Cleveland State is NIT-Bound

Cleveland State will have an opportunity to play in the postseason as they received an at-large berth to the National Invitation Tournament.

The sixth-seeded Vikings (22-10) open play at third-seeded Stanford (21-11) on Tuesday. Tip-off is at 11 p.m. and will be shown on ESPN2.

"I am so happy for the young men in our program because they have been given the opportunity to play in the postseason," Waters said in a written statement. "This group is very deserving of receiving a postseason bid and I thank the NIT selection committee for the honor."

It's the first ever meeting between the two schools.

The Vikings will be making its fourth postseason appearance in five years, and its third appearance in the NIT under Gary Waters.

Stanford, who finished seventh in the Pac-12, will be making its first postseason appearance in three years.

The winner will either play Illinois State or Ole Miss.

2012 NIT Bracket

Horizon League Semifinals: Detroit 63, Cleveland State 58

Cleveland State's Harmon, Brown and Grady Earn All-League Honors

Three Cleveland State men’s basketball players earned all-conference honors as the Horizon League announced its postseason award winners on Monday.

Senior guard Trey Harmon was named to the all-league second team and all-defensive team. Senior guard D'Aundray Brown joined Harmon on the all-defensive team. And freshman forward Anton Grady was named to the All-Newcomers team.

Harmon, a native of  Pasadena, Calif., made his first-ever appearance on the all-league squad and second straight appearance on the all-defensive team. He ranks 10th in the league in scoring (13.1), second in 3-point field goals (2.4) and eighth in steals (1.8).

Brown, a native of Youngstown, made his second appearance on the all-defensive team after earning a spot in 2010 as a junior. He leads the Horizon and is seventh in the nation in steals per game (2.6).

Grady, a product of Cleveland Central Catholic, was one of the top freshmen in the Horizon, averaging 8.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.

CSU (22-9) opens the Horizon League tournament as the No. 2 seed and receives an automatic bye into the semifinals on Saturday, March 3 in Valparaiso. 

2012 HORIZON LEAGUE AWARDS

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Ryan Broekhoff, Valparaiso
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Julius Mays, Wright State
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Ronald Nored, Butler
SIXTH MAN OF THE YEAR: Eli Holman, Detroit
COACH OF THE YEAR: Bryce Drew, Valparaiso

FIRST TEAM 
Ryan Broekhoff, Jr., F, Valparaiso
Ray McCallum, So., G, Detroit
Kendrick Perry, So., G, Youngstown State
Kevin Van Wijk, Jr., F, Valparaiso
Alec Brown, So., C, Green Bay

SECOND TEAM
Kaylon Williams, Sr., G, Milwaukee
Trevon Harmon, Sr., G, Cleveland State 
Julius Mays, Jr., G, Wright State
Ben Averkamp, Jr., F, Loyola
Ronald Nored, Sr., G, Butler

ALL-NEWCOMER TEAM 
Julius Mays, Jr., G, Wright State
Keifer Sykes, Fr., G, Green Bay
Anton Grady, Fr., F, Cleveland State
Roosevelt Jones, Fr., F, Butler
Gary Talton, Jr., G, UIC

ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Ronald Nored, Sr., G, Butler
Damian Eargle, Jr., C, Youngstown State
D'Aundray Brown, Sr., G, Cleveland State 
Trevon Harmon, Sr., G, Cleveland
Ryan Allen, Sr., G Milwaukee

Cleveland State 77, Wright State 55

On senior day, the Cleveland State men's basketball team took care of business.

They secured the No. 2 seed in the Horizon League tournament Saturday with a  77-55 win over Wright State before 3,891 at the Wolstein Center.

With the No. 2 seed, CSU gets a double-bye into the Horizon semifinals on Saturday at Valparaiso and only needs to win two games to get back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009.

They also get some much needed rest.

"I think we are in a great place right now to go into this tournament," said CSU head coach Gary Waters. "We are banged up right now. Trey (Harmon) needs the rest and D'Aundray (Brown) needs another week at least."

Brown, who was expected to return for Saturday's game, missed his seventh game in the last eight with a groin injury. Harmon has been dealing with a broken toe. And Jeremy Montgomery has a thigh bruise.

