GAME #17
Cleveland State at Milwaukee
Sunday, January 4 | 3:00 pm (EST) | Milwaukee, Wis.
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SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will continue its first roadtrip of the 2026 calendar year on Sunday, January 4, traveling to Milwaukee for a 3:00 p.m. EST contest. Entering Sunday's matchup, the Vikings are 12-4 overall and 2-3 in Horizon League play, while Milwaukee stands at 4-11 on the year and 0-4 in league action.
A WIN ON SUNDAY WOULD...
Put the Vikings back in the win column…Mark the 10th straight win for the Vikings over Milwaukee…Give Cleveland State a 5-3 record when playing on the road this season.
THE CLEVELAND STATE/MILWAUKEE SERIES
Sunday's game will mark the 70th meeting between the two teams, with Milwaukee owning a slight 36-33 edge in the all-time series. Despite this advantage, Cleveland State has won nine straight against the Panthers.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
Milwaukee enters Sunday's game with a 4-11 record on the year, with the Panthers still searching for their first Horizon League win, standing at 0-4 in #HLWBB play…Most recently, Milwaukee has lost back-to-back games against IU Indy (58-49) and Robert Morris (62-52)…The Panthers' last win came on December 20 when they posted a 76-52 win over Wisconsin Lutheran…Sunday's game will be the second of a mini two-game homestand for the Panthers…Jorey Buwalda enters the game averaging 12.8 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, leading the league in rebounding and ranking eighth in scoring…Buwalda also ranks fifth averaging 0.9 blocked shots per game.
MAGASSA TRACKING 500 CAREER REBOUNDS
Entering Sunday's game at Milwaukee,
Ayisse Magassa is tracking down 500 career rebounds, as she currently has 495 boards. So far this season, Magassa is averaging 4.2 rebounds per game with 67 total boards. Earlier this season, Magassa grabbed a season-high 10 rebounds against Akron.
ZINGARO AMONG LEAGUE BEST IN SCORING & REBOUNDING
Entering the weekend,
Izabella Zingaro is one of just two Horizon League players to rank in the top-10 in scoring and rebounding (Jorey Buwalda, Milwaukee), ranking third averaging 14.5 points per game and seventh averaging 6.3 boards per game. In addition, Zingaro is one of the most efficient shooters from the floor, as she owns a .664 clip from the field on the year and a .828 clip from the free throw line.
FIVE VIKINGS HAVE DOUBLE-DOUBLES ON THE YEAR
Through the first part of the 2025-26 campaign a league-leading five Vikings have tallied double-doubles, including
Izabella Zingaro who has two on the year. Cleveland State also leads the league with eight individual 10+ rebounding performances so far this year, with Zingaro,
Madison Royal-Davis and
Macey Fegan being three of 12 #HLWBB players with multiple double-digit rebounding efforts.
CLEVELAND STATE ON THE OFFENSIVE END
As a team, Cleveland State has had one of the more efficient offenses so far this season, leading the Horizon League in Scoring (72.6), Margin (15.9) and Field Goal Percentage (.463). In addition, the Vikings have scored 70+ points nine times, while three Vikings rank in the top-five among league players in scoring;
Colbi Maples (2nd-15.9),
Izabella Zingaro (3rd-14.5) and
Jada Leonard (4th-13.4).
VIKINGS SHARING THE BALL
So far this season the Vikings have done a good job of sharing the ball, as they rank third among league teams averaging 13.88 assists per game. Last time out, Cleveland State recorded 14 assists at Green Bay, marking the sixth straight game that the Vikings have recorded double-digit helpers. Through the first 16 games, CSU has posted 10+ assists 16 times, including a pair of 20-assist games.
LEONARD NAMED #HLWBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After helping the Vikings to a 3-0 week before the Holidays,
Jada Leonard was named the Horizon League Player of the Week (December 22), earning the first weekly accolade for the Vikings this season. Leonard averaged 17.3 points, 5.7 assists and 2.7 steals throughout the three games against Northern Kentucky, College of Charleston and Puerto Rico-Bayamon, shooting 43-percent from the field and 42-percent from three-point range.
…LEONARD WITH THE TAKEAWAY
After 16 games played this season,
Jada Leonard continues to lead the Horizon League and rank sixth nationally with 54 steals on the year. Leonard, who has recorded at least one takeaway in every game this season, is averaging 3.4 steals per game and had two steals at Green Bay last time out. Leonard's 54 steals on the year makes her one of just nine Division I players with 50+ takeaways during the 2025-26 campaign.
VIKINGS IN NON-LEAGUE PLAY
Following the pair of wins in Puerto Rico before the Holidays, the Vikings finished non-league play with a 10-1 record. This marks the first time since the 2019-20 campaign that Cleveland State has finished with 10+ wins during its early season non-league slate.
…CLEVELAND STATE WITH DOUBLE-DIGIT WINS
Entering 2026, Cleveland State was the only Horizon League team with double-digit wins on the season, as the victory over Puerto Rico-Bayamon marked the 12th win of the year for the Vikings. With three more wins, the Vikings will eclipse the 15-win mark for the sixth time during head coach
Chris Kielsmeier's eight-year tenure.
VIKINGS IN THE RANKINGS
Cleveland State entered 2026 ranked 18th in the latest edition of the College Insider Women's Mid-Major Top-25 Poll. The Vikings are one of two Horizon League teams to be in the current rankings (Green Bay), while two other teams are receiving votes (Youngstown State and Purdue Fort Wayne).
HEAD COACH CHRIS KIELSMEIER
The Vikings will be under the direction of eighth-year head coach
Chris Kielsmeier, who owns a career head coaching record of 580-190. At Cleveland State, Kielsmeier owns a record of 164-74, with his 150th victory as a Viking coming in a 92-61 decision over Detroit Mercy last season. Under his guidance, Cleveland State has posted five 20-win seasons, including a program-record 30 wins during the 2023-24 campaign.
UP NEXT
Cleveland State will return to the Wolstein Center to begin a three-game homestand next week, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. contest against Wright State on Wednesday, January 7.
