Game 4 - Canisius vs. Cleveland State
Canisius Game Notes | Cleveland State Game Notes
Wolstein Center, Cleveland OH
7:00 p.m.
All-Time vs. Canisius:5-1
Last Meeting: 11/16/22 58-57 W(OT)
Tickets: csuvikings.com
Radio: 1350 AM The Gambler
Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski, Pat Vuyancih, Ed Daugherty(Host)
TV: ESPN+
Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski, Pat Vuyancih
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State Men's Basketball team looks to make it a clean sweep at the Wolstein Center as they wrap up a three-game early season homestand with a Wednesday night matchup at the Wolstein Center. The Vikings sit 2-1 coming into the game with back-to-back home victories over Defiance and Ohio to close the first week of the regular season. Canisius is 1-1 after opening the season with a loss at Syracuse and rebounding to defeat St. Bonaventure to claim their first victory of the season.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/CANISIUS SERIES
Wednesday's game is the seventh all-time meeting between Cleveland State and Canisius. This marks the third consecutive season that the two teams have met in November. Cleveland State has won the last two matchups. Last year's matchup at Canisius went down to the wire with the Vikings prevailing in overtime by one point, 58-57. Tristan Enaruna led the way for CSU with 15 points and Tae Williams added 11. The win was the first career victory for Daniyal Robinson as a head coach.
CLEVELAND STATE EARNS 82-78 WIN OVER OHIO
Cleveland State earned the program's third all-time victory in the series against Ohio and the first since 1998 with a strong performance Saturday at the Wolstein Center. The game was back and forth the entire way and featured 13 lead changes and 13 ties. Tristan Enaruna led the way for the Vikings with a season-high 22 points, six rebounds and a career-high six assists. Jayson Woodrich also finished in double figures with 14 points on 4-5 shooting from three-point range, including multiple critical makes down the stretch to push the Vikings in front.
CAREER NIGHT FOR DREW LOWDER
Drew Lowder set multiple career highs in last Monday's game at Duquesne. Lowder finished with 27 points which was a new all-time career high. Lowder finished 9-16 from the field in the game and connected on six of nine from behind the three-point arc. The six triples also set a new career best.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN GRIFFINS
Canisius is 1-1 on the season through one week of play. The Golden Griffins return three starters and eight letterwinners from last year's squad that finished 10-20 overall and ninth place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Canisius was picked to finish third in the MAAC Preseason Poll. Canisius has four players averaging in double figures through two games, led by junior guard Tre Dinkins who averages 16.5 points per contest. Reggie Witherspoon is in his eighth season as the head coach, he has amassed 95 career victories in charge of the program and almost 300 in his head coaching career.
Cleveland State head coach Daniyal Robinson set a new school record in his first season in charge of the program. Robinson and the Vikings recorded 21 wins in 2022-23, which is the most wins of any first-year head coach in school history. Cleveland State finished as the runner-up in the Horizon League Tournament and made the program's third-straight postseason appearance, earning a trip to the CBI. Should the Vikings reach the postseason this year, it would be the first time in school history that CSU has reached the postseason four consecutive years.
VIKINGS PICKED FOURTH IN #HLMBB PRESEASON POLL
Cleveland State was picked to finish fourth in the Horizon League Men's Basketball Preseason Poll following a vote amongst league head coaches, media members and Sports Information Directors from the league's 11 participating schools. Cleveland State received one first-place vote and finished with 362 points. In addition, senior forward Tristan Enaruna was named to the all-league first team after averaging 15.6 points and 6.8 rebounds per game last season.
RETURNERS PACK A PUNCH
Cleveland State returns a majority of the scoring and rebounding from last season's 21-win squad. The Vikings return 62 percent of the scoring and 51 percent of the rebounding from 2022-23. Cleveland State returns its top three scorers and two of its top three rebounders. In the scoring department, Tristan Enaruna led the way at 15.6 points per game, followed by Tae Williams who also averaged double figures at 11.1 points per contest. Senior guard Drew Lowder returns after averaging 9.8 points per game last season. Enaruna and Williams will provide a steady presence on the glass, as the two combined to average 12.5 rebounds per game in 2022-23.
NEW FACES
Seven newcomers will suit up in the green and white for the first time in 2023-24. The roster includes six transfer student-athletes and one freshman. The group features junior transfer guards Tevin Smith and Jalin Rice, who will see action on the wings, and junior transfer forwards KJ Debrick and Dok Muordar who will add to the depth in the post. Junior Chase Robinson was on the roster last season, but will make his debut after sitting out last year due to transer protocol. Fifth- year senior TJ Moss will provide verteran experience, and local product Danny Young(Shaker Heights), is the lone freshman addition.
CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE AWAITS IN 2023-24
Head Coach Daniyal Robinson has assembled a challenging non-conference schedule in his second season in charge of the program. Last Monday's opener at Duquesne was one of four in which the Vikings will face off with a team that won 20 or more games and played in the postseason. Cleveland State will face two teams that appeared in the NCAA Tournament last season, with road matchups scheduled at St. Mary's (Dec. 5) and at Kent State (Dec. 9). Duquesne (CBI) and Bradley (NIT) also made postseason appearances last year.
VIKINGS CRUISE TO 96-48 EXHIBITION WIN OVER BALDWIN WALLACE
Cleveland State saw its first action of 2023-24 with an exhibition victory over Bald- win Wallace, 96-48, at the Wolstein Center Thursday night. The Vikings jumped out to an early 20-point lead and never looked back. The Vikings locked down defensively coming out of the halftime locker room, holding BW to just six points in the first ten minutes of the second half. Five Vikings scored in double figures led by Tae Williams who finished with 18 points. Williams was a stellar 8-10 from the field on the night. This marked the second consecutive year that the Vikings have recorded an exhibition victory over Baldwin Wallace.
VIKINGS POST FIRST WIN OF 2023-24 OVER DEFIANCE
Cleveland State defeated Defiance on Wednesday night for its first win of the season, rolling to a 102-41 victory. The Vikings led the entire way and locked down defensively. At one point in the second half, the Vikings posted a 24-0 run, holding the Defiance offense out of pocket for over eight minutes without a single point. Six players scored in double figures in a balanced offensive attack led by Ramar Pryor who registered a CSU career-high 14 points in the contest.
JOHNSON JOINS COACHING STAFF
Head Coach Daniyal Robinson announced the addition of Kwanza Johnson as an assistant coach for the 2023-24 season. Johnson brings over 20 years of collegiate coaching experience to the Cleveland State bench. Johnson and Robinson share a connection that goes back to their time working together at Arkansas-Little Rock, Robinson's alma mater. Johnson joins returning assistants Travis Lewis, Jay Shunnar and Special Assistant to the Head Coach Steve Payne on this year's coaching staff.
ENARUNA EARNS OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE
Preseason all-league first-team honoree Tristan Enaruna earned valuable playing experience over the summer, competing as a member of the Netherlands Olympic National Team in the 2023 FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament. Enaruna, who hails from Almere, was one of four Division I players on the Netherlands roster and the only player from a non-Power Five institution. The tournament featured several European nations competing for qualifying spots on the road to the 2024 Olympic Basketball Tournament scheduled to be held in Paris, France.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State hits the road for a Saturday non-conference road matchup at Eastern Michigan. The game is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off in Ypsilanti, MI.
