By Zachary Flesch / The Jambar
Coming off the 76-70 loss to University of Detroit Mercy on Feb. 15, the Youngstown State University men’s basketball team followed up with a historic 106-82 win over Cleveland State University on Feb. 18.
The Penguins set a program record, scoring 106 points in the Horizon League matchup. The previous program record was 105 points against Indiana University Indianapolis in 2023 and Detroit Mercy in 2024.
The Penguins shot 63.5% from the field and 63.6% from 3-point range. Youngstown State also shot 26-of-34 from the free-throw line and outrebounded the Vikings, 38-25.
Five Penguins scored in double figures, led by seniors Cris Carroll and Vlad Salaridze, who contributed 26 and 24 points, respectively. Senior Bryson Dawkins chipped in with 13 points and juniors Tae Blackshear and Rich Rolf posted 18 and 12 points, respectively. Senior Derrick Anderson scored the record-breaking basket for the Penguins with 46 seconds left in the game.
The Vikings had the highest scorer of the contest, senior Jaidon Lipscomb, who had 32 points and 12-of-21 shots from the field.
Following the win, Head Coach Ethan Faulkner said he was proud of his team’s offensive effort.
“I thought we played very well offensively, we really shared the ball. This was a game that certainly called for us to attack them inside against their defense, and when you have 21 assists on 33 made baskets, that’s always a recipe for success,” Faulkner said.
After his 24-point performance, Salaridze said his teammates trusted him on offense.
“Early on I had it going, my teammates trusted me taking those shots, and I knocked them down,” Salaridze said.
The Penguins returned home Feb. 22 to Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center for a 64-58 win on senior day against Northern Kentucky University.
The Penguins never trailed in this game and started off with a 16-4 run over the first nine minutes of the contest. Going into halftime, Youngstown State led by 35-15 before the Norse cut into that lead in the second half.
The Norse scored 11 of the first 13 points of the second half to trim the Penguins’ lead to 11.
With 5:41 left in the second half, the Norse cut the deficit to three points before Carroll made four free throws to seal the win for Youngstown State.
Dawkins led the way for the Penguins scoring 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field. Carroll recorded his third double-double of the year and scored 15 points with 10 rebounds. Senior Immanuel Zorgol added to his league-leading block total with four, which brought his season total to 57.
After the win, Dawkins said that he and his team played with determination for senior night and the last home game this season.
“It’s senior night. We refused to lose on senior night, and it’s our last home game, so we knew there was a lot on the line,” Dawkins said.
Faulkner said he was impressed with his team’s defensive intensity in their win over NKU.
“I thought the first half was the best half of defense we’ve played all year, and again, it was the execution of the game plan and rebounding the basketball,” Faulkner said.
The Penguins start their final road stretch of the year against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Feb. 25. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. at UWM Panther Arena and can be streamed on ESPN+.