Jan. 23, 2001

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Vikings Look For First Win At Butler: At 1-3, Cleveland State currently stands seventh in the MCC...CSU will be looking to improve on its 2-6 mark on the road...the Vikings are just 2-9 all-time against Butler, including an 0-5 mark in Hinkle Fieldhouse...CSU has topped 65 points just once in Indianapolis, losing 95-82 in 1996...the Vikings have won a game in Hinkle -- versus Wright State in the 1998 MCC Quarterfinals...this is CSU's eighth road game in its last 11 contests...senior forward Valerie Burg leads Butler with 12.5 ppg and 2.88 apg, while junior forward Kelly Kuhn is averaging 11.6 ppg and a MCC-best 8.9 rpg...Kuhn is tied with Mahogany Green for the MCC lead with six double-doubles...CSU and Butler rank 1-2 in the conference in rebounding offense, with the Bulldogs topping the MCC in rebounding margin.

The Last Meeting: CSU defeated Butler by a 91-78 score last Jan. 27. The win was only the Vikings' second in 11 tries against the Bulldogs and was CSU's 21st consecutive victory when scoring at least 80 points. The Vikings extended a 46-30 halftime lead to as much as 23, but watched as Butler cut the lead to just five on a Dorcas Lawson three-pointer with 2:17 remaining. However, CSU went on a quick 9-2 run to put the game away. Audra Cook posted game-highs of 26 points and 12 rebounds for her 13th double-double of the season. Joining Cook in double-figures was Mahogany Green and Venus Harmeyer with 22 and 15 points, respectively. Kelly Kuhn paced the Bulldogs with 16 points and nine rebounds. The Vikings shot 50 percent to offset a 13-rebound deficit.

Green Steps Up: There's a saying that goes: "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog." Senior forward Mahogany Green is living proof that this is true. She currently ranks second in the conference in scoring (15.4), first in assists (4.65) and fifth in steals (2.06). In addition, despite measuring just 5-9, she is second in the MCC in rebounds (8.4) and tied for the lead with six double-doubles, trailing only Butler's Kelly Kuhn who stands 6-3 (8.9 rpg and six double-doubles). Green entered this season with just three career double-doubles under her belt.

On Tap: Following tonight's contest, the Vikings travel on to Dayton to face Wright State on Saturday, Jan. 27 at 2:00 p.m.

Vikings Defeat Loyola, Earn First MCC Win: Cleveland State (8-9, 1-3 MCC) could not recover from a sluggish first half as Illinois-Chicago (5-12, 2-2 MCC) pulled out a 69-63 win last Saturday. The Vikings shot just 26 percent in the opening stanza and trailed 33-26 going into the locker room. UIC's lead grew to 12 points with just over 13 minutes left in the game. However, CSU went on a 15-4 run over the next seven minutes to trim the lead to just 55-54, but UIC clamped down on defense from that point on to pull out the victory. Kim Brockway led CSU with 20 points as she canned all 10 of her free throw attempts. Mahogany Green added 14 points, 11 rebounds and four assists for her second straight double-double and her sixth of the year. Venus Harmeyer knocked down four three pointers en route to scoring 12 points. Kimberly Henry led the Flames with a game-high 24 points, while Melea Clark added 16 points, five rebounds and four assists. Jaysie Chambers came off the bench to post a double-double with 10 points and a career-high 15 rebounds. UIC out-shot the Vikings 44-34 percent from the floor and out-rebounded CSU 42-33.

Noting Coach Burns: Cleveland State Head Coach Duffy Burns is now in his sixth year at the helm of the Vikings. CSU has posted a 73-84 (.465) mark under his direction, and last season advanced to the first conference championship game in school history. In addition, in 1998-99 Burns directed CSU to the school's first winning record since 1983-84 when the Vikings went 19-8 under Alice Khol -- a span of 15 years. CSU has led the MCC in three-point shooting all five years Burns has been the head coach, while posting an impressive conference record of 8-6 in both 1997-98 and 1998-99.

A Glance At The Staff: Burns' staff is rounded out by Deb Roof, Erica Floyd and LeAnna Hicks. Roof is in her eighth year at Cleveland State -- and in her third term as the top assistant. She played for CSU from 1987-91 and is 13th all-time with 231 assists. Floyd is in her third year on the staff after spending the previous four seasons at Kent State. She graduated in 1993 from Ohio State and was a two-year letterwinner for the Buckeyes. Hicks, the graduate assistant for the second straight season, completed an outstanding four-year career at Cleveland State in 1999. She finished as the all-time leader in three-point field goals with 162 and is also in the top 15 in points (1,059-12th) and assists (343-4th).

Triple Threat: The Vikings are continuing their torrid pace from behind the three-point arc during Duffy Burns' tenure. After setting the school record last year for triples in a season (231) and game (17 vs. Loyola 2/19), the Vikes are once again atop the conference at 8.12 bombs per game (3rd in the nation as of Jan. 15). The Vikings have led the MCC each of Burns' five years in Cleveland and led the nation in 1996 with 8.5 threes per game. In addition, CSU has made a three-pointer in 233 straight contests -- ranking behind only Louisville's current 281-game run in NCAA annals.

80's Enough: In the six seasons since Duffy Burns arrived in Cleveland, the Vikings have hit his self-proclaimed "magic number" of 80 points 44 times in 157 games (28%). Of those 44 contests, CSU has been victorious on 40 occasions (91%). All four losses were to conference opponents: UW-Milwaukee (2/17/96), Butler (2/24/96) and Detroit (1/30/97 & 2/5/00). The Vikings are 7-0 this season when topping 80 points.

