All-Time vs. Mount St. Joseph: First Meeting
Last Meeting: N/A
Tickets: csuvikings.com
Radio: 1350 AM The Gambler
TV: ESPN+
SETTING THE SCENE
Cleveland State is set to host Mount St. Joseph in a non-conference matchup at the Wolstein Center on Wednesday night. This marks the final non-conference game of the season for the Vikings, who will resume Horizon League play this coming weekend. Mount St. Joseph is 2-8 on the season and riding a three game losing streak headed into Wednesday night's game.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/MOUNT ST. JOSEPH SERIES
Wednesday's game marks the first ever meeting between Cleveland State and Mount St. Joseph. The University is located in Cincinnati, OH and is about 15 minutes out- side of downtown. The Athletic Department supports 25 varsity sports teams, and competes in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference.
VIKINGS FALL AT HOME TO KENT STATE
Cleveland State fell at home to Kent State on Saturday afternoon in the battle of Northeast Ohio 67-58. Deante Johnson set a new career-high with 20 points and fell a rebound shy of his second double-double of the season, finishing with nine boards. The Vikings shot 37-percent from the floor, but finished just 3-15 from three point range.
VIKINGS DOWN DETROIT MERCY TO CAP 2-0 WEEKEND
Cleveland State defeated Detroit Mercy 92-77 on Saturday to move to 2-0 in Horizon League play. 92 points is the highest scoring output of the season for Cleveland State, and the Vikes shot 50-percent from the floor and 45-percent from three in the win. Tae Williams had a monster game, finishing with 23 points and 10 rebounds for his first career double-double. Both numbers are season highs for the Junior from Chicago, Illinois.
CLEVELAND STATE OPENS HORIZON LEAGUE PLAY WITH WIN OVER OAKLAND
Cleveland State started the Horizon League slate with a victory on Thursday against Oakland, marking the third consecutive season the Vikings have started conference play with a win. CSU dominated inside in the game, outrebounding Oakland 50- 32 and scoring 48 points in the paint. Six Vikings finished in double figures for the contest, led by Drew Lowder who registered a season-high with 16 points.
SCOUTING THE LIONS
Mount St. Joseph is 2-8 on the season. The Lions are led by Luke Collinsworth, who leads the team in scoring at 16.0 points per game. Collinsworth, a 6'7" sophomore out of Lawrenceburg, Indiana, is shooting at a 51-percent clip from the floor so far this season. Kelvin Turner, a freshman Guard from Liberty Township, also averages in double figures at 12.3 points per game. The Lions are led by Toby Carrigan, who is in his 11th season at the helm. Carrigan has twice been named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference(HCAC) Coach of the Year, and has won four HCAC regular season titles during his tenure.
GETTING IT DONE ON DEFENSE
Throughout the early going of the season, Cleveland State has found success defensively. The Vikings are holding opponents to an average of 65.7 points per game, which is fourth in the Horizon League. CSU ranks second in opponent field goal percentage, at .406, and ranks third in opponent three-point percentage, holding opposing teams to just 29-percent from long range.
COACH ROBINSON ANNOUNCES COACHING STAFF
Head Coach Daniyal Robinson has assembled an experienced coaching staff in his first season at Cleveland State. Jermaine Henderson returns to CSU after previously serving as an assistant coach during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons under Gary Waters. Henderson most recently served as an assistant coach at Kansas State for the past five seasons. Travis Lewis is in his second season on staff at Cleveland State, after serving as Director of Video Operations under former head coach Dennis Gates last season. Jay Shunnar enters his first season as an assistant coach, after working in several capacities under John Belein at the University of Michigan and with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
VIKINGS FINISH 2-0 IN TURKEY SLAM - CLEVELAND STATE REGIONAL Cleveland State went 2-0 in the Turkey Slam MTE hosted at the Wolstein Center this past week. The Vikings defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Chicago State to run the winning streak to three. Jayson Woodrich was named the MVP of the invitational, after scoring in double figures in both contests. Woodrich had 12 points each in the two games, shooting at a 50-percent clip from three in the two contests. Tristan Enaruna was also named to the all-tournament team.
BENCH STRONG IN VIKING VICTORY OVER ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF Cleveland State made it back-to-back wins, defeating Arkansas-Pine Bluff this past Friday night at the Wolstein Center 67-58. The Vikings used a balanced scoring attack, and won the bench scoring battle 28-5 to notch the first home win of 2022- 23. Jayson Woodrich came off the bench to provide 12 of those points, finishing 3-6 from three point range. Ramar Pryor also finished with a season high 7 points in the win.
VIKINGS DEFEAT CANISIUS, EARN FIRST WIN UNDER COACH ROBINSON
Cleveland State picked up its first win of the 2022-23 season with a hard fought, 58-57 overtime win against Canisius last Wednesday. Cleveland State started fast, jumping out to a double digit lead in the first half, but had to withstand a surge by Canisius in the second half. The Golden Griffins battled back, and eventually tied the game at 53, sending it to overtime. Cleveland State scored first in the extra session and held on for the victory. Four of the five starters in the contest for the Vikings finished in double figures, led by Tristan Enaruna who finished with a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds. The win marked the first for Head Coach Daniyal Robinson in his career.
ENARUNA IMPRESSIVE TO START 2022-23
Transfer forward Tristan Enaruna has gotten off to a good start in a Viking uniform. Enaruna had a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds in the opener against Notre Dame College, and followed that up with another double figure scoring performance with 15 against Cincinnati. He recorded another double-double against Canisius, finishing with 15 points and 10 rebounds, and fell a point shy of another against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. So far, he is averaging 11.5 points and 6.6 rebounds, while shooting at a 43-percent clip from the field.
PARKER DROPPING DIMES
Deshon Parker has been a great facilitator for Cleveland State through the early going of the regular season. So far, Parker has totaled 61 assists. He had a career-high 11 in the opener against Notre Dame College. His average of 5.1 assists per game is tied for second in the Horizon League, and his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.5 also ranks second in the league.
WOODRICH DIALED IN FROM DEEP
Jayson Woodrich has been shooting it well of late for Cleveland State. During the Vikes' six game win streak, Woodrich tied for the team high with 10 three point makes, and is shooting at a 37-percent clip from the long line during that stretch. His back-to-back 12 point outings against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Chicago State earned him Tournament MVP honors for the Cleveland State MTE.
WILLIAMS RISES TO THE OCCASION
Tae Williams has been a key to the Vikings' success in the early going of the regular season. Williams registered 23 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Detroit Mercy two weekends ago, which were both season highs. Williams is averaging 9.6 points per game and has scored in double figures six times so far this season.
LOWDER LIGHTS IT UP
Drew Lowder has been a spark plug off the bench for the Vikings of late. Lowder had a stretch of three of five games where he scored in double figures, including a season-high 16 points in the win over Oakland.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State returns to Horizon League play, traveling to Youngstown State for a conference road battle. The game against the Penguins is scheduled for Thursday, December 29 at 8 p.m. The contest is part of a doubleheader with the Cleveland State Women's Basketball team, who will also take on Youngstown State at 5:15 that evening.
