Dec. 27, 2004

GAME 8
Cleveland State (3-4) at No. 4 North Carolina (9-1)
Date: Thursday, Dec. 30, 2004
Time: 8:00 p.m. EST
Site: Dean E. Smith Center (21,800), Chapel Hill, N.C.
TV: None
Radio: WKNR, 850 AM (Frank DeMarco)
Series: UNC leads, 1-0
Last Mtg.: UNC 82, CSU 76, Nov. 29, 2003, Cleveland, Ohio
 

SETTING THE SCENE: The Vikings close out the non-conference portion of their schedule with their most difficult test to date when CSU travels to Chapel Hill, N.C. to face No. 4 North Carolina on Thursday, Dec. 30 beginning at 8:00 p.m. EST in the Dean E. Smith Center on the UNC campus. After opening the season with three straight wins, the Vikings have dropped four straight games to fall to 3-4. North Carolina, which is ranked No. 4 in the latest Associated Press poll and No. 5 in the ESPN/USA Today rankings, has won nine straight games since opening the year with a 77-66 loss at Santa Clara. The Tar Heels are 4-0 at home, winning by an average of 30.5 points a game.

PREVIEWING UNC: The Tar Heels have lived up to their preseason billing, carrying a 9-1 record and nine game win streak into Thursday's matchup with the Vikings. UNC knocked off BYU, Tennessee and Iowa to win the Maui Invitational and has since added wins over Southern Cal (97-65), Indiana (70-63) and No. 8 Kentucky (91-78). The Tar Heels return all five starters from the 2003-04 squad that went 19-11 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Leading the way is junior Rashad McCants (18.0 ppg), a third team All-America choice a year ago, while seniors Jawad Williams (16.5 ppg) and Jackie Manuel (9.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg) and juniors Sean May (15.3 ppg) and Raymond Felton (10.3 ppg, 7.1 apg) combine to become one of the most potent starting lineups in college basketball this year. North Carolina ranks second nationally averaging 89.7 points a game and ranks in the top 15 in field goal percentage (.511), three-point field goal percentage (.430), scoring margin (+21.5) and assists (20.0).

TAKE A KID TO A GAME PROMO SET FOR JAN. 8: Cleveland State will celebrate the annual Take A Kid To A Game Day when the Viking return home on Saturday, Jan. 8 to host Youngstown State as part of a doubleheader with the CSU women's team. Fans who attend the game will be able to get one free youth ticket (8th grade and younger) when they buy one adult ticket at the regular price. The CSU women will host Detroit starting at 3:00 p.m. followed by the men's game at 5:30 p.m.

ROAD TRIP ANYBODY?: The North Carolina game is the third in a stretch that will see the Vikings play nine out of 10 games over a span of five weeks away from the Convocation Center. The nine road contests will cover six different states in three different time zones over a 35-day period. The first half of the road trip is a five game swing that has CSU playing in five different states, falling at Utah Valley State (72-65) on Dec. 18 and at Eastern Michigan (89-76) on Dec. 23, before travelling to North Carolina (Dec. 30), Loyola (Jan. 3) and Wright State (Jan. 6). CSU then returns home to host Youngstown State on Jan. 8 before finishing the road trip with games at UW-Green Bay (Jan. 11), Illinois-Chicago (Jan. 15), UW-Milwaukee (Jan. 20) and Youngstown State (Jan. 22). If you were to drive the entire road trip -- which fortunately the Vikings will not have to do -- it would cover 8,866 miles. The longest trek was last week's 1,747 mile jaunt to Orem, Utah while the shortest is the 74-mile journey to Youngstown State on Jan. 22 that ends the stretch. This week's North Carolina journey covers 1,102 miles roundtrip.

. . . HOME SWEET HOME: Although the Vikings will be at a disadvantage playing away from home over the next five weeks, they will also benefit from extended home stands. CSU opened the season with four of its first five games at home with the lone road contest being a 40-mile trip to Akron on Dec. 8. The Vikings also close the season with seven of their last 10 games at home.