Injury Equals Opportunity: Erika Roudebush's sprained ankle has given freshman Abby Scharlow the opportunity to start the last six games at shooting guard. She has responded by averaging 11.5 ppg and 3.2 spg, while committing just eight turnovers. She has scored double-digits in three of the games and broke out for a career-best 20 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor in CSU's win over Loyola.

Twin Towers: Kim Brockway (6-4) and Karyn Woloszynek (6-3) are doing their best to make life in the paint miserable for CSU's opponents. The pair has combined for 49 blocks -- more than every other team in the MCC but Loyola (59) and Butler (54). In her third season, Brockway ranks second at Cleveland State with 135 career blocks. Her total of 73 swats last season equaled the school record set by Jessica Toth in 1995-96.

On The Rebound: Last year, the Vikings were out-rebounded in 22-of-30 contests. However, that didn't seem to bother CSU too much, as evidenced by its -38 rebound margin in its improbable three-game run to the MCC title tilt. This season, the Vikings have already out-rebounded nine-of-17 foes, going 6-3 in those contests. After finishing last in the MCC in 1999-00 in rebound margin, the Vikings currently rank fourth.

Taylor Goes Into Hall: Saturday night Deb Taylor joined former cagers Laura Englehart, Sue Hlavacek and Sue Koziol in the CSU Athletic Hall of Fame. Taylor played for the Vikings from 1987-91, finishing with 1,748 points and 893 rebounds -- both of which rank third all-time at CSU. She is one of just two players to lead the Vikings in scoring four times and a three-time all-conference pick. Men's basketball players Eddie Bryant and Shawn Hood as well as baseball player Luis Martinez were also enshrined.

Ramblin' Woman: Junior forward Tonya Crum is playing her first season in a CSU uniform since transferring from Loyola Chicago following the 1998-99 campaign. Crum's redshirt season was a rough one, as she had to deal with mononucleosis and tearing the ACL in her left knee. As a sophomore, she was named first team All-MCC after finishing sixth in the conference in scoring (12.6 ppg) and second in rebounding (8.4). Currently, she is ranks among the MCC leaders in scoring (7.2-26th), rebounding (5.8-9th) and field goal pct. (.461-9th). On Jan. 18 against her former teammates, Crum posted 11 points and 11 rebounds -- her first double-double as a Viking.

In A Minute: Last year Audra Cook, Juli Grant and Mahogany Green each averaged over 30 minutes per game. This season, with CSU's deeper bench, as Green is leading the team at just 28.8 minutes per game. In addition, eight other players are seeing at least 10 minutes of action.

Century Club: Cleveland State's 101-point outburst against Belmont marked the fourth time under Duffy Burns that the Vikings have topped the century mark and the sixth time in school history. CSU last scored 100 points on Nov. 16, 1998 when it defeated Chicago State 106-58.

No Barnburners Here: In 1999-2000, 18 of CSU's games were decided by less than 10 points (with the Vikings winning eight). However, so far this season 10-of-17 games have been double-digit margins of victory. CSU's eight wins have come by an average of 18.5 points a game, while the Vikings' nine losses have been by an average of 11.3 points a game. CSU's defense is the big reason for the discrepancy, as its opponents are shooting just 36 percent in Viking wins, but 45 percent in losses.

Shooting Guard Gets Rowdy: Sophomore guard Erika Roudebush is going to have a tough time topping her opening weekend. After coming off the bench all of last season, Roudebush started the first 11 contests this season (before spraining her ankle) as the two guard and has responded with a pair of career-highs. In the season-opener against Ohio State, she torched the nets for a career-best 21 points and followed that two days later with a game-high 22 against Niagara. She currently ranks among the conference leaders in free throw pct. (T1st), scoring (15th), field goal pct. (8th), three-point field goal pct. (7th) and three-pointers (9th).

Center Of Attention: On Dec. 11, Junior center Kim Brockway earned MCC Player of the Week honors for the second time in her career. Brockway helped direct the Vikings to a pair of wins during the week. At Akron, she tallied 11 points, three rebounds and a pair of blocks in just 17 minutes as CSU blew out the Zips. She followed that up three days later by going 7-of-10 both from the field and the free throw line en route to 21 points (just one shy of her career-high), as the Vikings edged IUPUI. Brockway also added four rebounds and two blocks against the Jaguars.

No. 23 Becomes No. 15: On Nov. 25 against Prairie View A & M, senior forward Mahogany Green became the 15th player in the 27-year history of CSU women's basketball to score 1,000 career points. Green scored the historic point with a free throw at the 5:44 mark of the first half. Her performance against the Panthers helped earn her a spot on the All-Tournament team. Then on Jan. 6 she pulled down her 500th rebound, to become the ninth Viking with 1,000 points and 500 boards.

Green Makes History: It's hard to imagine, but senior forward Mahogany Green accomplished something against Niagara on Nov. 19 that only one other player had done in a combined 97 seasons of men's and women's basketball at Cleveland State. Green posted a triple-double against the Purple Eagles, tallying 16 points, 13 rebounds and a career-best 10 assists. Sue Koziol is the only other player to have notched a triple-double, pulling off the feat twice in 1983.

She Takes Charity: Sophomore shooting guard Erika Roudebush is having a fantastic year shooting the ball. Not only is she shooting .464 from the floor and .373 from the three-point line, but she is tied for the MCC lead at a .914 (32-for-35) clip from the free throw line. Her string of consecutive free throws was snapped at 23 last Thursday night against Loyola. The school record of 26 was set by April Cunningham in 1996-97.

Baptiste Leaves Team: Sophomore center Nicole Baptiste (Beavercreek, Ohio/Beavercreek) has decided to transfer from Cleveland State. She has left the basketball team, but will remain enrolled in classes through the end of the spring semester. She was averaging 4.5 ppg and 3.1 rpg.