SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will return to the road to close out the month of January, beginning with a 6:00 p.m. contest at Wright State on Friday, January 20. Entering Friday's matchup, Cleveland State stands at 16-2 overall this year and 7-1 in #HLWBB play, while Wright State is currently 2-16 overall and 1-7 in Horizon League action.

A WIN ON FRIDAY WOULD…
Put Cleveland State back in the win column…Mark the eighth straight road victory for the Vikings…Give Cleveland State an 8-1 #HLWBB record for the first time in program history.

THE CLEVELAND STATE/WRIGHT STATE SERIES
Friday's game will be the 83rd meeting between the two teams, with Wright State owning a slight 43-39 edge in the all-time series. Last season, the two teams met just once due to COVID-19 implications, with Cleveland State earning an 86-60 victory in the lone meeting. 

SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
Wright State enters Friday's game with a 2-16 overall record this season, while standing at 1-7 in Horizon League play…The Raiders' lone #HLWBB victory came in an 82-69 decision at Detroit Mercy last weekend…Wright State's only other win on the season came against Ohio Christian (98-37) back in November…Earlier this year, Wright State was selected to finish 10th in the #HLWBB Preseason Poll…The Raiders currently lead the league with a .348 three-point field goal percentage, while making a league-high 9.1 three-pointers per game…Individually, Bryce Nixon is averaging a league-best 2.4 three-pointers per game, knocking down 43 shots from behind-the-arc so far this year.

LAST TIME OUT…
Cleveland State snapped its program-record setting 16-game win streak with a loss against Green Bay, dropping an 82-65 decision against the Phoenix to put the two teams in a tie for first place in the #HLWBB standings. Gabriella Smith led the Viking offense with 10 points on the day, while Amele Ngwafang and Barbara Zieniewska both recorded a team-best seven rebounds. Despite the loss, the Vikings were still able to notch 12 steals, forcing Green Bay into 19 turnovers.

VIKINGS TIED FOR FIRST IN #HLWBB STANDINGS
Entering the fifth week of Horizon League play Cleveland State is tied for first in the #HLWBB standings with a 7-1 record in league play. This marks the best start to Horizon League play for the Vikings, and the first time that Cleveland State has recorded just one loss in its first eight #HLWBB contests.

ROAD WARRIORS
Friday's game at Wright State will be the first of four straight road games for the Vikings, as they will close out the month of January away from home. So far this season, Cleveland State owns a 7-1 record when playing on the road, with the lone loss coming at No. 8 Iowa State to begin the season. Entering the weekend, the Vikings have won seven straight road contests, and own the best record among #HLWBB teams when playing away from home.

VIKINGS IN THE MID-MAJOR RANKINGS
Entering the weekend, Cleveland State is ranked 12th in the College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top-25 Poll. The Vikings are one of three Horizon League teams to be ranked in the top-25, as Green Bay (11) and Youngstown State (18) are also ranked this week.

…AND RECEIVING VOTES IN WBCA TOP-25
Cleveland State also entered this weekend's games receiving votes in the most recent USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. The Vikings are one of 15 teams to be receiving votes in this week's poll, while they are the lone Horizon League team to appear in the rankings.

NGWAFANG WITH THE DOUBLE-DOUBLE
So far this season Amele Ngwafang has tallied a team-best four double-doubles, ranking fourth among #HLWBB players in the category. Three of Ngwafang's four double-doubles have come during league play, including a 14-point, 10-rebound effort against Milwaukee last weekend. For the season, Ngwafang is averaging 9.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, ranking third on the team in scoring and leading the Vikings with 121 total boards. 

CLEVELAND STATE ON THE DEFENSIVE END
Eighteen games into the 2022-23 campaign Cleveland State leads the Horizon League in rebounding (41.2), blocked shots (4.44) and steals (10.11), serving as one of the best defensive teams in the league. Through the first 10 weeks, the Vikings have recorded double-digit steals eight times and have notched 4+ blocked shots during nine games. Individually, Amele Ngwafang ranks seventh among #HLWBB players averaging 6.7 rebounds per game, while Jordana Reisma is fifth with 1.1 blocks per game, and Deja Williams is also fifth averaging a team-best 1.6 steals per game.

WILLIAMS & LEO FROM THE FREE THROW LINE
Entering Friday's game at Wright State, Deja Williams and Destiny Leo continue to be the top two free throw shooters in the Horizon League, Williams with a .923 clip (48-for-52) and Leo with a .913 clip (62-for-69). Nationally, Williams ranks eighth in the category while Leo ranks 12th among Division I players. Over the last seven games, this duo has combined for a 52-for-56 effort from the free throw line, including a perfect 17-for-17 clip against RMU earlier this season.

…LEO IN THE RECORD BOOK
Destiny Leo currently sits at the top of the CSU Career Record Book with a .900 free throw percentage, entering Friday's game shooting 226-for-251 from the line on her career. Leo is currently the only Viking in program history with a .900+ clip from the free throw line (minimum 200 attempts), while she also set a single-season program record with a .906 free throw percentage last year (125-for-138). In addition, Leo is currently first in the CSU Career Record Book with a .382 three-point field goal percentage and sixth with 167 total three-pointers made.

#HLWBB WEEKLY ACCOLADES
So far this season Cleveland State has earned four #HLWBB Player of the Week and three #HLWBB Freshman of the Week honors - both of which lead all league teams. Destiny Leo (11/28, 12/5), Brittni Moore (12/12) and Amele Ngwafang (1/9)  have combined for the four Player of the Week honors, while Jordana Reisma has picked up all three Freshman of the Week awards (11/21, 12/5, 1/2). 

VIKINGS SET PROGRAM RECORD WITH 16-GAME WIN STREAK
Prior to last Saturday's game against Green Bay, Cleveland State set a program record with a 16-game win streak, dating from November 12, 2022 through January 12, 2023. The Vikings, who set the previous record with 11 straight wins during the 2019-20 campaign, were one of just four Division I teams with a win streak of 16+ games at the time(South Carolina, Ohio State, LSU).

…CLEVELAND STATE NOTCHES PERFECT DECEMBER
Included in Cleveland State's record setting 16-game win streak was a perfect 8-0 record during the month of December, marking the second straight season that Cleveland State has gone undefeated during a calendar month (went 5-0 during November last season). This also marked the first time since the 2012-13 campaign that the Vikings posted a perfect record during the month of December specifically, as they went 6-0 during December of 2012.

HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings will be under the direction of fifth-year head coach Chris Kielsmeier during the 2022-23 campaign, who owns an 82-51 record at Cleveland State and a 498-167 overall record in 23 seasons as a head coach. Kielsmeier, who joined the Vikings as the seventh head coach in program history prior to the 2018-19 season, is one of just two active #HLWBB coaches to reach the 450-win milestone.

UP NEXT
The Vikings will close out the weekend at Northern Kentucky on Sunday, January 22.