ROCHESTER, Mich. – The Vikings (5-12, 1-5) fell on the road to league leaders, Oakland (9-8, 5-1), 97-72 on Friday evening.

Four players finished with double-digit points, led by Dayan Nessah with 16 points on 8-of-10 shooting. Preist Ryan was next with 15 points, followed by Jaidon Lipscomb and Tre Beard with 11 points apiece.

Ryan and Josiah Harris each had six rebounds as the team finished with 39. The Vikings had nine steals, led by a game-best four from Beard.

Cleveland State scored the opening five points behind a Beard three-pointer and a Nessah layup. Oakland responded with the next eleven points to take an 11-5 advantage with 14:02 remaining in the first half.

A pair of Beard free throws and a Chevalier Emery driving layup brought the margin to a possession, 11-9, with 12:41 left in the half. The Golden Grizzlies extended the margin to 26-16 when the Green and White went on a 9-2 run to get within 28-25 at the 4:41 mark. Beard accounted for the first four points, and Ryan had the next five.

Oakland would go on to take a 45-27 lead into the break, with Beard leading the Vikings with nine points.

Cleveland State started the second half strong, outscoring Oakland 17-7 to get as close as eight, 52-44, with 15:40 to go in the second half. Nessah led the burst with six points.

The Vikings tallied the final eight points of the game behind six straight from Lipscomb as the Green and White fell 97-72.

The Green and White return to the court on Sunday, January 11, at Detroit with a start time of 1 p.m.