INDIANAPOLIS — Cleveland State is just one step away from returning to the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament.
The Vikings easily handled Wright State 83-50 Monday afternoon in the semifinals of the Horizon League Tournament. Top-seeded CSU will face No. 2 Green Bay Tuesday in the conference finals, with the winner punching its ticket to March Madness.
Roughly a week after being named Horizon League Player of the Year, Colbi Maples tallied 14 points for the Vikes (29-4) to eclipse the 1,000 mark for her career. However, it was Newcomer of the Year Mickayla Perdue who led the way with 18 points on 8 of 13 shooting, while Jordana Reisma had 10 points and 10 boards and Sara Guerreiro scored 11 with six assists.
Outscored in the paint 42-18, the fourth-seeded Raiders (18-15) never led in the game and trailed by as many as 38 in the third quarter. Alex Hutchison had a game-high 22 points for WSU along with seven rebounds and five assists, while Kacee Baumhower added 15.
Cleveland State defeated Green Bay 73-61 in last year's Horizon League finals to advance to the NCAA Tournament. This year, the roles are slightly reversed, with the Phoenix seeded second and the Vikings at No. 1. The two teams played each other twice in the regular season, splitting both meetings.
Tipoff for tomorrow's championship game is set for noon at Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis.