The body of the 2012 Cleveland State Vikings season may not yet be cold, but no time like the present to think about the Viking’s future.

Many will consider the 2012-2013 a rebuilding year of sorts for the Cleveland State Men’s Basketball team as it looks to replace the contributions of four seniors that made up nearly two-thirds of the team’s offensive punch last season. Gone are sharp shooters Jeremy Montgomery and Trey Harmon. Furthermore, on the defensive end of the floor the Vikings will miss defensive juggernauts D’Aundray Brown and Trey Harmon, who was recently named to the Mid-Major Defensive All-America team on April 10th.

After helping Cleveland State to the number two seed in the Horizon League Championship, the trio of seniors Trey Harmon (Pasadena, Calif.), and D'Aundray Brown (Youngstown, Ohio) and freshman Anton Grady (Cleveland, Ohio) were all represented when the Horizon League announced its men's basketball honors.

The league office made the announcement on Monday afternoon.

Harmon was one of five players named to the all-league second team and also earned a spot on the all-defensive team with Brown. Grady was selected to the all-newcomer team.

Harmon, who is making his first-ever appearance on the all-league squad, is ranked 10th in the league in scoring (13.1), second in three-point field goals (2.4) and eighth in steals (1.8).

One of just three players in CSU history to make 200 career three-pointers, Harmon has made a school-record 71 three's this season. He scored in double figures in 14 of the final 15 games, including four 20-point efforts and became the 20th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points early in the season.

Harmon is also making his second straight appearance on the Horizon League all-defensive team, joining Cedric Jackson (2008, 2009) as the only players in program history to be named to the all-defensive team in consecutive seasons.

Brown is making his second appearance on the all-defensive team after earning a spot in 2010 as a junior. A defensive fixture for CSU throughout his career, Brown leads the Horizon League and ranks seventh in the nation with 2.6 steals per game.

He has multiple steals in 18 of the 24 games he has played in, including a career-high tying seven thefts in the season-opening win at then No. 7 Vanderbilt. He is the first player in CSU history with 800 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists and 200 steals in a career.

Brown, who is averaging 10.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, has missed seven of CSU's last eight games with a pulled groin.

FYI...

All,

We have everything set for Saturday.

The bus will arrive at 10:00 a.m. at the Wolstein Center.  We will leave for Valpo at 10:30 a.m.  The game is at 5:00 p.m. CST.  I am still working out parking details. I will send those out to people who sign up for the trip.

It will be $40/person.  For Cleveland State students, it will be just $10/person.

If you are a Cleveland State student, you will be issued a ticket in the student section.  (Behind the basket.)  If you would like a reserved seat to sit with non-students, it will be $20. (Hopefully that makes sense.)

We also have tickets for sale if you driving yourself.  You can purchase those through me as well.
Please call me with your credit card information to reserve your spot.  (I do not keep credit cards on file.) 

I am heading in to a meeting and will not be available until after 2:30 today.

Thanks and Go Vikes!

Carrie Neville
Director of Ticketing & Fan Development
Cleveland State Athletics
2000 Prospect Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44115
 
Phone: (216) 687-5440
Fax: (216) 523-7257
www.csuvikings.com
Facebook: CSUVikings
Twitter: @CSU_Athletics
 

Last week it appeared that the Cleveland State Vikings ship was sinking. Losers of five straight games and down 12 points to Detroit on Thursday night, Gary Waters' team could of folded its tent and played out the string the rest of the season. The team, which had been in the drivers seat for the Horizon League regular season championship for the majority of the season, refused to surrender and came back against the tough Titans for a resounding win and followed it up with a blowout win over Wright State to secure the second seed and a double-bye in the Horizon League Tournament that starts tomorrow. 

Now, according to Las Vegas oddsmakers, the Vikings head to  Valparaiso, Indiana, as favorites to win the tournament and earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament.

While the months of November-January were smooth sailing for the Vikings the rough patch of February was a tough one to endure. The team seemed to be clicking on all cylinders until D'Aundray Brown went down with a strained groin in Chicago. The setback to their defensive star and "energy player" saw them lose crucial home games against Valpo and Butler. The team then was embarrassed on their home court on national television against Drexel. Sandwiched in-between the blowout loss in the Bracketbuster game against Drexel were two heartbreaking losses to Milwaukee and Green Bay that put their Horizon League hopes in jeopardy as they could of lost the crucial double-bye that is awarded to the top two finishers in the conference. 

Are star players replaceable in college basketball? To borrow a catchphrase from Sarah Palin, "You Betcha". Two key examples of this fact will be on display tonight when the Cleveland State Vikings battle the Valparaiso Crusaders with first place in the Horizon League on the line. 

Many wondered whether or not the VIkings would be able to keep up their winning ways after losing superstar point guard Norris Cole to the NBA after last season. CSU has looked sharp all season long, and while CSU head coach Gary Waters has refused to come out and say that the 2011-2012 squad is better than last years team that won 27 games, most observers think the Vikings will be dancing in the NCAA Tournament in March. That is something last years team failed to do. One of the biggest hurdles that the Vikings (20-4  10-2) will face if they realize the dream of going dancing is Valparaiso who are breathing down the neck of the Vikings in the Horizon League standings at only a 1/2 game out first place. 

In Indiana, fans of Valparaiso were left in a state of shock when Brandon Wood graduated early and transferred to Michigan State to play his senior season. The Crusaders have compiled a record of 10-3 in conference play and 17-8 overall and look destined to at least play in the NIT if they can finish off the regular season with the same form they have displayed all season. If they achieve making the NCAA Tournament or the NIT, they also would best their efforts from last season.  Many Crusader observers said that the team looked like a more cohesive unit this season after losing their top scorer (17.5 ppg) the past two seasons. The same can be said of the Vikings.

Valparaiso (17-8, 10-3 HL) at rv/rv Cleveland State (20-4, 10-2 HL)
Date: Thursday, February 9, 2012
Time: 7:00 p.m. EST
Location: Wolstein Center (8,500) - Cleveland, Ohio
Radio: WHKW 1220 AM (Cleveland) & WHKZ, 1440 AM (Warren) (Al Pawlowski)
TV: None Live. Video streaming available on Horizon League Network
Series: CSU leads, 28-10
Last Mt'g: @Valpo 72, CSU 66 (1/15/12)
Tickets: $8, $10, $15, $25

Cleveland State University mens basketball coach Gary Waters said throughout November and December that you shouldn't judge how his team was playing in the early months and the true barometer on the Vikings was how they played in late January and February.  This was even after CSU jumped off to an incredible start to the season that saw the team win the first 10 out of 11 contests which included an upset of then-7th ranked Vanderbilt on the road to begin the year. Now observers know what the veteran head coach was saying all along as the team has turned up their level of play up a couple notches and look to clamp down their fist by clinching the regular season Horizon League championship.

The first sign that the Vikings were beginning to make their move, in what was then a bunched up Horizon League race, was their home victory against Milwaukee. The Panthers came into to Ohio as a favorite to secure the number one seed in the Horizon League tournament but left the Buckeye State with their tails between their legs. Milwaukee suffered a tough loss to Youngstown State that was followed up by a humiliating double digit defeat at the hands of the tenacious Vikings. CSU then disposed of Youngstown State, Loyola, and UIC by wide margins in succesive games. The string of victories has turned a three way race for first place into a match-race between Valparaiso and CSU. 

CSU head coach talked about injured star guard D'Aundray Brown's status for the Thursday night against Valparaiso. Brown suffered a strained groin against Loyola on Friday. Waters said his status is day to day and explained the extent of the injury in this clip.