"(D'Aundray) couldn't move laterally," said Waters.

After losing five straight, CSU closed out the regular season with back-to-back home wins against Detroit on Thursday and WSU to improve to 22-9 overall and 12-6 in the Horizon.

Montgomery feels confident heading into the tournament.

"(It doesn't) matter who we play (in the tournament)," said Montgomery. "I felt we got our swagger back."

Harmon added: "If the freshman continues to lift us and help us, we will go a long way (in the tournament)," he said.

It seemed only fitting that CSU's seniors would be the keys to victory against WSU as they combined for 44 points.

The senior backcourt of Harmon and Montgomery did most of the damage. Harmon led the Vikings with a game-high 20 points, scoring 15 of them in the second half. And Montgomery contributed 17 points.

"I thought these seniors went out in style," said Waters. "One of the things we talked about was leaving a legacy. (The seniors) want to win a championship on their own. They don't want people saying Norris Cole did it (for them). They want people to say they led a team to a championship."

CSU also seemed to have found their identity back as their defense held WSU to 40.8 percent in the game and caused 15 turnovers that led to 17 points.

"We put a stronger emphasize on concentrating on defense and let the offense come when its there," said Waters.

Even CSU's offense was clicking on all cylinders as they shot 63 percent in the game and dished out 16 assists in their 29 baskets.

The Vikings scored the first five points of the game and took its largest lead of the first half on Montgomery's 3-pointer that put CSU up 22-14.

WSU would rally and take the lead on Vance Hall's 3-pointer that put the Raiders up 24-23. That would be their only lead of the game.

The Vikings would take the lead back on their next possession as freshmen Anton Grady's putback put the Vikings up for good 25-24 and they never looked back.

In the first half, CSU shot 52.2 percent and took a 30-27 lead at the half. They missed eight free throws in the opening half.

Montgomery led the Vikings with 10 first half points on 4-of-8 from the field.

Harmon and Montgomery set the tone in the second half as they scored nine of CSU's first 10 points to take a 40-29 lead on Montgomery's lay-up.

The Raiders cut it to 42-38 on AJ Pacher's 3-pointer with 14:10 left.

Harmon responded with a 3-pointer of his own. Then CSU would start to pull away using several backdoor plays that resulted in eight straight lay-ups for the Vikings. CSU's Ike Nwamu's 3-pointer capped off a 33-14 run that saw the Vikings extend their lead to 72-52 with 3:14 left.

In the second half, CSU shot 73.9 percent as 12 of their 17 field goals in the final 20 minutes were lay-ups.

Grady provided a spark off the bench for CSU, finishing with 12 points and eight rebounds. Tim Kamczyc had nine points for the Vikings, all of them came in the second half as he went 4-of-4 from the field, all on lay-ups.

WSU (13-18, 7-11 HL) were led by Julius Mays with 15 points and Pacher had 12.

News and notes: Waters said the players will be off the next three days and resume practice on Wednesday.... Montgomery's 91 career wins tied Ken "Mouse" McFadden (1985-89) for the most wins in school history.... With three 3-pointers on Saturday, Harmon's 71 treys on the season set a new CSU single season school record, surpassing Damon Stringer (1999-00) and Theo Dixon's (2000-01) 70 treys.

box score

Photo: Cleveland State athletics

Cleveland State 77, Detroit 64

Cleveland State got a lift from its freshmen Thursday night as the Vikings snapped their five game losing streak with a 77-64 victory against Detroit at the Wolstein Center.

"This team really needed (this win)," said CSU head coach Gary Waters. "I thought our freshman did a great job of giving us a lift. Our freshman did very well in a lot of areas today and if they continue to do that, that will only make us stronger down the stretch."

Senior Trey Harmon led the Vikings with 16 points. CSU's freshman trio of Marlin Mason, Charlie Lee and Ike Nwamu combined to score 35 points.

Also credit CSU's defense as they held Detroit to five field goals in the second half and held them without a field goal for the final 9:15.

