CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women's basketball team had four players post double-digit points Saturday, including two with career-highs, but that wouldn't be enough as the Vikings fell short against Florida Atlantic, 81-78. Saturday's contest, which included 16 lead changes and 11 ties, put the Vikings at 1-3 this season while the Owls improved to 3-2.
Imani Gordon led the Vikings with a career-high 18 points, along with 13 rebounds to mark her first double-double of the season, while Adesuwa Aideyman tallied a career-high 16 points, including a trio of three-pointers. Aideyman also added a career-high six assists.
Cori Coleman and Kiersten Green each notched 15 points against the Owls, while Brooke Smith tallied a career-high seven points, four assists and three steals.
The Vikings went into the halftime break with a 35-33 advantage thanks to a 9-1 run over the final 3:06 of the opening half. During this stretch the Vikings had three points from Aideyman and Gordon, two from Smith and one from Allison Mitchell.
To start the second half, the two teams traded points throughout the first four minutes, until the Vikings were able to distance themselves with a 9-0 run that put the score at 52-44 with 13:43 left to play. During this run, CSU matched its largest lead of five points with a Green layup at the 14:19 mark, and then extended their lead with an Aideyman three-pointer just 34-seconds later.
The Owls then responded with an 11-1 run of their own, including three-straight three-pointers, to regain the lead at 55-53 with 11:23 left to play. Over the next two possessions, Coleman converted a pair of layups to give the Vikings a slight two-point lead at 57-55, before Florida Atlantic once again went on a run, regaining a four-point lead at 63-59 with under 10 minutes left in the contest.
Over the next 5:18 the two teams battled back and forth, tying the contest twice during this span, until the Vikings were able to gain control of the contest with a mini 4-0 run including two free throws from Smith and a layup from Schmitt. With just 3:59 left to play, CSU held a 74-70 advantage – marking what would eventually be their final lead of the contest.
With an 8-0 run over the next 2:14, the Owls gained a 78-74 advantage with just 1:45 left on the clock, but the Vikings would hang tough as they matched each FAU basket until the final seconds. Layups from Smith and Green in the closing minutes brought the Vikings within two points at the 80-78 mark with 55-seconds remaining.
A Florida Atlantic free throw with 18 seconds left put the Owls ahead by three (81-78), but with a Schmitt rebound on the following free throw the Vikings were able to get two chances at a tying three-point attempt, but a stingy FAU defense kept the Vikings off the board in the final seconds.
As a team, CSU notched a .547 shooting percentage from the field (29-53), while the Owls tallied a 42-percent clip (31-73). The Vikings grabbed 35 rebounds during the contest, and forced FAU into 14 turnovers.
The Vikings will be back in action on Wednesday (November 27), closing out their four-game homestand with a 1:00 p.m. contest against Morehead State.
