By Pete Ross

2 27 2025

Game 31 – Cleveland State at Wright State
Nutter Center – Fairborn, OH
9:00 p.m.
All-Time vs. Wright State: 40-45

Last Meeting: 12/29/24 78-64 W

Tickets: wsuraiders.com

Radio: WTAM 1100 AM

Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski, Ed Daugherty(Host)

TV: ESPN2

Play-By-Play: Jordan Bernfield, David Padgett

SETTING THE SCENE

The Cleveland State Men’s Basketball team is set for its final conference road game of the season as the Vikings travel to Wright State for a game set to air in front of a National TV audience. The Vikings split their two-game trip through the State of Michigan and sit at 13-5 in league play with two games remaining. The Vikings are one half game behind Robert Morris for first place in the league standings. Wright State has dropped its last three games coming into Thursday’s action and sits at 7-11 in league play. WSU is currently eighth in the standings and also has two league games remaining.

THE CLEVELAND STATE/WRIGHT STATE SERIES

Thursday’s game is the 86th all-time meeting between Cleveland State and Wright State. The Raiders hold a 45-40 edge in the all-time series. The Vikings have won three of the last five and six of the last ten in a highly competitive series going back to January, 2021. Cleveland State won the most recent meeting between the two earlier this season, a 78-64 decision at the Wolstein Center on December 29. Chase Robinson led a group of four in double figures with 16 points for CSU. Cleveland State led by 12 at halftime before Wright State climbed back into it late. A 14-0 Viking run in the closing minutes put the game away and secured what was win number five in the Vikings’ 13-game winning streak.

CLEVELAND STATE RANKED 23rd  IN COLLEGEINSIDER.COM MID MAJOR POLL

Cleveland State has garnered national attention as the Vikings moved into the rankings in the Collegeinsider.com Mid Major Poll. Cleveland State was ranked 23rd in the edition of the poll which was published on Monday, February 10. The Vikings were receiving votes in previous versions of the poll and climbed into the rankings four weeks ago at no. 24. The poll is comprised of a committee of mid-major head coaches from across the country.

VIKINGS BACK IN THE WIN COLUMN WITH VICTORY OVER DETROIT MERCY

Cleveland State took down Detroit Mercy and improved to 6-2 in league play on the road with a 73-65 win Friday night. The Vikings shot 45 percent from the field and 40 percent from three-point range as well as 78 percent from the free throw line which kept the Titans at arm’s length down the stretch. Cleveland State was led by Tahj Staveskie who finished with 22 points including 50 percent shooting from three-point range.

FINAL TWO REGULAR SEASON GAMES TO AIR ON ESPN2

Following the trip to Michigan, the Vikings will make their fifth and sixth appearances on National Television as the games against Wright State on February 27 and Purdue Fort Wayne on March 1 will be broadcast on ESPN2 as part of the Horizon League’s television agreement with ESPN. Both tip times have been adjusted with the Wright State game set for 9:00 p.m. and the Purdue Fort Wayne game tipping off at 4:00 p.m.

CLEVELAND STATE REBOUNDS WITH WIN OVER MILWAUKEE

After losing for the first time in two calendar months earlier in the week, Cleveland State bounced back in a big way with a 77-60 win over Milwaukee. The win evened the season series between the two teams and kept the Vikings in first place in the league standings. Tahj Staveskie had a career day as he tallied 30 points on 11-for-16 shooting from the floor.

VIKINGS BRING HOME 13TH WIN IN A ROW OVER PURDUE FORT WAYNE

Cleveland State won its 13th game in a row as the Vikings defeated Purdue Fort Wayne 68-58 in front of a nationally televised audience on ESPNU. Cleveland State led nearly wire-to-wire as the Vikings never trailed after the first minute of action. CSU held one of the league’s top offenses to its lowest scoring output of the season in league play. Chase Robinson tied a career-high with 20 points, with 11 coming in the second half.

CHASE ROBINSON NAMED #HLMBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Chase Robinson took home his first league weekly award after a big game on Thursday at Purdue Fort Wayne. Robinson poured in 20 points which tied his career best, which he set in last year’s Horizon League Quarterfinal win at Youngstown State. Robinson shot 60 percent from the floor and finished 3-for-5 from three-point range. He was also perfect on five attempts from the free throw line.

SCOUTING THE RAIDERS

Wright State is 13-16 and 7-11 in the Horizon League coming into Thursday night’s game. The Raiders are led by preseason Horizon League Player of the Year Brandon Noel who averages 19 points per game. Wright State has dropped its last three games in a row coming in and is looking to rebound as the regular season comes to a close. Clint Sargent is in his first season as the head coach. Sargent took over for Scott Nagy this offseason after Nagy departed to become the head coach at Southern Illinois. Sargent was the lead assistant on Nagy’s staff for the last three seasons before being elevated to the head coaching chair.

VIKINGS WIN 12TH STRAIGHT OVER GREEN BAY AT THE WOLSTEIN CENTER

Cleveland State began its 12-game win streak with a road victory at Green Bay on December 7. The Vikings have still yet to lose since, and continued the streak with a second victory in as many tries over the Phoenix, 81-66. The game was tight throughout with CSU holding a one-point lead at halftime and just a two-point lead with 5:30 to play before a late run finally sealed the victory. Chase Robinson had 17 points to lead the way for the Vikings and Reece Robinson tallied 14 points, a new career-high, and 11 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.

REECE ROBINSON NAMED #HLMBB FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK

Reece Robinson took home his first Horizon League weekly award after a big week this past week. Robinson set a season and career best with 14 points against Green Bay on Saturday, and averaged 10 points and seven rebounds for the week. He added 11 rebounds to his stat total on Saturday for his third double-double of the season, and shot 58 percent from the field for the week.

