The Cleveland State Men's Basketball team defeated Baldwin Wallace in its exhibition opener 74-52 in front of a crowd of 1,825 at the Wolstein Center.
Four Vikings finished the game in double figures, led by Tristan Enaruna who had 15 points. Enaruna recorded a double-double in his first outing in a Viking uniform, adding 13 rebounds. Joining Enaruna in double figures was Jason Drake with 11 points, Drew Lowder with 10 points, and Deshon Parker with 10 points.
The Vikings dominated the glass, outrebounding the Yellow Jackets 52-36. 22 of those rebounds came on the offensive end, leading to 19 second chance points. CSU added 42 points in the paint throughout the contest.
Enaruna led the charge early, scoring 5 points in a row to put the Vikings ahead 17-7 headed into the under-12 timeout of the first half. He later followed with a putback layup to widen the lead to 16, 26-10 at the 9:16 mark. The two teams traded baskets through the latter part of the first half, making the score 35-23 headed into the break.
Tae Williams had a productive first half for CSU, scoring all eight of his points in the first 20 minutes. He added three rebounds, as well as an assist while logging 14 minutes.
The Vikings started fast in the second half, ballooning the lead to 20 at the 14:34 mark. Drew Louder added a quick four-point burst, converting back-to-back fast break layups.
Overall, 12 Vikings saw the floor in the game, and no player logged more than 30 minutes in total. Cleveland State finished 28-68 from the field, for a 41% total, and the Vikings shot a solid 72% from the charity stripe(13-18).
Jackson Simmons led the way for Baldwin Wallace, scoring 15 points on 6-12 shooting. The Yellow Jackets finished 18-58(31%) from the floor, and the two teams finished dead even in the turnover margin, with 16 each.
The Vikings now prepare for the regular season opener on Monday at the Wolstein Center against Notre Dame College. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip-off, and will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Viking fans can also listen to the game on 1350 AM The Gambler. Tickets are available online by clicking HERE.