TATHAM SHINES IN RETURN: One of the truly positive aspects of the performance by the Vikings this year has been the play of sophomore center Patrick Tatham, who has come back from a severe knee injury suffered a year ago to emerge as a team leader at both ends of the court. Defensively, Tatham has made at least one steal in every game to take over the Horizon League lead, averaging 2.4 steals a game (17 total), while ranking second on the team with 5.1 rebounds a game. Offensively, he has raised his scoring average from the 3.8 points a game he averaged last year to rank fourth on the team this year averaging 9.9 points, including three double-figure efforts. He has led the team in scoring twice this season, scoring a career-high 17 points in the opener against Hillsdale (Nov. 20) and adding a 16-point effort against Kent State (Dec. 11). A .293 shooter last year (29-99), Tatham has raised his shooting percentage to .467 this year (28-60), needing just one field goal to match his entire 2003-04 total.

. . . AND THE ROAD BACK WAS A LONG ONE: To say that Patrick Tatham was limited last year by a knee injury is an understatement. The pain, which began during the opening weeks of the season, gradually grew to the point where he played most games late in the year on just one leg, and he spent a great deal of time daily in the training room. He finally gave way to season-ending knee surgery with six games left, after which time he was on crutches for six weeks, during which time he was not allowed to place any pressure on the rebuilt knee. He was finally allowed back on the basketball court in late June. The surgery also cost him the opportunity to play for the Canadian national team at the Under 21 Tournament of the Americas last July.

THE TREY TRIO: The Viking trio of senior Modibo Niakate, sophomore Raheem Moss and freshman Steve Gansey has provided the Vikings with consistent outside shooting during the first part of the season, combining to shoot .411 (39-95) from three-point. Niakate, CSU's career record holder for three-point percentage (62-140, .443), has made 14 of his 32 treys (.438) to lead the group, while Gansey (11-26, .423) and Moss (14-37, .378) are closely behind. Niakate, Gansey and Moss are sixth, seventh and ninth, respectively in three-point percentage in the Horizon League with each ranking in the top nine in the league in three-pointers made. None of the three are currently in the starting lineup though Moss (3 starts) and Gansey (2) have each started games this year.

MORRIS PICKS UP HIS PLAY:. After struggling to find his offensive game early in the season, sophomore guard Victor Morris has found his range recently, averaging 9.0 points and shooting .600 from the field (12-20) over the last three games. Included in his recent scoring run were a career-high 18 points at Eastern Michigan on Dec. 23, going 8-of-13 from the field to lead CSU in scoring for the third time in his career. In the first four games of the year, Morris averaged 4.0 points a game, shooting .261 from the field (6-23).

A TURNAROUND FROM THE LINE: The last four games has seen the Vikings correct one of its Achilles Heels from a year ago, free throw shooting. Cleveland State, which ranked last in the Horizon League a year ago with a .646 team free throw percentage (411-636), started off the year shooting .609 from the stripe in its first three games (42-69). The Vikings have found their range over the last four games however, going 58-of-78 (.744) to move from ninth to third in the league standings with a .680 mark (100-147). No player has exemplified the improvement better than Justin Henderson, who was three-of-nine in the first three games but has made nine of 10 since. Freshman Mike Redell leads the team, shooting .833 from the line (10-12), including a 10-for-11 effort against Kent State.

THE BENCH BUNCH HAS COME THROUGH: Most head coaches like to construct their playing rotation so that they have at least one player coming off the bench who is capable of providing an offensive spark. Mike Garland has taken that concept almost to an extreme this year as the CSU bench is keeping pace with the starters offensively. Through seven games, the Viking reserves are averaging 35.0 points, including 30 points or more five times with a pair of 50-point efforts, while the starters are averaging 40.3 points a game. Modibo Niakate leads the reserves in scoring, leading the team and ranking eighth in the Horizon League with a 13.6 scoring average, while Raheem Moss (10.6 ppg), Justin Henderson (6.3), Steve Gansey (5.6) and Mike Redell (3.4) have come off the bench to score in double figures at least once.

