The Cleveland State Men's Basketball team dropped a tough one to Loyola Marymount on Sunday in Los Angeles by a final score of 70-59. The contest was the first ever meeting between the two schools. 

The Vikings(6-6) got off to a slow start. LMU(9-4) led by 16 at halftime, and despite a valiant attempt from CSU to climb back into the game, held firm for the double-digit victory. 

The Vikings were led offensively by Deshon Parker, who finished with 15 points. Parker also added four rebounds, 3 assists and finished 5-6 from the free throw line. 

Tae Williams finished with 11 points, despite being in foul trouble for the majority of the first half. Williams picked up his second personal less than three minutes into the contest, and did not return until the 2:22 mark. Drew Lowder also finished with 11 off the bench. 

For Loyola Marymount, Michael Graham and Cam Shelton led the way with 15 points each. 

Cleveland State scored four of the first six points in the game. LMU responded, scoring the next six to take an 8-4 lead at the 13:55 mark.\ 

The two teams settled in defensively, as scoring was hard to come by early on. Back-to-back buckets from LMU with just under eight minutes to go pushed the Lions to a double-digit lead at 20-10. 

The LMU lead climbed as high as 19 with a little over three minutes to go in the first half, before Cleveland State was able to trim the gap. Jayson Woodrich connected on the first three-pointer of the game for CSU at the 1:07 mark to cut the deficit to 14. At the half, LMU led 40-24. 

In the second half, the Lions started fast yet again, widening the lead to 20 at the 14:15 mark. Cleveland State slowly chipped away, twice pulling to within seven with a little over three minutes left to play. Back-to-back buckets by Ramar Pryor and Tae Williams made it 59-52 with 3:02 remaining. 

But the Vikings could not draw any closer, as LMU was able to hold CSU at bay for the 11 point final margin. 

The Vikings shot 34-percent from the floor for the contest, and finished 12-18 from the free throw line. Cleveland State made just three of its 22 three-point tries. 

The Vikings are back at home for a matchup with Mount St. Joseph on Wednesday night. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip.