All-Time vs. Youngstown State: 55-44
Last Meeting: 1/21/22 64-61 W
Tickets: ysusports.com
Radio: NEO Sports Radio
TV: ESPN+
SETTING THE SCENE
Cleveland State is set to travel to Youngstown, Ohio for the first of two games on the road against Horizon League foes this weekend. The Vikings finished the non-conference portion of the schedule at 7-6, following a 78-48 win over Mount St. Joseph to close it out last Wednesday. The Vikings are 2-0 in the Horizon League after wins over Oakland and Detroit Mercy earlier this month. The Penguins are 9-4 overall, and 1-1 in the Horizon League. YSU is riding a two game win streak headed into Thursday's game.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/YOUNGSTOWN STATE SERIES
Thursday's game is the 100th all-time meeting between Cleveland State and Youngstown State. The series dates all the way back to 1930. The Vikings own a 55- 44 advantage, and have won the last four games in the series. Cleveland State swept the two meetings last season. Both games were close, with CSU prevailing 86-80 in Overtime at YSU on January 9th, and then winning 64-61 at the Wolstein Center on January 21st. In the game in Cleveland, Yahel Hill led all scorers with 15 points off the bench. In the game at YSU, Deshon Parker finished with 14 points and 8 as- sists, and Deante Johnson added a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Youngstown State Head Coach Jerrod Calhoun also played at Cleveland State for two seasons in the early 2000s.
VIKINGS DEFEAT MOUNT ST. JOSEPH TO CLOSE NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
Cleveland State defeated the Lions of Mount St. Joseph to close out the non-conference portion of the schedule with a win last Wednesday. The Vikings jumped out to a 26-3 lead and cruised to a 78-48 win. All 11 Vikings who played in the game cracked the score sheet. Drew Lowder led a group of four Vikings who finished in double figures with 18 points.
VIKINGS DOWN DETROIT MERCY TO CAP 2-0 WEEKEND
Cleveland State defeated Detroit Mercy 92-77 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.
SCOUTING THE PENGUINS
Youngstown State is 9-4 and 1-1 in the Horizon League headed into Thursday's game. The Penguins carry a two game winning streak into the contest, with wins over Southern at home and Central Michigan on the road to close out the non-conference schedule. YSU shares two common opponents with Cleveland State in the non-conference. The Penguins defeated Canisius 92-81 in their season opener, and lost to Ohio 81-79 on December 11th. In the opening weekend of conference play, YSU fell on the road at Northern Kentucky, but went on to defeat Wright State on the road. The Penguins are led by Jerrod Calhoun, who is in his 6th season.
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.
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 64.3 points per game, which is second in the Horizon League. CSU ranks second in opponent field goal percentage, at .402, and ranks third in opponent three-point percentage, holding opposing teams to just 30-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.
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 10.9 points and 6.3 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 64 assists. He had a career-high 11 in the opener against Notre Dame College. His average of 4.9 assists per game is second in the Horizon League, and his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.5 also ranks second in the league. Thursday's game features the top two in the league in this category, as YSU's Bryce McBride leads the league at 2.8.
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 regu- lar season. Williams registered 23 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Detroit Mercy, which were both season highs. Williams is averaging 9.6 points per game and has scored in double figures seven 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. He has scored in double figures in back-to-back games, with 11 at Loyola Marymount and 18 against Mount St. Joseph.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State continues the weekend road trip, with a game on Saturday at Robert Morris. The game will also be a doubleheader with the CSU Women's Team, who will play the Colonials at noon. The men's game will follow at 3:00 p.m.
