Top 10 Moments

In a season where so many great things happened, it is tough to cut them down to a list of just 10, but here is my Top 10. If you disagree with any, or think something should have made the list that did not, let us hear your feedback at www.csucauldron.com.

10. 1/3/08, CSU breaks Loyola-Chicago winning streak: The Vikings got an explosive performance from Kevin Francis off the bench, as he scored 15 points, including a career-high four treys. The win snapped an 11-game winning streak that the Ramblers had over CSU in the past few years.

9. 2/23/08, Head Coach Gary Waters earns his 200th victory: In leading Cleveland State to a 21-12 record this season, Waters earned his 200th victory in a convincing win over Marist 59-44 during the ESPNU BrackBusters game. Waters won games through the years at Kent State and Rutgers as well.

8. 11/10/07, Vikings claim first win ever over Big East Conference team: The game took place while the Cleveland Browns were just halfway through their season, but it helped the Vikings RPI. During the first game of the season, CSU knocked off Big East Conference foe South Florida 73-70 on their home court in Tampa, Florida.

7. 1/21/07, Cleveland State gets an AP Top 25 vote: It is still a mystery who voted for the Vikings, but there is no question that they did not deserve it. At the time CSU had just defeated Valparaiso at the Wolstein Center and stood with a record of 14-5 overall and an undefeated 7-0 in the Horizon League.

6. 3/3/07, Bullock named First Team All-Horizon League: At the beginning of the season he was a Preseason Second Team selection, however J'Nathan Bullock proved everyone wrong as he has all his life. His 15.0 ppg this season, 39 points against Wisconsin- Green Bay, and his ability to help the team win close games makes him this season's "Team MVP".

5. 11/17/07, CSU beats another ACC opponent: Last season it was the Miami Hurricanes, this season it was the Florida State Seminoles. Trailing the entire game, the Vikings surged back to bring the game into overtime, and defeated yet another Atlantic Coast Conference opponent, this time at the Glenn Wilkes Classic. The Vikings are 3-0 against the ACC and Big East under Coach Gary Waters.

4. 1/10/08, Vikings finally win at Detroit: Early on it looked like Detroit was going to extend their home winning streak vs. the Vikings to 22-0. In the history of CSU basketball, they had never won at Calihan Hall in Detroit, Michigan. However, this time, the Vikings clawed back from a 13-point deficit and won 74-64.

3. 1/12/08, Cleveland State knocks off Wright State: Since the turn of the 21st Century, Wright State and Butler have been powers in the Horizon League. Especially last season, when both teams made a trip to the NCAA Tournament; that all changed this season. Trailing 63-62, Cleveland State set up a play for Kevin Francis at the top of the key, who nailed a three-pointer with nine seconds remaining to hold off the Raiders on their home floor 65-63.

2. 3/8/08, CSU makes it to Horizon League Tournament Final: During the final week of the season, the second-seed was still up for grabs. The Vikings did their part be defeating Youngstown State, now Wright State had to lose twice. And they did, falling to Butler and Valparaiso. After using two byes to reach the semifinals, Cleveland State defeated Valpo 78-73 to reach the Horizon League Tournament Championship game. It would be the first time the Vikings reached a league title game since 1987.

1. 1/17/08, Cleveland State shocks No. 12 Butler: In the week leading up to this Horizon League showdown, experts on ESPN claimed that Butler was on "upset alert" in visiting the Wolstein Center. With a crowd of 5,655 on hand to cheer on the Vikings, they did just as the experts predicted defeating the 12th ranked team in the country 56-52, which had students rush the floor for Cleveland State. It was the single greatest moment at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland State basketball history.