Game 2 - Capital vs. Cleveland State
Wolstein Center - Cleveland, OH
7:00 p.m.
All-Time vs. Capital: 0-0
Last Meeting: N/A
Tickets: csuvikings.com
Radio: Sports Radio 99.1 FM
Play-By-Play: Ed Daugherty
TV: ESPN+
Play-By-Play: Al Pawlowski
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State Men's Basketball team opens the home slate at the Wolstein Center with a non-league matchup against Capital University. The new-look Vikings are looking to notch their first victory after a narrow three-point loss at Loyola to begin the season on Monday night. Capital competes at the NCAA Division III level and will be playing its first game of the 2025-26 season.Â
THE CLEVELAND STATE/CAPITAL SERIES
This will be the first meeting between Cleveland State and Capital. The Vikings will host three non-DI opponents this season, with Waynesburg and Oakland City also scheduled to visit Cleveland.Â
VIKINGS FALL IN NAIL BITER AT LOYOLA
Cleveland State went on the road to start the 2025-26 season and gave host Loyola all it could handle in taking the Ramblers to the final buzzer in a thrilling season opener in Chicago. Loyola prevailed 91-88 thanks to a last second three-point shot on the game's final possession. The game went back and forth with 20 lead changes and nine ties as both teams had chances in the final minute to emerge with the victory. Dayan Nessah led the way for the Vikings with 25 points and 11 rebounds to lead all scorers and notch his first collegiate double-double. Josiah Harris finished with 20 points, Tre Beard chipped in 13 and Kamari Jones made it four in double figures as he finished with 12 points.Â
ROB SUMMERS BEGINS FIRST SEASON AS HEAD COACH
Thursday's game will be the first home game for Rob Summers as Cleveland State head coach. Summers was named the 18th head coach in program history in April. Summers is a familiar face to Cleveland State after serving as an assistant coach under Dennis Gates from 2019-22. During that time the Vikings won two Horizon League regular season titles and one tournament title, making postseason appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2021 and the NIT in 2022. Following his three-year stint in Cleveland Summers spent two seasons as an assistant at Miami(OH) and then reunited with Gates as an assistant at Missouri this past season. Summers is a Columbus, Ohio native and played collegiately at Penn State and West Virginia, helping the Mountaineers advance to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in 2006.Â
SCOUTING THE COMETS
Capital is playing its first game of the 2025-26 season. The Comets feature a 16-player roster with 14 players hailing from the state of Ohio. Capital finished with a 10-15 overall record and a 7-11 conference record in the Ohio Athletic Conference last season. The Comets are led by head coach Damon Goodwin who enters his 31st season at the helm. Goodwin has amassed over 450 career victories.Â
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SUMMERS ADDS FIVE TO COACHING STAFF
Rob Summers has added an experienced group of five assistant coaches to his first Cleveland State staff. Associate head coach Frank Young comes to Cleveland after six seasons at Appalachian State. Young and Summers were teammates at West Virginia for their final two collegiate seasons. Veteran assistant Louis Rowe brings almost two decades of coaching experience and most recently was an assistant at Oregon. Rowe and Summers coached together at James Madison where Rowe was the head coach for four seasons. Assistant coach Michael Hunter comes to Cleveland after two successful seasons of head coaching experience at Shawnee State University. Hunter coached under Summers at Urbana University. Assistant coach Casey Perrin brings almost a decade of experience at three Division I programs. Perrin most recently was an assistant at Louisiana for the past three seasons. Dalon King returns to his alma mater as an assistant coach. King was on staff with Summers for all three seasons of his first stint at Cleveland State and went on to Missouri where the two worked together again last season. Â
FRESH FACES
Cleveland State features a brand new roster this season. The Vikings added 15 new players this offseason who will be suiting up in the green and white for the first time. Cleveland State is one of six teams in Division I with all new players. The Vikings are one of ten teams in the country with zero returning points and one of eight teams with zero returning scholarship players.Â
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
Cleveland State's roster features 14 transfer student-athletes and one incoming freshman. Among the transfers, 11 of them are upperclassmen. The roster includes five seniors and six juniors, along with three sophomores and one freshman. Among the transfers, seven of them have Division I playing experience.Â
LOCAL FLAVOR
Among the Cleveland State newcomers are some familiar names who have had success in the high school and college ranks in the Northeast Ohio region. Junior Josiah Harris comes from Akron where he played in six games last season before suffering a season-ending injury. Harris played his high school basketball at Richmond Heights, located on Cleveland's east side. Harris was a Northeast Lakes Division All-District IV first team selection. Manny Hill is another local product who is a familiar face as he follows in his older brother's footsteps. Yahel Hill played four years for the Vikings and graduated in 2023. Manny has made stops at Notre Dame College, Cuyahoga Community College and most recently Heidelberg University. Hill will play his final season of college basketball at Cleveland State.Â
SAME COLORS, NEW TEAM
Foster Wonders is another familiar name to Horizon League fans as he comes to Cleveland after two seasons at Green Bay. Wonders began his career at Southen Illinois before transferring to Green Bay for his sophomore and junior seasons. At Green Bay he played in 57 career games and averaged just under seven points per game. The Iron Mountain, Michigan native was one of the top scorers in Michigan Upper Peninsula basketball history finishing with over 2,200 points in his high school career.Â
PLAYER AND COACH TOGETHER AGAIN
Senior Tre Beard will see a familiar face on the Cleveland State bench as the season begins. Beard transfers in after three successful seasons at Shawnee State University. He was named an NAIA All-American last year after averaging 19.1 points per game. Beard played under current Cleveland State assistant coach Michael Hunter at Shawnee State, and the two are excited to work together again this season.Â
CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE AWAITS
Rob Summers has assembled a difficult non-conference slate in his first season in charge of the CSU program. The Vikings will match up with Loyola and Northwestern in the season's first week. Later in November, Summers will reunite with his mentor, former Cleveland State head coach Dennis Gates, as the two will square off when the Vikings visit Missouri. A trip to the historic Greenbrier Resort as well as a matchup with UAB are also on the schedule. Cleveland State will take on five teams that won 20 or more games last season and four who made postseason appearances in either the NCAA Tournament or NIT. Â
CLEVELAND STATE TABBED EIGHTH IN HORIZON LEAGUE PRESEASON POLL
The Horizon League released its preaseason poll which is voted on annually by coaches, media members and Sports Information Directors from each of the league's 11 institutions. Cleveland State was picked eighth in the rankings. Cleveland State received 217 total points, just shy of Wright State who is seventh with 221. Milwaukee has been picked as the preseason favorite finishing with 24 first place votes.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State returns to Chicago for its second road test of the 2025-26 season as the Vikings are set to visit Northwestern. The game tips off at 8:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on Big Ten Network.
