Free Live Odds - Scores and Odds - Sports News - Sports Information - Live Scores - Sports Statistics - Sports Articles - Sports Standings - Live Scor

GAME NOTES: The Cleveland State Vikings take a break from their Horizon League schedule to face the Toledo Rockets of the Mid-American Conference in a BracketBusters matchup at the Wolstein Center.

Toledo has lost an agonizing 17 consecutive games, a stretch that began way back on December 12th. The Rockets have won just three games on the season, and all three came at home. Their most recent outing resulted in a dismal 58-42 loss to Eastern Michigan on Wednesday, marking the third straight game the Rockets failed to crack 50 points.

The last time the Vikings took the floor at the Wolstein Center, they had a 14-game Horizon League home winning streak snapped against Butler last Saturday. In the week since that loss, Cleveland State has dropped a pair of road games at Green Bay on Tuesday (74-57) and at Milwaukee on Thursday (69-59). This will be the fifth game in the last 10 days for the Vikings, who close out the regular season with two more home games against Detroit and Wright State this week.

Toledo owns a 5-2 lead in the all-time series between these two schools, although CSU cruised to a 77-56 victory when these teams met last November.

As mentioned, Toledo's already suspect offense has really flattened out over the last three games, averaging a mere 45 points over that span. The Rockets put up another dud at home on Wednesday night, shooting a collective 34 percent from the floor in a 16-point loss to EMU. The Rockets ended the first half without a field goal over the final six minutes, and they trailed, 31-12 at the break. Only reserve Ian Salter reached double figures, though he scored eight of his 10 points in the second half when the outcome was all but official. The team's leading scorer on the year is Jake Barnett at 13.0 ppg. Barnett has been in the starting lineup for every game this season, though he is shooting just 36.6 percent from the floor. Toledo is a -4.5 in turnover margin.

Cleveland State junior guard Norris Cole has been a big part of his team's success this season, as he ranks second in the Horizon League with 16.4 ppg. However, he does get some help at the offensive end as Jeremy Montgomery is a 41.7 percent shooter from the perimeter (58-of-139) who averages 12.6 ppg, while Trevon Harmon is tallying 11.0 ppg. The Vikings have been going with a four-guard lineup, and that size disadvantage has hurt them at times, as they are a -4.2 in rebounding margin. They were out-rebounded by a considerable 48-31 margin against Milwaukee on Thursday, which proved to be a major factor in the outcome. Also working against the Vikes was a poor 37.5 percent shooting effort from the floor, as only Cole reached double figures with his 22 points.

Cleveland State has lost three straight, all by double digits, and those losses came directly after a season-best six-game win streak. While their sudden tailspin is a bit perplexing, the Vikings should have little trouble disposing of Toledo at home.