Valparaiso Vanquishes Vikings to Second Place
Posted on 15. Jan, 2012 by Eugene McCormick
Any sensible Cleveland State basketball fan knew that the Vikings road trip to Indiana was a tough row to hoe. No team in Horizon League basketball history has been able to defeat both Butler and Valparaiso on a single road swing and the amazing statistic is still true today as Valpo knocked off the Vikings 72-66 in Valparaiso, Indiana.
The undoing for the Vikings stemmed from the hot shooting by the Crusaders who shot an eye popping 60% from the field against a normally stingy defense. The shooting success propelled Valpo to a tie for second place in the conference.
"We were able to get a split on this trip and that's not a bad thing. If we were able to sweep these two games, that would have been special. Now, we get to go home where we have to take care of business next weekend," CSU head coach Gary Waters said following the loss that would have given his team the inside track to the conference title.
The Vikings return home for a set of big home games this weekend. On Friday, CSU hosts Wisconsin Green Bay. The game against the Phoenix tips off at 8 pm and will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU. Sunday afternoon features a matinee match-up with first place Wisconsin Milwaukee.