The Cleveland State Vikings will travel to the UPMC Events Center to take on the Robert Morris Colonials this Friday night in College Basketball action.
The Cleveland State Vikings won their 2nd straight game and improved to 8-3 on the season after defeating the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons, 65-58, this past Wednesday. Cleveland State was solid defensively against Purdue Fort Wayne and was able to pull away late in the 2nd half after a 5-0 run gave the Vikings a 58-51 lead with 1:50 left in regulation. Cleveland State shot 43.4% from the field & 31.8% from beyond the arc while holding Purdue Fort Wayne to just 39.1% from the field & 36.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Vikings was Tre Gomillion who had 21 points, 7 rebounds, & 3 assists.
On the season, Cleveland State is averaging 75.4 ppg on 47.6% shooting from the field. The Vikings are averaging 6.2 three-pointers per game on 32.7% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Cleveland State has been led by D’Moi Hodge (14.3 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.5 apg, 2.3 spg), Torrey Patton (12.7 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 4.0 apg, 1.8 spg), Broc Finstuen (9.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.5 spg), & Tre Gomillion (9.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.0 apg).
Defensively, Cleveland State is allowing their opponents to an average of 67.8 ppg on 40.7% shooting from the field. The Vikings have a rebound margin of 1.7 and a turnover margin of 3.9.
The Robert Morris Colonials lost their 2nd straight game and dropped to 2-11 on the season after being defeated by the Youngstown State Penguins, 64-60, this past Wednesday. Robert Morris struggled offensively down the stretch and could not fight back after the Penguins took a 56-49 lead with 4:15 left in regulation. Robert Morris shot 40.4% from the field & 10.0% from beyond the arc while allowing Youngstown State to shoot 33.9% from the field & 40.0% from beyond the arc. Leading the way for the Colonials was Enoch Cheeks who had a double-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assist, 1 block, & 3 steals.
On the season, Robert Morris is averaging 69.2 ppg on 44.9% shooting from the field. The Colonials are averaging 6.5 three-pointers per game on 33.5% shooting from beyond the arc. Offensively, Robert Morris has been led by Rasheem Dunn (12.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 4.1 apg, 1.3 spg), Kahliel Speak (11.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 1.5 apg, 1.2 bpg), Kam Farris (11.1 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 1.3 apg), & Michael Green III (8.8 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.6 spg).
Defensively, Robert Morris is allowing their opponents to average 77.6 ppg on 45.5% shooting from the field. The Colonials have a rebound margin of -4.8 and a turnover margin of -1.8.
The Vikings are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 road games and 5-1 straight up in their last 6 games vs. Robert Morris. The Colonials are 2-10 ATS in their last 12 games and 1-6 ATS in their last 7 January games.
Cleveland State has been led by their offense which ranks 111th in scoring & 39th in FG% and has also been solid defensively, ranking 167th in scoring defense & 92nd in defensive FG%. Robert Morris is led by their offense which ranks 245th in scoring offense & 147th in FG%, however, the Colonials have really struggled defensively as they come into this matchup ranked just t-328th in scoring defense & 307th in defensive FG%.
Robert Morris is just 1-3 at home this season with a scoring margin of -8.4 and I just don’t see the Colonials putting much of a fight in this one agianst a very good Cleveland State team that is solid on both ends of the court. Cleveland State looked solid recently in an OT loss at Oklahoma State and as I think their offense has no trouble putting up points agianst the Colonials, I’m taking Cleveland State to cover this large home spread. Good Luck!