Feb. 17, 2005
Contact: Brian McCann
DETROIT, Mich. -- Brandon Cotton scored 17 points and James Thues added 13 as Detroit took control of the game in the early part of the second half on the way to a 67-52 in over Cleveland State on Wednesday night in Calihan Hall.
Raheem Moss led CSU with 13 points while Omari Westley added 12 points as the Vikings dropped to 6-8 in Horizon League play, good for sixth place. Detroit moved into a fourth place tie with Wright State in the league standings with a 7-7 record.
The win avenged a 69-62 loss to the Vikings two weeks ago in Cleveland, a game that saw CSU rally from a 24-point deficit in the second half to claim the win.
"This game was a very uncharacteristic performance for us," head coach Mike Garland said. "We played well for the first 25 minutes but when we had the opportunity to take control, we couldn't get it done. I know that a young team like ours is going to have games like this, but that doesn't make it any easier to take that we let one get away."
After trailing 32-29 at the half, Detroit's Torvoris Baker and Thues each scored baskets in the first two minutes of the second half to give the Titans a 36-29 with 18:40 left.
Cleveland State came right back with four Vikings scoring during an 8-09 run to pull ahead 37-36 with 15:55 left. The teams traded baskets before the Titans went on a 16-2 run over a six-minute span to pull ahead for good.
Unlike two weeks ago in Cleveland, the Vikings had no answer for the run, coming no closer than 11 the rest of the way.
Playing without Westley in the first half, the Viking offense looked sharp, going six-for-12 from three-point to lead by as many as six points in the opening stanza.
Frashon McGee and Moss teamed up to score the first 15 points of the game for CSU as the Vikings led, 15-9 with 13:38 left.
Detroit countered, scoring 10 of the next 13 points to take a 19-18 lead with 9:19 left in the first half. Moss and Walt Chavis would answer back with three-pointers to give CSU the lead back but a 9-0 Titan run over the next four minutes to give Detroit a 32-24 advantage with 4:20 left, its largest lead of the half.
The Vikings committed just three turnovers in the first half but struggled after the intermission, turning the ball over nine times in the decisive first 12 minutes, finishing with 13 turnovers. Detroit made just 10 turnovers, the lowest total by a Viking opponent this year.
Defensively, CSU limited the Titans to .394 shooting in the first half (13-33) but Detroit found their range after the intermission, making 12 of it 22 field goal attempts (.545)
The Vikings return to the state of Michigan on Saturday (Feb. 19) when they play a 2:00 p.m. game at Central Michigan in a game scheduled as part of the ESPN Bracket Buster pool. CSU returns home next week to face Loyola (Feb. 23) and UW-Milwaukee (Feb. 26).
NOTE: The CSU-Detroit game will be televised on a taped delay basis on Cox Cable channel 45. It will air on at 10:30 a.m. and 9:30 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 20 and at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 21.