The win also keeps CSU's (21-9, 11-6) chances alive for the No. 2 seed in the Horizon League tournament and the all important double-bye into the semifinals.

The Vikings are currently tied with Butler (18-12, 11-6) for the No. 2 seed.

In order for CSU to get the No. 2 seed, they need a loss by Butler at Valparaiso on Friday night and a Viking win over Wright State on Saturday.

If Butler wins Friday, the best CSU can hope for is the No. 3 seed.

If CSU gets the No. 3 seed or less, they would host a first round game on Tuesday and have to win four games in eight days to win the Horizon championship -- something only the 2008-09 Vikings have accomplished.

Midway through the second half, CSU was forced to play Lee, Nwamu, and Mason on the floor as Trey Harmon and Aaron Pogue sat on the bench with foul trouble and Jeremy Montgomery left the game with a thigh bruise.

The freshman trio held its own.

Nwamu's 3-pointer with 11 minutes left gave CSU its first lead, 49-48, since the opening basket.

Two minutes later, Ray McCallum's jumper gave Detroit the lead back, 51-49. That would be their last field goal in the game. Free throws would keep the Titans in the game as they went 15-of-19 at the line in the second half.

CSU tied the game at 51-51 on a lay-up by Tim Kamczyc with 8:34 left. Then on its next possession, they took the lead for good on a pair of free throws by Kamczyc.

The Vikings would put the game away with a 13-4 run capped off by a pair of free throws from Lee to extend the lead to 66-56 with 2:51 left. The freshmen trio sparked the run as Lee had six points, Mason contributed five points and Nwamu had a bucket.

Detroit never got closer then six points the rest of the game.

"I thought our guys were resilient and they played together regardless of the circumstances," said Waters.

Mason, who made his second career start replacing the injured D'Aundray Brown, finished with career-highs in points (15) and rebounds (nine).

"That was the best I've ever played--at both ends of the floor," said Mason. "I just came out and tried to play hard for the team and help us win."

Nwamu gave the Vikings a spark off the bench with eight points (tying a career-high) in 12 minutes.

"I was just waiting (for my turn) and today I needed to come in and step up," said Nwamu.

Lee had 12 points, five assists and only one turnover in 21 minutes.

Waters praised Harmon's defense on McCallum for limiting Detroit's leading scorer (15.2 points per game) to 13 points on 3-of-9 from the field.

"(Trey) took out their head," said Waters. "I thought that was the key to the game."

The Titans (17-13, 10-7 HL) got a game-high 17 points from Chase Simon and 10 points from Jason Calliste.

Detroit led by as many as 12 in the first half and took a 38-32 lead into the half. The Titans shot 35.5 percent in the opening half and made 12-of-19 at the line.

News and notes: Waters said after the game that Brown "will return Saturday" against Wright State. Brown has missed six of the last seven games with a groin injury. The Vikings went 2-4 without Brown.... Detroit played without starting center LaMarcus Lowe, who missed the game because of a violation of team rules.

Photo: Cleveland State athletics

Drexel 69, Cleveland State 49

The Cleveland State men's basketball team ran into a buzzsaw Saturday morning in its BracketBusters game at the Wolstein Center, as Drexel led wire-to-wire in an 69-49 decision.

"We are playing pretty average right now," said CSU head coach Gary Waters. "We have young kids that don't know some stuff. Right now we're in limbo and got to find a remedy to the problem."

It's the Vikings (20-8) fourth straight loss and third straight loss at home. Drexel (23-5) hasn't lost since Jan. 4 and have won 15 in a roll.

"It's already in their heads," said Waters. "You can't lose and not struggle, that's life."

The Vikings played again without senior guard D'Aundray Brown, who has missed four of the last five games with a groin injury.

"These freshmen got to grow up here pretty soon because we are going to need them down the stretch," said Waters. "I don't know if (Brown) is coming back anytime soon."

Ten days ago, CSU were 20-4 and a top of the Horizon League standings with an outside shot at gaining an at-large bid.

Now CSU's chance of gaining the No. 1 seed in next month's Horizon League tournament are slim-to-none. Valparaiso only needs to win one of its final two games to clinch the No. 1 seed. And CSU's chances of an at-large bid are long gone.

