by Per Matt Kearney
Assistant Athletic Director, Communications
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State Men’s Basketball team enters postseason play as the Vikings begin the 2025 Barbasol Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championship with a home Quarterfinal game at the Wolstein Center. Cleveland State finished the regular season with 20 wins for a fourth consecutive season and earned the no. 2 seed in the Horizon League bracket. NKU earned its spot in the quarterfinals with a win over Detroit Mercy in the first round on Tuesday night. The Norse are the no. 7 seed in the championship bracket and finished with an 11-9 record in league regular season play.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/NORTHERN KENTUCKY SERIES
Thursday’s game is the 23rd all-time meeting between Cleveland State and Northern Kentucky. The Norse hold a 12-10 lead in the all-time series which has been closely contested over the past few seasons. The two teams have split the last six meetings including splitting the two regular season meetings this year. Both teams won on their respective home floors as the Vikings claimed a 76-58 win at the Wolstein Center on January 15 and NKU won the most recent meeting by an 85-75 final score on February 5. The Norse win snapped Cleveland State’s 13-game winning streak. This is the second time in the last three seasons that the two teams have met in the postseason. NKU defeated CSU 63-61 to claim the 2023 Horizon League Tournament title.
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.
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.
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.
SCOUTING THE NORSE
Northern Kentucky is 17-15 and 11-9 in Horizon League regular season play entering Thursday night’s game. The Norse earned the no. 7 seed in the Horizon League Championship bracket and advanced to the quarterfinal round with a 99-75 win over Detroit Mercy in Tuesday’s first round. Trey Robinson was named to the all-league third team and leads NKU in scoring averaging 15.8 points per game. Darrin Horn is in his sixth season as the head coach and has amassed over 100 victories in his time in charge. Horn owns a 5-6 overall record against Cleveland State over his time at NKU.
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 FOURTH YEAR IN A ROW
Cleveland State has amassed 20-plus wins for four 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 three years in charge in the history of the program. Robinson has amassed 62 total victories and counting over his first three seasons.
HOME SWEET HOME
Cleveland State has made a habit of protecting its home court throughout the last two seasons. The Vikings finished the 2024-25 regular season with a 13-4 record at home and finished 14-3 at home in the 2023-24 season as well as a 40-10 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
With a win, Cleveland State would advance to the semifinal round of the Barbasol Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championship in Indianapolis on Monday. The Vikings would take on one of the other three quarterfinal winners at either 7:00 or 9:30 p.m. from Corteva Coliseum, with the winner of that game advancing to Tuesday’s Championship Game.
