Dennis Gates' second consecutive Coach of the Year honor, which made him only the eighth coach in league history and first at Cleveland State to receive the award in back-to-back seasons. Junior Tre Gomillion was tabbed as Defensive Player of the Year while Torrey Patton became the first Viking to receive an All-League First Team nod since 2015. Additionally, both Gomillion and Deante Johnson were selected as members of the All-Defensive Team.
RISING IN THE HORIZON (AS A TEAM)
At the conclusion of the #HLMBB regular season, the Vikings were tied for first in defensive three-point percentage (.302), second in steals (7.75), defensive field goal percentage (.419), points allowed (68.0), scoring margin (4.5) and TO margin (2.1).
RISING IN THE HORIZON (INDIVIDUALLY)
At the conclusion of the #HLMBB regular season, Torrey Patton ranked seventh in rebounds per game (7.4), 10th in field goal percentage (.483) and 14th in scoring (15.3). Deante Johnson ranked fourth in blocks (1.1) and 19th in rebounds per gae (5.6) while Craig Beaudion checked in at 12th in free throw percentage (.783) and 14th in assists (3.4). D'Moi Hodge tied for first in total steals (33) and ranked second in steals per game (1.7).
MILESTONES REACHED
With a first-half layup on Feb. 20 against Purdue Fort Wayne, Algevon Eichelberger hit the 700-point mark for his career after appearing his 100th collegiate game the previous night. Torrey Patton hit the same point milestone when he opened the scoring for Cleveland State with a jumpshot on Feb. 19.
GET THAT WEAK STUFF OUTTA HERE
Deante Johnson matched a career high on Feb. 13 against Detroit Mercy with five blocks. Johnson is the only Horizon League player to record five blocks in a contest this season, and the junior has done it twice. Overall, Johnson ranks third in the league in total blocks (28) and averages 1.2 rejections per game.
TRE GOMILLION AKA MR. RELIABLE
Gomillion has started in every game of his Cleveland State career (56 starts). The junior has had a career season thus far, pouring in a career-high 23 points on a near-perfect 11-12 (.917) shooting from the floor on Dec. 27, 2020. A .917 shooting percentage puts the Augusta, Georgia, native in the record book, tying him with Jamal Jackson's .917 clip on 12/5/94 (also 11-12 from the field). Gomillion helped the Vikes clinch the #HLMBB regular season title with an 18-point effort while grabbing six boards on Feb. 20 against Purdue Fort Wayne.
PATTON POURING IN THE POINTS
Senior Torrey Patton poured in 10 or more points in a career-high nine-straight contests (Dec. 13-Jan. 16). Over those nine games, all wins for the Vikes, Patton averaged 15.2 points per contest. His previous longest 10-plus streak was last season (six straight games). Within that nine-game stretch, Patton notched a season-high 19 points in a come-from-behind win over Youngstown State (Dec. 27). Overall, Patton has logged double-digit points in 19 of 21 Horizon League games and owns a team-high five double-doubles. Patton logged a career-high 33 points on 13-19 shooting on Feb. 12 against Detroit Mercy.
UP NEXT
If Cleveland State tops Milwaukee on Monday, it will advance to the #HLMBB Final against the winner of the Northern Kentucky-Oakland semifinal matchup on Tuesday. The contest would be slated for a 7 p.m. tipoff on ESPN or ESPN2, as well as on 1420-WHK, 102.5 FM and whkradio.com.
1985-86 CELEBRATION: ON THIS DATE...pres. by Huntington Bank
On Friday, March 7, the Vikings advanced to the Mid-Continent Conference Finals with a 100-84 win over Illinois-Chicago, marking the first tournament game with 100 or more points in program history. The victory marked the 11th in the Vikes' historic 14-game streak which culminated in a pair of NCAA Tournament wins.
