GAME #17
Cleveland State vs. Detroit Mercy
Wednesday, January 10 | 7:00 p.m. | Wolstein Center
Live Stats | Live Video | CSU Game Notes
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will continue its current three-game homestand this week, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. contest against Detroit Mercy on Wednesday, January 10. Entering Wednesday's contest, the Vikings are 13-3 overall this season and 4-1 in league play, while Detroit Mercy is currently 11-5 overall and 4-1 against league opponents.
A WIN ON SATURDAY WOULD…
Give Cleveland State a 3-0 start to the 2024 calendar year…Mark three straight wins for the Vikings for the second time this season…Extend Cleveland State's home win streak to 14 straight games.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/DETROIT MERCY SERIES
Wednesday's game will mark the 69th meeting between the two teams in program history, with Detroit Mercy owning a 41-27 edge in the all-time series. Despite the Titans holding the lead in the all-time series, the Vikings have won nine of the last 10 matchups, including a series sweep last season.
…LAST TIME AGAINST THE TITANS
The last time these two teams met, the Vikings picked up a convincing 107-65 victory on January 26, 2023, marking the 500th career win for head coach Chris Kielsmeier. At the time, 84 of Kielsmeier's 500 wins came at Cleveland State, while 179 wins came during his time at Howard Payne University and 237 wins came during his tenure at Wayne State College.
SCOUTING THE TITANS
Detroit Mercy enters Wednesday's game with an 11-5 record on the year, including a 4-1 mark in #HLWBB play…Through the first three weeks of league action, the Titans are tied for second place in the standings…Detroit Mercy has won four out of its last five contests, with the lone #HLWBB loss coming during this stretch in an 81-76 overtime decision at IUPUI…Earlier this year, Detroit Mercy was selected to finish 10th in the #HLWBB Preseason Poll, while Irene Murua was named to the Preseason All-League Second Team…The Titans are leading the league averaging 40.1 rebounds per game, while also holding a league-best 6.8 rebounding margin.
…LAST TIME OUT
Cleveland State picked up a 79-37 victory over Youngstown State, improving to 4-1 in #HLWBB play on the season. Three Vikings finished the game with double-figure points, while Sara Guerreiro also added double-digit rebounds for her first double-double. Cleveland State combined for 19 steals on the game, forcing YSU into 25 turnovers and just a .206 clip from the field.
VIKINGS IN #HLWBB PLAY
Cleveland State enters the fourth week of #HLWBB play tied for second in the league standings, owning a 4-1 record against league opponents. The Vikings, who are tied with Detroit Mercy in second place, are just one game out of first place in the #HLWBB standings.
…CSU TABBED SECOND IN PRESEASON POLL
Earlier this season, Cleveland State was selected to finish second in the #HLWBB Preseason Poll, picking up 107 points. This marks the third time in program history that the Vikings were selected to finish second in the #HLWBB Preseason Poll, with the Vikings also tabbed in the top-two prior to the 2011-12 and 2009-10 seasons.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Cleveland State will continue its current homestand with a pair of games at the Wolstein Center this week, including Wednesday's game against Detroit Mercy that will mark the ninth of 16 scheduled home games for the Vikings this season. So far this year, Cleveland State owns a perfect 8-0 record when playing at home, while the Vikings have combined for a 58-18 record at home under Chris Kielsmeier's tenure.
GUERREIRO TALLIES FIRST DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Last time out Sara Guerreiro tallied her first double-double at Cleveland State, finishing with a team-best 17 points and 11 rebounds in the win over Youngstown State. Guerreiro, who is averaging 6.6 points and 5.0 rebounds on the year, went 8-for-10 from the field on the game while also adding three steals. Guerreiro is now one of four Vikings to record a double-double this season.
VIKINGS ON THE OFFENSIVE END
Through the first 10 weeks of the season, Cleveland State has been one of the top offensive teams in the Horizon League, currently leading the league averaging 76.6 points per game while ranking second with a .457 field goal percentage. Through the first 16 games, the Vikings have tallied 70+ points 13 times, and currently own a 13.6 scoring margin. Individually, two Vikings rank in the top-five in scoring, with Colbi Maples ranking fourth averaging 16.5 points and Mickayla Perdue ranking fifth averaging 14.3 points per game.
…VIKINGS SPREADING THE OFFENSE
Entering Wednesday's game against Detroit Mercy, the Vikings have recorded double-digit assists in nine straight games, including a season-high 19 helpers in the win over Niagara. For the season, Colbi Maples has a team-best 67 assists and ranks third among Horizon League players averaging 4.2 assists per game.
REISMA FINDING HER STRIDE
Over the last five games sophomore Jordana Reisma has been finding her stride, notching four double-digit scoring games and a double-double during this stretch. Reisma, who has been averaging 12.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game over the last three weeks, was just shy of her third double-double of the season last time out, finishing with 14 points and eight rebounds against YSU.
…REISMA ON THE BLOCK
Sixteen games into the 2023-24 campaign, sophomore Jordana Reisma has 22 blocked shots on the year and 65 for her career. Reisma, who is one of four #HLWBB players with 20+ blocks on the year, has posted a block in all but three games this year, including a season-high four against Youngstown State last time out. Reisma's 65 career blocks are also just shy of earning her a spot in the CSU Career Record Book.
VIKINGS IN THE MID-MAJOR RANKINGS
Entering the week, Cleveland State is ranked sixth in the latest College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top-25 Poll. The Vikings are one of two Horizon League teams to be ranked, as Green Bay enters the week ranked fifth.
THE NON-LEAGUE SLATE
Cleveland State closed out its non-league slate last month, finishing with a 9-2 record against non-league opponents this season - with one of its losses coming against No. 4 Iowa. Over the last three years, the Vikings have combined to go 25-6 in non-league action, with the nine wins tying the program-best for non-league wins under head coach Chris Kielsmeier.
HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings are under the direction of sixth-year head coach Chris Kielsmeier, who owns a career head coaching record of 525-173. Through six seasons at Cleveland State, Kielsmeier has led the Vikings to a 109-57 overall record, including a trio of 20-win seasons. Last year, Kielsmeier guided the Vikings to their third #HLWBB Tournament Championship, while he led the Vikings to their first-ever postseason title in 2021 when Cleveland State captured the WBI championship.
…KIELSMEIER NAMED TO PRESEASON WATCH LIST
Chris Kielsmeier was named to the Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year Preseason Watch List earlier this year - one of 20 coaches named to the inaugural watch list. Under Kielsmeier, the Vikings have advanced to the postseason in three straight years, and have tallied 20-win campaigns three times over the last four seasons.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will close out its current homestand on Saturday, January 13, hosting Purdue Fort Wayne at 1:00 p.m.