VIKINGS BRING HOME 11TH WIN IN A ROW OVER DETROIT MERCY

Cleveland State picked up its 11th straight win defeating Detroit Mercy 65-50 on Wednesday night. The Vikings trailed by five at the break before a lockdown defensive effort in the second half spurred a 15-0 run that propelled CSU to its ninth conference win. Tevin Smith led the way with 23 points and Je’Shawn Stevenson added 13 off the bench.

CLEVELAND STATE WINS TENTH IN A ROW AT IU INDY

Cleveland State earned its tenth straight win and eighth in a row in conference play with a 73-62 victory at IU Indianapolis. The Vikings trailed by two at halftime before a strong second half propelled them to their fourth conference road win in five tries. Tevin Smith led all scorers with 16 points, with 14 coming in the second half. Dylan Arnett and KJ Debrick teamed up inside with each scoring 13 points. Debrick tied his season high in the winning effort.

CLEVELAND STATE STRETCHES WIN STREAK TO NINE WITH WIN OVER NKU

Cleveland State continued its strong play recently with a 76-58 win over Northern Kentucky. The Vikings defeated the Norse thanks to another strong second half performance as CSU outscored NKU by double digits to pull away. Tahj Staveskie led the way with 20 points, one shy of a season high, and Chase Robinson added 13 off the bench. Cleveland State shot 60 percent from the field in the second half.

VIKINGS WIN EIGHTH IN A ROW AT YOUNGSTOWN STATE

In a game that featured the top two teams in the Horizon League standings, Cleveland State emerged with a key road victory at Youngstown State, 80-72. The Vikings took over sole possession of first place in the league with the win. CSU led by six at halftime and by as many as 16 midway through the second half. YSU mounted a late charge and moved within a point in the closing minutes before a huge three-point shot from Tahj Staveskie pushed the lead back to four and allowed the Vikings to hold on. Staveskie led a group of five players in double figures with a game-high 21 points.

VIKINGS WIN SEVENTH STRAIGHT AT ROBERT MORRIS

Cleveland State won its seventh consecutive game as the Vikings defeated Robert Morris 80-69 to improve to 5-1 in league play. Cleveland State got balanced scoring once again as five players finished in double figures, led by Dylan Arnett’s 16 points. The Vikings trailed by a point after a back and forth first half before breaking the game open in the second half. A 14-0 run midway through the period pushed the lead to double digits and put the game out of reach. Tevin Smith recorded his second double-double finishing with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

RED HOT VIKINGS WIN SIXTH STRAIGHT, DEFEAT IU INDY

Cleveland State won its sixth consecutive game as the Vikings held off a scrappy IU Indianapolis team 67-61 at the Wolstein Center. Tahj Staveskie tied a season high with 20 points on 50 percent shooting from the field. The Vikings prevailed thanks to a 28-16 edge in the paint and converting IU Indy turnovers into points. The Vikings forced 14 turnovers and converted them into 25 total points.

STEVENSON EARNS FIFTH #HLMBB FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK

Je’Shawn Stevenson continued his strong play as he took home his fifth Horizon League Freshman of the Week award after averaging 9.5 points and five rebounds per game this past week. Stevenson tallied 11 points on Wednesday at Northern Kentucky and chipped in eight on Saturday against Milwaukee. He finished 7-for-10 from the free throw line in the two games combined.

INSIDE THE 13-GAME WIN STREAK

Cleveland State garnered national attention for its winning streak that came to an end recently at 13 games. The Vikings did not suffer a defeat for two full months, finishing with an unblemished record in January. The streak stood as the second-longest active streak in the nation at its conclusion. During the streak, Cleveland State outscored opponents by an average of over 20 points per game. The streak included 11 consecutive victories over league opponents.

VIKINGS IN THE HORIZON LEAGUE RANKINGS

Through the early going of conference play, Cleveland State is well represented at the top of the Horizon League rankings in several team and individual categories. Cleveland State is second in the league in field goal percentage at 47 percent, and third in three-point percentage at 38 percent. The Vikings lead the league in turnover margin(+4.73), assist-to-turnover ratio(1.64) and steals per game(8.36). Individually, Tevin Smith is tied for fourth in the league in scoring at 16.4 points per game and fourth in field goal percentage at 50 percent. Tahj Staveskie ranks third in three-point percentage at 40 percent. Ebrima Dibba leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.7 and is second in assists per game at 5.0.

DIBBA JOINS EXCLUSIVE CLUB

Ebrima Dibba recently crossed a milestone in the game at Northern Kentucky. Dibba became the fifth active player and the second-fastest among active Division I players to register 500 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists in his collegiate career. Dibba crossed the points and assist threshholds earlier and registered his 500th career rebound in Wednesday night’s game.

20 WIN CAMPAIGN FOR THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROW

Cleveland State has amassed 20-plus wins for three straight seasons. The Vikings have also made four straight postseason appearances, which is a program record.  Cleveland State appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2021, the NIT in 2022 and the CBI in 2023 and 2024. Daniyal Robinson is the most successful two-year head coach in program history, becoming the first coach to win 20 games in his first two years in charge in the history of the program. Robinson has amassed 42 total victories over his first two seasons.

HOME SWEET HOME

Cleveland State has made a habit of protecting its home court throughout the last two seasons. The Vikings are 12-2 at home to start this season and finished 14-3 at home in the 2023-24 season as well as a 38-8 overall record in Cleveland in the Daniyal Robinson era. Cleveland State outscored opponents by over 10 points per game in home contests in the 2023-24 season.

UP NEXT

Cleveland State returns home for the final regular season contest of the 2024-25 season. The Vikings take on Purdue Fort Wayne and Cleveland State will honor its three departing seniors with a pre-game ceremony. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2

COURTESY CLEVELAND STATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS