by The 18-7 Cleveland State Vikings lined up in a battle of supremacy amongst their conference against the 18-8 Robert Morris Colonials. With Tahj Staveskie and Tevin Smith coming off a great game against the Milwaukee Panthers. They looked to build off that performance and clutch another win to stay atop the conference. Alvaro Folgueiras coming off a scorching 35 point game against Northern Kentucky. Both teams clashed with some explosive scoring with the intent of one thing- to win and to win big. The energy was high and you could tell both teams really wanted this.
The first half started out slow. Both teams showing off their defense. Tevin Smith was the highlight of this with two early blocks, one coming in the form of chasedown block on the fastbreak and the other coming from the weak side help. The tension was high, you could see the players chirping back and forth with one another. It was something about this game that felt like stakes were high. Tahj Staveskie made his mark early once again, with some stellar jump shooting; along with Reece Robinson who plays extremely well off the ball, cutting to the basket to get himself some easy buckets. Dylan Arnett also made his presence felt in the paint.
On the other hand, #7, Alvaro Folgueiras was making his way to the basket at will. He really understands the art of taking the right angles to score and that was something I picked up and immediately admired about his game. It was also evident that the refs were letting both teams play and “get it out the mud.” The physicality was on another level and there were times that I could even feel how physical it was by player reactions. With that being said, the immense level of skill it took for these players to score in the ways that they did was extremely entertaining, considering what they were playing through. The first half ended in a competitive contest at 30-26 in favor of the Vikings with the Vikings never giving up a lead once in this half.
The second half was fast paced from the jump, which was expected. Both teams passed the “feeling out process” in the first half and knew what needed to be done to get the victory. The Colonials came out with tons of energy, getting great opportunities from the three and the midrange. The paint was guarded well by CSU, so it was a great adjustment to go with taking the smart jumpers, which is what the defense was giving them. As opposed to forcing the lane as Robert Morris tried to do in the first half. The Vikings pretty much stuck to their gameplan and fed the post with Arnett and Robinson, while also waiting for the extra help down low to kick to Staveskie or Smith.
It reached a point in the second half where the Colonials were up by five and the Vikings were struggling to score. Amarion Dickerson and Folgueiras were orchestrating the offense smoothly. That is until KJ Debrick got an outstanding block and then scored on the other end, sparking some well needed momentum that gave them a 5 point lead with 5 minutes left. The Colonials simply took that punch and hit them right back with a run of their own to retake the lead.
This was a game of runs and intensity. The Robert Morris Colonials struggled in the first half and came out with a great adjustment not only on offense but on defense as well. They did a great job at taking the guards out the game with some great help defense on picks against the Vikings. These adjustments bolstered them to a double digit win over the Vikings. Folgueiras and Dickerson rightfully share the MVP of the game rights for me. Folgueiras, a 6’9 monster playing as if he was 6’4; his quickness and IQ helped him pick up 18 points. While Dickerson’s all around game got him to 21 points and the dagger to stop any hopes of the Vikings coming back. Arnett for the Vikings totaled 16 points and was tenacious on the block but it simply was not enough to stop the Colonials from running away with a 68-59 victory.