Without Brown, CSU has played like a completely different team and has struggled on both sides of the floor.

Drexel shot 48.9 percent for the game and went 19-of-26 (73.1 percent) at the line.

"It's all about our defense," said CSU senior guard Trey Harmon, who led the Vikings with a game-high 23 points despite playing with a broken toe. "We have been scored on too easily and we need to get stops. Until we do that its going to be tough for us."

The Vikings offense had its own struggles as they shot 27 percent (17-of-63) from the field and were 7-of-28 (25 percent) on 3-pointers.

"Right now we are offensively challenged and we don't have enough guys producing for us," said Waters, whose team has failed to score 50 points in three of their last four games.

In all four losses, CSU has gotten off to slow starts in the first half and have trailed at the half. They trailed Valparaiso, 29-17;  Butler, 28-18; and Milwaukee, 50-41.

On Saturday, the Dragons scored the first six points and led 19-3 eight minutes into the game.

CSU would cut the lead down to eight (23-15) on back-to-back 3-pointers from senior guard Jeremy Montgomery and Harmon, but that would be as close as they would get to on this day.

A 9-1 run by Drexel pushed the lead back out to 16 (32-16) on sophomore forward Dartaye Ruffin's jumper. The Dragons led by as much as 19 in the first half and took a 38-22 advantage at the break.

"I don't know it's puzzling to me," said Waters on why CSU has come out slow in the first half in each of the four losses. "We missed our first two shots and then on it clutches up."

In the first half, Drexel shot 50 percent and outscored CSU 20 to 6 in the paint. The Vikings only shot 26.7 percent in the opening half as they missed 22 shots.

Freshmen guard Damion Lee scored 13 of his team-high 18 points in the first half for the Dragons.

In the second half, Drexel led by as many as 29 and never let the Vikings get closer then 19.

The Dragons also had double-digit scoring from junior center Daryl McCoy (13 points, nine rebounds), and 10 points each from sophomore guard Frantz Massenat and junior guard Chris Fouch.

Harmon didn't get much help from his teammates. Montgomery, CSU's second leading scorer at 11.1 points per game, struggled against Drexel, going 2-of-8 for six points.

"If you take J-Mo away and he doesn't produce then you only have one entity," said Waters. "The person we got to try to get more out of is Anton Grady because he is the only other one that has the potential to score."

Grady, CSU's top reserve, also struggled, finishing with six points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes. He went 2-of-6 from the field.

Waters also said he needs to get more production out of senior Aaron Pogue, who has been in a season-slump and is averaging career-lows in points (6.0) and rebounds (4.2).

Pogue, a 6-9 center, had five points and eight rebounds against the Dragons. He only made one of six shots from the field and missed several lay-ups.

"Right now we are playing with four instead of five," said Waters on Pogue's struggles. "(Pogue's) got the ability. I know he's got the ability. He's got to find a way to pull out of it."

CSU finishes Horizon play next week with three games in five days. They travel to Green Bay (7-8 HL) on Tuesday and host Detroit (10-6 HL) Thursday and Wright State (7-9 HL) Saturday.

The Vikings (10-5 HL) need to win them all to secure the No. 2 seed in the tournament and get the automatic bye into the semi-finals.

"(We know these next) three games are the most important games of the season," said Waters. "What we got to do is get better if we want to perform in this tournament. And I got to find out what can get us to play better so we can perform in this tournament."

box score

Photo: Cleveland State athletics

Butler 52, Cleveland State 49

The Cleveland State Vikings have to find a way to win without D'Aundray Brown, who is likely out "at least a week and a half" with a groin injury.

With Brown sitting on the sidelines, CSU dropped its second consecutive home game this week, as Butler edged the Vikings, 52-49, Saturday afternoon at the Wolstein Center in front of the largest crowd of the season (5,021).

A Chrishawn Hopkins' jumper off the glass broke a 49-49 tie and proved to be the go-ahead basket for Butler.

CSU drops to 20-6 overall and 10-4 in the Horizon League. While Butler improves to 15-12 overall (9-6 HL).

