Central Michigan University
Cleveland State
Cleveland State Locks Down Men's Basketball, 56-43
11/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 30, 2005
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland State held Central Michigan University to a season-low .306 shooting percentage and the Chippewas tied a season-high with 19 turnovers as the Vikings captured a 56-43 win in the Wolstein Center on Wednesday night.
CMU falls to 1-3 on the year while Cleveland State evens its record at 2-2.
"We just couldn't hit shots," head coach Jay Smith said. "It's tough when you hold a team to 56 points and outrebound them but lose. CSU let us back in it in the second half, but we could just never close the gap."
Freshman Chris Kellermann nearly recorded a double-double for CMU with 11 points and a game-high nine rebounds in 28 minutes. Giordan Watson also chipped in 11 points and four assists.
The Vikings led by four points three minutes into the game before CMU held them scoreless for nearly a 10-minute stretch. However, the Chippewas could only build a five-point lead, 15-10, with 9:16 remaining before the half. It was tied at 22 with 2:43 to play but CSU went on an 8-1 run to end the opening frame as the Maroon and Gold turned it over on three straight possessions.
The teams went to the locker room with CSU leading, 30-23, and CMU went cold in the second half, shooting just 23 percent from the floor and 17 percent from three-point range while getting to the line just twice. The Vikings pushed their advantage up to 12 points at 41-29 with 10:08 remaining and CMU would cut it down to seven shortly after that but it was as close as the Chippewas would get.
Raheem Moss had a game-high 14 points in the winning effort, including three three-pointers, and J'Nathan Bulock added 10.
Cleveland State shot .457 from the floor hitting 21-of-46 shots while CMU was just 15-for-49.
CMU won the battle of the boards, 37-33, with Justin Blevins and Sefton Barrett each pulling down seven. Barrett also hit double figures for the third straight game with 10 points.
The Chippewas haven't won on the road in three tries this season and they will try to keep their home record perfect when they open Mid-American Conference play on Sunday. That's when CMU welcomes defending MAC regular season champion Miami to Rose Arena. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
