INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Cleveland State women's basketball team kicked off the 2013-14 season Friday evening, falling at Butler, 85-69.
Kiersten Green led the Vikings with a career-high 28 points, including a career-best five three-pointers, while Imani Gordon tallied 12 points, including a 7-for-8 performance from the free throw line. Cori Coleman and Haley Schmitt each tallied nine points, while Adesuwa Aideyman added six.
Gordon had a team-high seven rebounds, while Green added five assists and Coleman had a team-high three steals.
The Vikings went into the halftime break trailing by 13 (43-30), and traded baskets during the opening minutes of the second half, including an Aideyman three-pointer at the 19:20 mark to put the score at 37-50 with 16:31 left to play. The Bulldogs then rattled off seven straight points to gain a 20-point advantage (57-37) with just over 14 minutes left in the contest.
Four minutes later the Vikings were able to close the gap to 15 points (61-46) with back-to-back baskets from Green, and then traded layups on the next two possessions to put the score at 63-48 with 8:44 remaining.
Butler was able to extend its lead once again over the next 1:39, gaining a 20-point lead (71-51) with 7:05 left in the contest. The Vikings stayed tough though, going on an 11-6 run over the next 3:30 – with five points from Green and six from Gordon – to put the score at 77-62 with 3:37 remaining.
The Bulldogs then outscored the Vikings 8-7 in the final minutes of the contest, earning the 85-69 victory.
The Vikings will begin a four-game homestand on Thursday, November 14, hosting Lake Erie at 7:00 p.m. During this stretch CSU will also welcome Eastern Michigan (Nov. 17), Florida Atlantic (Nov. 23) and Morehead State (Nov. 27).