It's the first time that CSU has lost two consecutive home games in league play since the 2008-09 season.

Butler won despite not making a 3-point field goal (0-8)

The Bulldogs led 28-18 at the half as CSU shot 24.1 percent (7-of-29) in the opening half.

In the first half, CSU's top two leading scorers Trey Harmon and Jeremy Montgomery went a combined 0-of-5 from the field for two points.

The one bright spot for the Vikings in the first half was Anton Grady. The freshman forward was making his second career-start in place of Brown and kept the Vikings in the game, scoring 12 of his game-high 18 points in the opening half. He also added a career-high 13 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season.

The Vikings' offense started to come alive in the second half as they made its first five shots to close to within three (34-31) on Harmon's first 3-pointer of the night.

A lay-up by Grady tied the game at 34-34. A minute later, CSU would take its first lead since 4-2 as Harmon's second 3-pointer put the Vikings up 37-36.

Butler would score six straight points to take a 42-37 lead with nine minutes left.

Harmon's fourth and fifth 3-pointers of the night gave CSU the lead back (45-43) with six minutes left.

Then on Butler's next possession, Roosevelt Jones gave the Bulldogs the lead back (46-45) on a three-point play.

Three ties and two lead changes would occur until Hopkins finally put Butler ahead for good.

Still, CSU had one last chance to tie the game in the final seconds, but Grady's 3-point attempt went in and out.

CSU shot 57.9 percent in the second half and went 5-of-10 on 3-pointers.

Harmon scored all 12 of his points in the second half.

Jones led Butler with 17 points. The Bulldogs also had double-digit scoring from Khyle Marshall (12 points) and Andrew Smith (11).

Valparaiso 59, Cleveland State 41

The showdown for first place in the Horizon League turned into a one-sided affair on Thursday night.

Playing in front of its second largest crowd of the season, Cleveland State laid an egg as Valparaiso took control of the Horizon with a 59-41 victory at the Wolstein Center in front of 4,521 fans.

"We just didn't play very well," said CSU head coach Gary Waters. "When you score 41 points and shoot 25 percent, it's hard to beat anyone."

Valpo (18-8, 11-3 HL) leads CSU (20-5, 10-3 HL) by a half game in the standings with over two weeks left in the regular season.

The Crusaders also own the tie-breaker against CSU after sweeping the regular-season head-to-heads between the two teams (2-0).

Valpo only made 18 field goals in the game, but 11 of them were three-pointers.

Juniors Ryan Broekhoff and Richie Edwards did most of the damage from behind the arc. They went a combined 10-of-16 from downtown and scored 44 of Valpo's 59 points.

"I got to give them credit, they ran their offense efficient," said Waters. "It was one of those games they hit shots. Those threes were demoralizing."

The Vikings shot 25.9 percent from the field, but were only 1-of-13 from downtown.

CSU scored the first point of the game, then it was all Valpo.

The Crusaders raced out to first-half leads of 17-1 and 28-8. Their first six field goals of the game were all three pointers—three each by Broekhoff and Edwards.

CSU closed out the half on a 9-1 run to cut the lead down to 12 (29-17) at intermission.

In the opening half, Valpo made only nine field goals, but were 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) from downtown. The Vikings shot 6-of-25 (24 percent) in the first half.

Broekhoff  led the Crusaders at the half with 14 points, making all four of his three point attempts. Edwards contributed 12 points at the half, going 3-of-5 from behind the arc.

"You can't miss nine lay-ups in the first half and expect to win," said Waters. "When you miss nine lay-ups that's either a lack of focus or you're uptight. This is college basketball. You got to be able to complete those plays."

The second half was more of the same.

Valpo started the second half with back-to-back three-pointers from Broekhoff and Will Bogan. Then a three-point play from Edwards and another three pointer by Broekhoff put the Crusaders back up by 20 (41-21) with 13:52 left in the game.

CSU wouldn't get any closer then 13 points the rest of the game.

Broekhoff finished with game-highs of 24 points and 10 rebounds. Edwards, a reserve center who was 5-of-7 on three pointers coming into the game, made four Thursday and finished with 20 points.

