Jan. 6, 2007

Final Stats

CHICAGO - Cleveland State put together its most complete effort of the year in an 80-57 victory at Loyola on Saturday afternoon. The Vikings shot a season-high 54.8 percent (34-62) from the field while matching their season-low with 10 turnovers to improve to 5-12 on the year and 2-2 in the Horizon League. The Ramblers fall to 2-12, 1-3 with the loss.

Nicole Thomas went 10-for-14 from the floor to match her career-high with 22 points, while grabbing 11 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season. She also tallied career-highs of five assists and three steals to help CSU snap its 20-game Horizon League road losing streak that dated back to Feb. 11, 2004.

Chenara Wilson matched her career-high with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Dominique Butler was 8-for-11 with 17 points and nine boards. The trio combined to go 26-for-37 from the floor (70.3 percent).

Jenna Real was the only Loyola player to reach double-figures, tallying 21 points and five rebounds.

"We really executed on offense today, were patient and worked the ball for good shots," CSU head coach Kate Peterson said. "Our two seniors stepped up and were very effective in finishing on the inside. Chenara and Nikki also brought a tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm to the court."

CSU put came out of the gates firing, as the Vikings made their first six shots and 9-of-11 to open up a 19-6 bulge seven minutes into the contest. For the half, CSU shot 52.9 percent from the floor (18-34) to take a 40-23 advantage into the locker room.

Thomas led the charge, knocking down all seven of her shots en route to posting 14 points. Fellow post player Wilson added eight in the stanza.

The beginning of the second half was a completely different story, as CSU could muster just three field goals in the first 9:12 as Loyola closed the gap to four (46-42) with an 19-6 run. Real fueled the burst with 13 points, connecting on all five of her field goal attempts.

However, the Vikings responded with a 19-8 run of their own to push their lead back to a comfortable 15 points with 5:29 remaining. Butler (seven points) and Wilson (five points) combined on 12 markers during the jaunt.

For the game, CSU held a 33 to 27 edge on the glass, while scoring 44 points in the paint.

Cleveland State hosts Detroit on Thursday (Jan. 11) at 5:00 p.m. The contest, which is the Vikings' only home game in January, kicks off a doubleheader with the CSU men's team battling UW-Milwaukee at 7:30 p.m.