Indianapolis, Ind. - For the first time in program history, Youngstown State is headed to the finals of the 2025 Barbasol Horizon League Championship. The Penguins defeated Cleveland State 56-54 in the semifinals and will play Robert Morris in the championship game on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast live on ESPN and 570 WKBN.
Youngstown State trailed 54-52 when Ty Harper hit a corner 3-pointer with 43 seconds left, and he made his ensuing free throw to complete a four-point play. The Penguins, who played outstanding defense all night, forced three more missed shots and came up with a turnover as time expired at Corteva Coliseum in Indianapolis sending the YSU faithful into a frenzy.
Siem Uijtendaal led the Penguins with 13 points, while Harper and Nico Galette both had nine in a hard-fought semifinal contest.
The Guins trailed 29-22 early in the second before Jason Nelson helped pull YSU within 32-31. From there, Uijtendaal stepped up scoring 10 straight points including a pair of 3-pointers as YSU fought to take a 42-41 lead.
Down 48-45 with 4:46 left, Harper calmly made three free throws after getting fouled. From that point it was a battle to the finish.
Nelson tied the game at 50 with a layup and Gabe Dynes tied the game at 52 with a dunk at the 1:22 mark. CSU made a pair of free throws with 1:08 remaining, but was held scoreless as Harper's heroics sealed the win.
The first half featured some impressive lock-down defense by the Guins as they limited Cleveland State without a field goal for more than nine minutes.
After falling behind 2-0, the Guins responded with nine straight points as Maxey converted a 3-pointer from the far corner.
With 8:24 left in the half, Maxey scored on a driving layup to make the lead nine again at 14-5. Finally after staunch YSU defense, the Vikings broke through with a 3-pointer at the 8:00 mark.
In the first half, YSU forced eight turnovers, but also missed eight free throws.
Youngstown State led 22-18 late before a 3-pointer by CSU trimmed the deficit to one at the intermission.
Both teams made seven field goals in the first half with four coming from beyond the 3-point arc for the Vikings and three for the Guins.