"In my estimation, Broekhoff is the best player in the league," said Waters. "(Edwards) stepping out and hitting shots that was deflating."

Jeremy Montgomery was the only Viking in double figures with 15 points.

D'Aundray Brown tried to play through the groin injury but struggled and was limited to eight minutes in the first half. He didn't play in the second half. CSU also played without freshmen reserve Ike Nwamu, who was out with a concussion.

The Vikings host Butler on Saturday morning (11 a.m. ET) in a nationally-televised game on ESPN2.

Box score

Photo: Cleveland State athletics

Cleveland State Host Valparaiso with first place on the line

First place in the Horizon League is on the line tonight when Cleveland State host Valparaiso at the Wolstein Center. Tip-off is 7 p.m.

CSU (20-4, 10-2 Horizon League) leads Valpo (17-8, 10-3 HL) by a half-game.

The winner most likely will have the inside track to the top seed and home-court advantage in the Horizon League Tournament. No other team has fewer than five league losses.

If CSU wins, it will give them some breathing room a top of the standings as the Crusaders will have two more losses then the Vikings.

If Valpo wins, it will give them the tiebreak against CSU because the Crusaders have already defeated the Vikings (72-66) on Jan 15 at the ARC.

"It's the biggest game (of the year) for us," said CSU head coach Gary Waters.

Both teams are coming in hot.

The Vikings have won five in a roll and eight of their past nine. The Crusaders have won three in a roll and seven of their past eight.

Waters was quick to point out that Valpo is only 7-6 on the road. Two of Valpo's three losses in the league have come on the road.

Both teams are a little banged up.

CSU could be without its best defender, D'Aundray Brown who is "day-to-day" with a groin injury.

"There's a possibility that he may not play," said Waters. "If he shows me Thursday he can play, he's in the game. But we're preparing as though he's not playing."

If Brown can't go, freshman Anton Grady will make his second straight start.

According to NWI.com, Valpo's Kevin Van Wijk (wrist) and Ryan Broekhoff (ankle) missed some practice time this week, but are expected to play tonight.

Van Wijk (15.1 points, 5.3 rebounds) and Broekhoff (15 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists) are the top scoring duo in the league, combining for 30.1 points per game. They combined for 37 points in the first meeting against CSU.

Waters had high praises for Valpo's two star players. He called Broekhoff  "the best player in the league" and Van Wijk "the best post player in the league".

"Broekhoff reminds me of former Ohio State (star) Evan Turner," said Waters. "He can score inside, can score outside, can bring the ball up, can pass the ball and is tough as nails."  

 The Crusaders also scored 38 points in the paint in the first meeting.

"We know what hurt us the last game," said Waters. "We can't let them score much in the paint."

Van Wijk did most of the damage in the paint, scoring 23 points on 10-of-13 from the field.

In the first meeting, Aaron Pogue (thigh) was injured and "limping" badly. Waters is hoping a healthy Pogue will be able to contain Van Wijk.

So what are Waters keys to victory?

"We have to be who we are," he said. "They have an advantage with their quickness, but (I think) we have an advantage inside. Their whole defense is predicated at taking away you big guy and forcing you to shoot it from the outside.

"So we have to do a better job of getting it inside to Aaron and Anton, rather then settling (on outside shots)."

Brown is Questionable This Week with Groin Injury

Cleveland State could be without its best defender this week as D'Aundray Brown is "day-to-day" with a groin injury.

"There's a possibility that he may not play (this week)," CSU head coach Gary Waters said at Tuesday's media gathering. "If he shows me Thursday he can play, he's in the game. But we're preparing as though he's not playing."

Brown re-injured his groin in CSU's win at Loyola of Chicago Friday and missed Sunday's game at Illinois-Chicago.

Waters said that Brown has been dealing with a groin injury since the beginning of the year. He got a shot for it then and was "good to go" until the Loyola game.

Brown also had a groin injury during his junior year.

If Brown doesn't play this week, Waters said that freshman Anton Grady will make his second straight start.

The Vikings host Valparaiso Thursday (7 p.m.) and Butler on Saturday morning (11 a.m.) in a nationally televised game on ESPN2.