by CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Cleveland State women’s basketball team opened play in the Barbasol Horizon League Tournament, picking up an 88-78 victory over ninths-seeded Northern Kentucky. The Vikings, who are playing as the No. 1 seed, improved to 28-4 overall this season.
Game Stats
-Four Vikings finished the game in double-figure points, paced by Colbi Maples with 31. Mickayla Perdue added 24 points, while Jordana Reisma chipped in 15 and Sara Guerreiro added 10.
After a back-and-forth first quarter that saw Cleveland State hold a 22-19 lead after the first 10 minutes of play, the Vikings were able to open the second frame on an 11-0 run, gaining a double-digit lead at 33-19 on a Jordana Reisma layup. Although Northern Kentucky was able to trim the lead to single digits on its next two possessions, a Colbi Maples three-pointer at the 5:16 mark put the Vikings back up by 12 at 36-24.
Cleveland State then held a sizable advantage for the rest of the frame, extending its lead to 52-31 before the halftime break on a pair of Mickayla Perdue free throws.
The two teams traded baskets over the first few possessions of the third quarter, including a Sara Guerreiro three-pointer at the 8:16 mark that put the Vikings up 58-36.
Northern Kentucky answered with a 9-0 scoring run, before a Maples layup at the 4:26 mark put the score at 60-46 Cleveland State. Another Maples basket followed, before a Perdue layup extended Cleveland State’s lead to 64-46 with just over 3:00 minutes to play in the frame.
The Norse were once again able to trim the lead to 12 points over the final minutes of the frame, before another Perdue three-pointer gave Cleveland State a 70-55 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Northern Kentucky opened the fourth quarter on a 10-2 run then, closing the gap to single digits at 72-65, before a pair of Maples free throws stopped the scoring run and gave the Vikings a 74-65 edge. The Vikings were able to regain a double-digit lead at 79-68 on a pair of Reisma free throws just over two minutes later, while another 2-for-2 effort from Reisma at the free throw line and a Reisma layup put Cleveland State up 83-70 with 2:44 left on the clock.
The Vikings were able to maintain control over the final minutes of the contest then, coming away with the 88-78 victory.
