Youngstown, OH-The Cleveland State men's basketball team fell on the road in the opening game of Horizon League play at Youngstown State on Wednesday night by a final score of 94-69. The Vikings are 5-3 and 0-1 in league play. Youngstown State is 4-3 and 1-0.
Youngstown State led 42-24 at the break, as the Vikings started cold from the field and committed 10 turnovers in the first half. The Penguins held a decisive edge on the glass, outrebounding the Vikings 43-30, and Cleveland State finished just 13-24 from the free throw line.
Drew Lowder led the way with 17 points for CSU. Lowder finished 5-6 from the free throw line and added three assists. Tristan Enaruna recorded his 30th consecutive game in double figures, finishing with 13 points, and Jalin Rice added 10 points off the bench. Youngstown State's John Lovelace Jr. led all scorers with 23 points.
The Vikings took a brief lead early in the game, holding a 7-5 advantage just under four minutes in. Youngstown State quickly tied it at 7 headed into the first media timeout.
The Penguins never trailed from that point on. The YSU lead grew as large as 29 in the second half. The Vikings clawed to within 17 midway through the second half, but couldn't climb back within striking distance as the Penguins had an answer for every CSU run throughout the latter part of the game.
Cleveland State returns home this weekend to host Detroit Mercy in the second game of the opening week of conference play. The game is scheduled for a 3:00 p.m. tip off at the Wolstein Center.