. . . AND WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: The offensive production from the Viking bench this season has been a stark contrast to last season when CSU reserves averaged only 12.4 points a game, including a mere 5.7 points over the last 14 contests.

. . . THE MINUTES SHOW THE DEPTH: Further evidence that the Vikings have benefited from a deep bench this year can be found by examining minutes played. Walt Chavis leads the team averaging 27.6 minutes a game, a figure that would have ranked him a distant fifth last year as three players averaged 30 minutes or more a game.

WESTLEY PASSES HIS BOARDS: Omari Westley is well on his way to claiming his second straight Horizon League rebounding title as the senior is more than two rebounds a game ahead of his closest competitor. Westley, who has grabbed 10 or more rebounds four times this season, is averaging 9.6 rebounds a game, putting him well ahead of second place Adrian Tigert from UW-Milwaukee, who is averaging 7.4 rebounds a game. Westley, who also leads the league with 4.1 offensive rebounds a game, has posted a league-leading four double-doubles this season, giving him 12 in his career. He led the league in both offensive (3.1) and total rebounds a year ago (8.6).

SCORING BALANCE: As anticipated, the Vikings have shown a good scoring balance this year. Through the first seven games of the regular season, the Vikings have had five different players lead the team in scoring. Patrick Tatham (Hillsdale & Kent State) and Modibo Niakate (Norfolk State & Akron) have each led the team in scoring twice while Raheem Moss (Clarion), Omari Westley (Utah Valley State) and Victor Morris (Eastern Michigan) have accomplished it once each. Only four players led the team in scoring last year.

PRESSURE, STEALS & BALL CONTROL: Two things that Mike Garland vowed after the 2003-04 season was that the Vikings were not only going to apply more defensive pressure this season, but CSU would also do a better job of taking care of the ball. Both objectives have been accomplished in the early going as the Viking lead the Horizon League in assists (16.7) and are second in steals (9.6 spg) and turnover margin (+3.0). Last year, the Vikings were fifth in the league in steals (5.9), seventh in assists (12.9) and last in turnover margin (-3.6) and assist-to-turnover ratio (0.63).

. . . AND THE TURNOVER TURNAROUND HAS BEEN IMPRESSIVE: The Vikings have indeed done a better job of taking care of the ball this year and it has shown in the statistics. Last year, CSU committed 534 turnovers in 29 games, or 20.5 per game. In seven games this year, the Vikings have averaged 16.7 turnovers a game, including back-to-back efforts of 12 vs. Norfolk State and 10 vs. Clarion. As a comparison, CSU turned the ball over 154 times in the first seven games last year (22.0).

NIAKATE'S RETURN BOLSTERS OFFENSE: The Vikings have received a big offensive boost this season from the return of senior Modibo Niakate, who sat out the 2003-04 season as a redshirt. Niakate, who ranks eighth in the Horizon League with a 13.6 scoring average, scored in double figures in the first four games before averaging just 5.0 points over the last three games. He has shot .530 from the field this year (35-66), including .438 from three-point (14-32) and .618 from two-point (21-34). He led the team and ranked second in the Horizon League in 2002-03 with a .444 three-point field goal percentage (48-108). Niakate made three or more triples in nine games en route to posting the fourth-best season three-point shooting effort in CSU history. Niakate led the team with an 11.9 scoring average in his only Viking season.

MORE ON MO: The 31-point effort by Modibo Niakate against Norfolk State on Nov. 27 allowed the senior to record several other accomplishments:
• It tied the school record for points by a reserve, equalling the mark set by Percell Coles against IPFW on Nov. 18, 2002.
• No Viking had scored more points in a game since Theo Dixon scored 33 at Loyola on Feb. 3, 2001.
• The 26 points in the second half were the fifth-highest single half scoring total in school history and the most since Damon Stringer scored 28 vs. UW-Milwaukee on Jan. 29, 2000.
• It was a career scoring high, topping the 23-point efforts he had against Boston University (12/21/02) and Bowling Green (12/28/02). It was his sixth career 20-point game.
 

