A shorthanded Youngstown State women's basketball team will try
to take advantage of a light week as it plays at Cleveland State on
Friday. The Penguins, playing in their only game during a 12-day
span, will try to rebound from disappointing home losses to
Valparaiso and Butler last week. The Vikings have won three
straight games, including contests against Valpo and
Butler.
Scouting Cleveland State
Cleveland State has four starters back from last season's 19-win
team, including Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year Kailey
Klein. Klein leads the circuit in scoring at 16.5 points per game,
which includes 20.2 points in league games. Preseason all-league
selection Shawnita Garland is averaging 16.2 points in league
games. In league games, Cleveland State ranks second in scoring
offense (70.2 points per game) but ninth in scoring defense
(67.5).
Guins Have Started Well at Home...
In each of its four Horizon League contests at home,
Youngstown State has played very well in the first 15 minutes. The
game against Butler on Saturday was the first time that YSU trailed
at the five-minute mark in a home league game, and the margin was
just four at 18-14. On Jan. 14 against Valparaiso, the Penguins
took a 24-14 lead with 5:09 remaining. YSU also led Green Bay 28-22
on Jan. 4 and Milwaukee 23-18 on Jan. 2. As the chart shows below,
the Penguins have not been able to maintain those solid starts.
...But Not on the Road
In contrast to its solid starts at home, YSU has really struggled
out of the gate on the road. Through 15 minutes, YSU has trailed by
at least 18 in three of its last four road contests dating back to
Dec. 13, 2009. YSU trailed 34-14 at Buffalo on Dec. 13, 41-23 at
Saint Francis (Pa.) on Dec. 17 and 31-12 at UIC on Jan. 7. The
Penguins were down 24-17 at Loyola at the five-minute mark of the
first half.
Big Runs Have Been Costly
In each of its last five games, Youngstown State has allowed its
opponents to go on runs of at least 10-0 at some point during the
game. Butler scored 10 straight points twice against YSU on
Saturday, the first of which was over the final 6:33 of the first
half to make the halftime score 28-14. On Jan. 14 against Valpo,
the Crusaders scored the final five points of the first half and
the first 12 of the second half to turn a nine-point deficit into
an eight-point lead. At Loyola on Jan. 9, Loyola went on three
different 11-0 runs, two of which were in the second half. On Jan.
7, UIC scored 14 straight points in four minutes to turn a 5-4 lead
into a 19-4 advantage. The Flames also scored 13 consecutive points
early in the second half to up its lead to 29 points.
Consistency in Starting Line-Up
If nothing else, having a maximum of eight players healthy
has allowed head coach Cindy Martin to have more consistency with
the starting line-up this season compared to last year. The tandem
of Macey
Nortey, Bojana
Dimitrov, Kenya
Middlebrooks, Brandi Brown
and Rachael
Manuel has started 12 of YSU's 17 games this season. Last year,
Martin had a different starting line-up in 12 straight contests
before starting five seniors in the regular season finale and the
opening round of the league tournament.
Succeeding in the Classroom
The YSU women's basketball team had a very successful fall
in the classroom as 10 members posted at least a 3.0 grade-point
average. As a group, the team had a 3.29 GPA for the semester,
which ranked fourth out of YSU's 14 teams. Out of the 12 players on
the squad, 11 have at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA. Freshman Kaitlin
Rohrs earned a perfect 4.0 GPA in the fall, and Rohrs, Bojana
Dimitrov, Makala
Gasparek, Tieara Jones
and Kaitlyn
March all have cumulative GPA's above 3.5.
Brown Moving Up on Freshman Records Lists
Forward Brandi Brown has a chance to have one of the best seasons
for a freshman in YSU history. Through 17 games and with at least
13 remaining, Brown has grabbed 184 rebounds, which ranks sixth
among freshman in school history. If she keeps up her average of
10.8, she'll pass Jen Perugini's record of 239 caroms six games
from today. If she maintains her scoring average of 11.6 points,
she'll edge Caroline McCombs' record total of 346 by two.
Up Next
Youngstown State continues its three-game road swing at Detroit on
Jan. 28 at 5 p.m
