GAME #25
Cleveland State vs. Wright State
Wednesday, February 7 | 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 four-game homestand this week, hosting a 7:00 p.m. contest against Wright State on Wednesday, February 7. Entering Wednesday's matchup, the Vikings are 20-4 overall this season and 11-2 in league play, while Wright State is currently 14-10 on the year and 8-5 against league opponents.
A WIN ON WEDNESDAY WOULD…
Keep the Vikings perfect during the month of February…Give Cleveland State a series sweep over Wright State…Extend Cleveland State's home win streak to 19 straight games.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/WRIGHT STATE SERIES
Wednesday's game will be the 86th meeting between the two teams, with Wright State owning a slight 43-42 edge in the all-time series. Cleveland State is currently on a four-game win streak against the Raiders, including a 72-61 victory in the first matchup of the season.
SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
Wright State enters Wednesday's game with a 14-10 record on the year, including an 8-5 mark in #HLWBB play…The Raiders are currently tied for third in the league standings, sitting three games behind the Vikings…Wright State is currently on a two-game win streak, picking up wins over Oakland and Detroit Mercy in its last two outings…The Raiders are one of the better three-point shooting teams in the league, as they rank second averaging 8.0 three-pointers per game and third with a .337 three-point field goal percentage…Wright State also ranks second in free throw percentage (.781) and assist/turnover ratio (1.05)…Individually, Alexis Hutchison leads the league averaging 19.5 points per game, while Layne Ferrell ranks second with 1.6 blocked shots per game.
LAST TIME OUT…
Cleveland State notched its 20th win of the season with a convincing 86-63 victory against Green Bay. The Cleveland State offense shot 51-percent from the field on the game, including a .706 clip during the fourth quarter (12-for-17) when the Vikings outscored Green Bay 28-12. Cleveland State combined for 19 assists on the day, while the Viking defense turned 11 Phoenix turnovers into 18 points.
VIKINGS IN #HLWBB PLAY
Entering the eighth week of #HLWBB play, the Vikings currently sit at the top of the league standings with an 11-2 record. Cleveland State, who is one of two teams with 10+ #HLWBB wins on the year, sits right above Wright State who is tied for third with an 8-5 mark against league opponents this season.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Cleveland State will host its second game of a four-game homestand on Wednesday, marking the 13th of 16 scheduled home games for the Vikings this season. So far this year, Cleveland State owns a perfect 12-0 record when playing at home, while the Vikings have combined for a 62-18 record at home during head coach Chris Kielsmeier's tenure.
CLEVELAND STATE RECORDS 20-WIN SEASON
With Saturday's 86-63 victory over Green Bay the Vikings notched their 20th win of the 2023-24 campaign, marking the third straight 20-win season and the fourth over the last five years. Cleveland State became the first #HLWBB team to reach the 20-win plateau this season, while it marks the first time in program history that the Vikings have recorded three consecutive 20-win campaigns.
PERDUE NAMED #HLWBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After helping the Vikings to a 2-0 record last week, Mickayla Perdue was named the Horizon League Player of the Week. For the week, Perdue averaged 25.0 points on a .633 clip from the field - including a .533 mark from three-point range. Perdue tallied back-to-back 20+ point performances, including a season-high 30-point effort in the win over Green Bay. Perdue picked up her second weekly honor of the year, while it marked the fifth overall for Cleveland State.
…AFTER NOTCHING 30-POINT EFFORT AGAINST GREEN BAY
In the win over Green Bay, Mickayla Perdue paced the Viking offense with her first 30-point performance of the season, finishing right on the number after shooting 11-for-14 from the field - including 7-for-8 from behind-the-arc. Perdue, who is tied for the league-lead with 11 20-point efforts this year, has notched 20+ points in five straight games. With her 30-point effort against the Phoenix, Perdue became just the second #HLWBB player with 400+ points on the year (405), while she moved into third place averaging 16.9 points per game.
MAPLES ADDS 20-POINT EFFORT AGAINST PHOENIX
In addition to Mickayla Perdue's 30-point effort against Green Bay, Colbi Maples also chipped in a 20-point performance, finishing with 21 points on the game. Maples, who now has eight 20-point games this season, is averaging 16.5 points per game while also leading the team with 106 total assists on the year. Combining for 19 20-point games on the year, Maples and Perdue stand as the only two #HLWBB teammates to have 5+ 20-point games each so far this season.
CLEVELAND STATE ON THE OFFENSIVE END THIS SEASON
Entering the 14th week of the season, Cleveland State has been one of the top offensive teams in the Horizon League, currently leading the league averaging 75.8 points per game while ranking second with a .468 field goal percentage. Through the first 24 games, the Vikings have tallied 70+ points 19 times, and currently own a 13.5 scoring margin. Individually, two Vikings rank in the top-five in scoring, with Mickayla Perdue ranking third (16.9 ppg) and Colbi Maples sitting fourth (16.5 ppg).
…VIKINGS FROM BEHIND-THE-ARC
Last time out, Cleveland State converted a season-high 15 three-pointers, shooting 65-percent from behind-the-arc against Green Bay (15-for-23). The Vikings, who were averaging just 5.0 three-pointers per game before Saturday, notched 10+ makes from long range for just the second time this season. All but one of Cleveland State's three-pointers came from the trio of Mickayla Perdue (7-for-8), Sara Guerreiro (4-for-6) and Colbi Maples (3-for-4), with Perdue moving into the league lead for total three-pointers (55) and three-point field goals per game (2.3).
REISMA ON THE BLOCK
Entering Wednesday's game, sophomore Jordana Reisma has 28 blocked shots on the year and 71 for her career. Reisma, who is one of five #HLWBB players with 25+ blocks on the year, has posted a block in 17 of 24 games this year, including three at Purdue Fort Wayne last week. Reisma's 71 career blocks are just one block shy of earning her a spot in the CSU Career Record Book.
#HLWBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
So far this season Cleveland State has been recognized five times with weekly honors from the Horizon League - marking a season-high among league teams. Colbi Maples (Dec. 4, Jan. 22) and Mickayla Perdue (Jan. 15, Feb. 5) have picked up the honor twice, while Jordana Reisma (Dec. 26) has earned #HLWBB honors once.
LEO HONORED AT GREATER CLEVELAND SPORTS AWARDS
Last month Destiny Leo was honored at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards, being named the 2023 Female Collegiate Athlete of the Year. Leo, who was one of three finalists from the Greater Cleveland area, won the award after helping Cleveland State to its best season in program history during 2022-23 as the #HLWBB Player of the Year, helping the team to a 30-5 overall record, Horizon League Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance.
VIKINGS IN THE MID-MAJOR RANKINGS
Entering the weekend, Cleveland State was ranked 13th 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 weekend ranked sixth.
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 532-174. Through six seasons at Cleveland State, Kielsmeier has led the Vikings to a 116-58 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.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will be back in action with two games next week, hosting Oakland on Thursday, February 15 and Milwaukee on Saturday, February 17.