THREE-POINT RECORDS FALL: The win over Norfolk State on Nov. 27 allowed the Vikings to make a few new entries in the school single game record book. In the game, CSU was 12-of-32 from three-point, tying the school mark for three-pointers made in a game while breaking the record for three-pointers attempted. The 12 treys equalled the record set against Northern Illinois (1/6/92) and Drake (12/30/03) while the 32 attempts broke the old mark of 28 set against Hawaii-Hilo (11/28/99).

A STRONG DEBUT FOR MOSS: Sophomore forward Raheem Moss spent most of the 2003-04 season fighting off the frustration of being unable to contribute on the court while he sat out the season following his transfer from Bowling Green. Moss has taken all of that frustration out early this year as he is third on the team in scoring, averaging 10.6 points a game, despite being slowed over the last four games by a sprained ankle suffered in the opening minutes of the Akron game. He is sixth in the Horizon League in three-point field goals (2.0) and ninth in three-point percentage (.378). Not included in his totals are a 21-point effort in the exhibition win over Ohio Dominican on Nov. 8, during which he was seven-of-15 from the field, including four-of-seven from three-point.

NIAKATE NAMED HORIZON LEAGUE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: After coming off the bench to score a career-high 31 points in the Nov. 27 win over Norfolk State, Modibo Niakate earned his first career Horizon League player of the week honor. He was 12-of-15 from the field and five-of-seven from three-point in tying a CSU school record for points by a reserve. Niakate is the first Viking to receive the award since Omari Westley was honored last November.

WESTLEY NAMED TO HORIZON LEAGUE SQUAD: Senior forward Omari Westley, who ran away with the Horizon League rebounding title a year ago, is one of five members of the 2004-05 Horizon League Preseason team, which was determined in voting of the league coaches, sports information directors and media from around the league. Westley is joined on the preseason squad by the Illinois-Chicago duo of Cedrick Banks and Armond Williams and UW-Milwaukee's Ed McCants and Joah Tucker. Westley averaged 14.8 points and 8.6 rebounds a game last year, more than one rebound a contest ahead of Loyola's Paul McMillan (7.4). He also paced the league with 11 double-doubles.

VIKINGS INK ONE ON SIGNING DAY: The Vikings received an added bonus on Nov. 11 when Flint (Mich.) Northern High standout J'Nathan Bullock signed a national letter of intent to attend CSU and play basketball beginning next fall. Bullock, a 6-4 forward, averaged 17.3 points and 10.1 rebounds a game as a junior last year, shooting .545 from the field to earn first team all-city and all-region honors. He also received first team all-city accolades as a freshman and sophomore along with being a second team all-region choice as a sophomore. A nominee for the 2005 McDonald's All-America team, he is ranked as the 28th best player in the state of Michigan by Prepspotlight.com and was voted the League MVP and All-Star Game Runnerup MVP at the 2004 Cage Scope/Blue-Chip Basketball Camp in Georgetown, KY.

NIAKATE TO PLAY JUST 13 GAMES: Senior guard Modibo Niakate will play in just the first half of the year for the Vikings after a clarification of his athletic eligibility determined that his five years of NCAA eligibility will run out in January. He is eligible to practice and play until Jan. 17, the day before the start of the spring semester at Cleveland State. He will then remain enrolled at CSU for the spring semester and complete his requirements towards receiving a bachelor's degree in communications. Niakate initially enrolled as a full-time student at Hutchinson Community College in January of 2000 but even though he did not begin playing basketball at Hutchinson until the November of 2000, his eligibility clock started in January of 2000. NCAA rules allow a student-athlete four years of intercollegiate eligibility, provided that those four years are completed during a five-year period that starts the day that a student-athlete is first enrolled as a full-time student.

LOOKING AHEAD: The Vikings open Horizon League play with road games at Loyola (Jan. 3) and Wright State (Jan. 6) before returning home to host Youngstown State on Jan. 8.