Cole Ties Record With Fifth Men's Basketball Player of the Week Honor

INDIANAPOLIS – Cleveland State senior guard Norris Cole (Dayton, Ohio) has been named Horizon League Men’s Basketball Player of the Week, for the week beginning Feb. 14.  The honor is the fifth of the year for Cole and seventh of his career.  The senior becomes just the third player in Horizon League history to record five such honors in the same season, joining Rashad Phillips and Darin Archbold in record books.

Averaging 25.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists on the week, Cole played a direct role in 31 of the Vikings’ 46 made field goals, going 16-of-37 from the floor while handing out 15 assists.  Cleveland State (23-6, 12-4 Horizon) split its two road games on the week, collecting a 74-72 victory at Wright State to take a one-half game lead in the Horizon League before falling in a nationally televised Sears BracketBusters contest at Old Dominion, 74-63.

Playing a facilitator role in Wednesday night’s win, Cole tallied his sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 assists.  Cole’s final assist of the game came on the three-pointer that ultimately gave Cleveland State the lead for good, as he found Tre Harmon alone on the right side for a triple with 1:01 to play, putting the Vikings ahead, 68-66.

In front of an ESPN2 audience in the lone Sears BracketBusters game of the day, Cole put on a show for the packed Ted Constant Convention Center, setting a new BracketBusters and Ted Constant Convention Center opponent record with 35 points in the road loss.  The senior tallied 24 of Cleveland State’s 28 first-half points, eventually knocking down a career-best eight three-pointers before fouling out in the waning minute.  The Bob Cousy Award Finalist finished one three-pointer shy of tying the Cleveland State record.

Cleveland State will wrap up its regular season with at least a share of the Horizon League title in its sights.  The Vikings host Milwaukee on Thurday, Feb. 24, at 7 p.m. ET, live on HorizonLeague.com.  CSU will honor Cole during senior day on Saturday, Feb. 26, when it hosts Green Bay at 2 p.m. ET in the Horizon League Game of the Week.  its the road for its next two matchups, crossing Ohio for a Wednesday contest at Wright State.

Top Performers for the Week:
Matt Howard, Butler (Sr., F) - The senior climbed into third on the Butler career scoring charts, averaging 20.5 points in two victories to reach 1,809 in his tenure.  Howard began his week with the game-winning dunk in a 64-62 win at Green Bay, slamming the ball home with just 1.8 ticks left.  With one more start on Butler’s senior day, Howard will take over first place in the Butler record books with 125.

Nick Minnerath, Detroit (Jr., F) - Minnerath recorded his fifth 20-point outing since New Year’s Day, ripping off 15 points in the first 10 minutes of a 91-79 triumph over Youngstown State, eventually finishing with 26.  The junior finished just shy of a double-double in Detroit’s BracketBusters loss at Drake, falling a point and two boards shy of the feat.

Rahmon Fletcher, Green Bay (Sr., G) - Climbing into sixth place on the Green Bay scoring charts, Fletcher posted 18 points in a two-point setback to Butler and led the way with 22 in a last-second loss at Southern Illinois.  The senior became the Phoenix’s all-time leader in games started, tallying his 119th career start on Saturday.

Geoff McCammon, Loyola (Sr., G) - On senior day, McCammon set a new single-season three-point standard for Loyola, knocking down his 78th of the year to set a new record.  In his final game at the Gentile Center, the senior poured in 20 points, three days after posting 23 in a last-second victory over city foe UIC.

Tone Boyle, Milwaukee (Sr., G) - Boyle helped Milwaukee stay in the hunt for a Horizon League regular season title, recording a career-best 28 points in a 79-76 win over Valparaiso on Wednesday.  The senior knocked down 5-of-10 three-point attempts.  Boyle added four more triples on Saturday, finishing with 16 points in a team-high 37 minutes.

Brandon Wood, Valparaiso (Jr., G) - With 47 points as Valpo split two games, Wood climbed within four points of 1,000 in his Crusaders career.  Wood led the way in both contests, tallying 23 at Milwaukee and 24 in front of a national television audience in Saturday night’s 80-67 demolition of Missouri State.

Vaughn Duggins, Wright State (Sr., G) - Kicking off the TV slate of Sears BracketBusters on Saturday, Duggins shone on ESPNU, posting a career-high 31 points in an 82-56 rout of Hofstra.  Defensively, Duggins helped limit Charles Jenkins, the country’s fourth-leading scorer, to just three baskets.  The first Raiders to eclipse 30 points in over three years, Duggins went for 21 points in a midweek loss to Cleveland State.

Damian Eargle, Youngstown State (So., F) - Tying a career high with 25 points against Detroit, Eargle supplemented his 10-of-18 shooting effort with five blocks on the defensive end of the court.  Eargle led Youngstown State to an 83-76 win over in-state foe Bowling Green on Saturday, recording 15 points and three blocks, closing to within three blocks of taking over second place on the YSU single-season chart.