GAME #31
Cleveland State vs. Northern Kentucky
Saturday, March 2 | 2:00 p.m. | Wolstein Center
Live Stats | Live Video | CSU Game Notes
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will return home for its regular season finale Saturday, hosting Northern Kentucky in a 2:00 p.m. contest. Entering Saturday's game, the Vikings are 26-4 overall this season and 17-2 in league play, while Northern Kentucky is currently 10-18 on the year and 8-11 against league opponents.
A WIN ON SATURDAY WOULD…
Extend Cleveland State's current win streak to nine straight games…Mark a series sweep for Cleveland State over NKU this season…Keep the Vikings perfect at home this season, and extend their home win streak to 22 consecutive games.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/NORTHERN KENTUCKY SERIES
Saturday's game will be the 20th meeting between the two teams, with Cleveland State holding a 14-5 edge in the all-time series, including an 8-1 record for the Vikings over the last nine matchups. Earlier this season, Cleveland State earned a 72-60 victory at NKU over the first week of #HLWBB play.
SCOUTING THE NORSE
Northern Kentucky enters Saturday's game with a 10-18 record on the year, including an 8-11 mark in #HLWBB play…Last time out the Norse earned a 76-52 victory at RMU, snapping a two-game losing skid…With the win against RMU, NKU has won four out of its last six contests…The Norse are currently eighth in the league standings with one game left to play…As a team, Northern Kentucky ranks third in the #HLWBB averaging 6.9 three-pointers per game…Individually, Carter McCray leads the league with 10.9 rebounds per game, while she ranks fifth averaging 14.5 points per game…Khamari Mitchell-Steen is tied for third averaging 2.1 steals per game.
LAST TIME OUT…
Cleveland State was able to come away with a 56-53 victory at Youngstown State, closing out the month of February with a perfect 7-0 record. Three Vikings finished with double-figure points led by Colbi Maples with 18, while Jordana Reisma and Faith Burch both finished with 11 rebounds. The Vikings forced YSU into 19 turnovers, turning these miscues into 17 points. Cleveland State combined for 44 rebounds on the game, holding a 44-35 edge in boards.
VIKINGS IN #HLWBB PLAY
Continuing the 11th and final week of #HLWBB play, the Vikings remain at the top of the league standings, tied with Green Bay with a 17-2 record. Cleveland State, who is one of four teams with 10+ #HLWBB wins on the year, owns a league-best eight-game win streak, while also winning 15 of their last 16 contests.
…CLEVELAND STATE PLAYING FOR #HLWBB REGULAR SEASON TITLE
With a win on Saturday against Northern Kentucky, Cleveland State would guarantee itself at least a share of the Horizon League Regular Season Championship - what would be the first in program history. The Vikings would also notch a program record for #HLWBB wins in a single-season with another win on Saturday, as their current mark of 17 league wins is tied for a program-best which they set last season.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
Cleveland State will return home for the 16th time on the season this weekend, hosting Northern Kentucky in its regular season finale. So far this year, Cleveland State owns a perfect 15-0 record when playing at home, while the Vikings have combined for a 65-18 record at home during head coach Chris Kielsmeier's tenure.
SATURDAY SENIOR DAY
Following Saturday's game against Northern Kentucky the Vikings will host their yearly Senior Day Recognition, honoring Faith Burch, Brooklynn Fort-Davis, Sara Guerreiro, Filippa Goula, Destiny Leo, Shadiya Thomas, and Carmen Villalobos. Make sure to stick around following the game to celebrate this group of seven seniors.
REISMA & BURCH ON THE BOARDS
Last time out, Jordana Reisma and Faith Burch combined for 22 rebounds in the win at Youngstown State, grabbing half of Cleveland State's 44 boards on the game. Reisma and Burch each recorded 11 rebounds against the Penguins, marking the third time this season that multiple Vikings have notched double-digit boards in the same game. Over the last five games, Reisma has recorded 10+ boards three times, including a career-high 12 rebounds at IUPUI. For the season, Reisma is averaging 6.2 rebounds per game, while Burch is averaging 3.8 boards per game.
MAPLES WITH THE ASSIST
In addition to being one of Cleveland State's top scorers this season, Colbi Maples also leads the team in assists, entering Saturday's game with 132 total assists on the year. Maples currently ranks third among league players averaging 4.4 assists per game, and has tallied five or more assists in 16 games this season. As a team, the Vikings rank fifth in the #HLWBB averaging 13.33 assists per game, and have tallied 15 or more helpers 12 times this season, including three of the last four games.
REISMA ON THE BLOCK
Entering Saturday's contest against Northern Kentucky, sophomore Jordana Reisma continues to rank 10th in the CSU Career Record Book with 74 blocked shots on her career. Reisma, who has 31 blocks on the year, also notched 43 blocked shots as a freshman last season. So far this year, Reisma has tallied at least one block in 20 games, ranking fifth among league players averaging 1.0 blocks per game.
VILLALOBOS WITH THE STEAL
Through 30 games played Carmen Villalobos leads the Horizon League with 66 total steals on the year. Villalobos has been part of a Viking defense that has held its opponents to a .378 clip on the year - the lowest field goal percentage for opponents among league teams. Averaging 2.2 steals per game, Villalobos has tallied at least one takeaway in all but two games this season, including a season-high five steals on multiple occasions.
PERDUE WITH TWELVE 20+ POINT PERFORMANCES ON THE YEAR
So far this season, Mickayla Perdue has tallied 20+ points 12 times, which ranks second among #HLWBB players. Nine of Perdue's 20-point performances have come against league opponents, including a season-best 30-point effort against Green Bay last month. For the season, Perdue ranks third in the league averaging 16.7 points per game, while she is one of just two #HLWBB players with 500+ points on the year (502).
CLEVELAND STATE RECORDS 20-WIN SEASON
With their 86-63 victory over Green Bay last month, 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. Entering Saturday's game, the Vikings now have 26 wins on the year, which marks the second most wins in a single-season in program history.
#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 week, Cleveland State was ranked eighth 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 12th.
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 538-174. Through six seasons at Cleveland State, Kielsmeier has led the Vikings to a 122-58 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 begin Horizon League Tournament play at home on Thursday, March 7, hosting a Quarterfinal contest against a to-be-determined opponent.
