All-Time vs. Milwaukee: 28-31
Last Meeting: 2/18/22 78-61 W
Tickets: csuvikings.com
Radio: 1100 AM WTAM
TV: ESPN+
SETTING THE SCENE
Cleveland State continues league play at home against the Milwaukee Panthers in a key early-season Horizon League matchup. Both teams sit at 3-1 in the league and in a tie for second place in the standings. The Vikings are coming off of a win over Robert Morris on Saturday, 63-54 on the road. This is the fourth time this season that CSU has held an opponent under 60 points. Milwaukee defeated Detroit Mercy in its last contest. The Panthers are 2-4 on the road this season.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/MILWAUKEE SERIES
Thursday's game is the 60th all-time meeting between Cleveland State and Milwaukee. Cleveland State trails the all-time series 31-28, but the Vikings have won the last three. CSU swept both meetings between the two teams last February, winning 84-71 in Cleveland and 78-61 in Milwaukee. Yahel Hill scored in double figures in both games, finishing with 17 in the win in Cleveland and 11 in the road win at Milwaukee.
VIKINGS DEFEAT ROBERT MORRIS TO MOVE TO 3-1 IN #HLMBB PLAY
Cleveland State defeated Robert Morris on Saturday to move to 3-1 in conference play. The Vikings got contributions from the entire rotation in the 63-54 win. Tristan Enaruna led the way with 18 points, followed by Deshon Parker with 14. The Vikings held RMU to just 18-percent from three-point range. CSU trailed just once, 2-0 at the start of the game, and held the Colonials at bay the rest of the way.
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 PANTHERS
Milwaukee is 9-5 and 3-1 in the Horizon League coming into Thursday's game. The Panthers split their two contests last weekend on the road, falling to Oakland 83-61 and defeating Detroit Mercy 84-81. BJ Freeman leads Milwaukee in scoring at 11.7 points per game. This game features a matchup of two head coaches in their first season leading their respective programs, as Milwaukee's Bart Lundy is in his first season at the helm.
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 65 points per game, which is third in the Horizon League. CSU ranks third in opponent field goal percentage, at .413, 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. Enaruna is coming off of back-to-back 18 point outings this past weekend against Youngstown State and Robert Morris.
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 ca- reer-high 11 in the opener against Notre Dame College. His average of 4.73 assists per game is third in the Horizon League, and his assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.29 also ranks second in the league.
SHARING THE ROCK
Through four games, Cleveland State leads the league at 14.5 assists per game in Horizon League contests. The Vikings also lead the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.57. Cleveland State also sits second in turnover margin, at +3.25.
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 10.1 points per game and has scored in double figures eight times so far this season, including three of the last four games.
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 four consecutive games, including a season-high 18 against Mount St. Joseph.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State returns to the Wolstein Center court for the second of two weeken home games, as the Vikings host Green Bay on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m.
